November 5, 2008

Friends and Clients,

Oh, how to stay politically neutral on the day after Election Day?  I write these articles and notes about a week before they get to you, so I’m assuming something in the air feels different this morning, and I hope you are relieved and optimistic, regardless of which candidate you voted for.  I was listening to a workshop a couple of weeks ago (click here to view), and she simply said that we need to let our politicians off the hook. They are not responsible for our happiness. You also may be wondering how I’m going to tie the voting process into office organizing.  It was a stretch, but I think I managed to do it here.

The timing of Tracey’s tip this week was uncanny.  It came in about an hour after I sent a desperate plea of help to a virtual assistant!  I’ll let you know how it goes in the coming weeks and months.  I’d like more time to spend writing, visualizing, following up with clients, and searching for vintage Eames management chairs on Ebay.

Click here to read the cover article on Kacy in the Washington Post Jobs section.

As a consultant, coach and new author, Tracey L. Williams used to believe that she had to manage all aspects of her various businesses. Over time, the quality of her work began to suffer and limited her ability to be effective, that is until she made the decision to obtain help. With a little research, help came in the form of a Virtual Assistant, or VA.

Tracey now has more time to concentrate on endeavors that contribute to her business success. Her Virtual Assistant has helped to double her productivity and provide a higher level of service within her coaching practice, by allowing her to focus less on tasks and more on her clients. And with the extra help, Tracey had more time to write and publish Things Men Say, a fun, lighthearted, novelty book based on one woman’s dating life.

Virtual Assistants, a growing trend for small business owners, can be easily found with a simple web/Google search, or directly at http://www.assistu.com. “The great thing about VAs,” says Tracey, “is that you don’t have to be in the same location—everything is donevia phone, fax, or online.”

Tracey L. Williams, MBA is a consummate marketing professional,business coach, and visionary who has founded multiple businesses during her career span of 16 years. As a coach Tracey helps individuals to better market their businesses and achieve success and purpose within the business world. Tracey balances her life by employing her natural gifts and pursuing varied passions. Her book, Things Men Say, embodies this philosophy and is truly an expression of her creativity and playful spirit.  For more information about coaching services visit www.coachingwerks.com or to purchase her book visit www.thingsmensaybook.com

If you would like to market yourself by sharing a tip in an upcoming newsletter, follow the above format and submit a short tip, 100 words or less, and description of your business to kacy@theinspiredoffice.com. Readers from outside Metro DC are also welcome to submit.

Are you a creative business owner who can’t see past the piles on your desk
. . . or your floor? 

Do you know your business would run better if only your paper flow system worked better? 

Are you much more successful and visionary than the state of your office indicates? 

Choose from “The Art of Filing”, “The Inspired Office Makeover”, or “IOU- The Inspired Office University” to breathe some life into your office. 

Click here to learn more about Kacy's face to face consults.

Want to learn more about
The Inspired Office and how you can have one?

Visit
www.theinspiredoffice.com

How inspired is your office? 
How tall and dusty are your piles?
Take the Inspired Office Assessment now to calculate your organizing grade by clicking here.

Vote It Off The Island

Over the years I’ve noticed some Kacy-isms that have come to roll off my tongue.  If you’ve worked with me, you may have heard “vote it off the island.”  Be it a reality show or a political election, thousands of contestants have been weeded out to get to the finalists.  Our offices should only have the objects that are the most useful, beautiful, or inspiring. Everything else must be voted off your island.

How to keep the riff raff out of your office? Hold an election and kick them out one by one! I’m talking inanimate riff raff: crusty file folders, broken file drawers, old CPUs that you have been meaning to erase since the ‘90s . . . Have you ever stared at your bookshelf, knowing that half of your collection can go, but you don’t know where to start?  Do you feel like there are pieces of furniture in your office that can go, you just don’t know how to part ways? Look at your bookshelf and just pull off the one book that you’ll never read again or pass on.  Have an empty or broken filing cabinet?  It simply can’t stand up to the challenges ahead.

What in your office is too weak to survive?  Kick out the self help book you never got through, the 10 most beat up file folders, or the three-hole punch that’s been stuck since you were in college. Then go for the second worst book, a second round of folders, a second look at your décor on the walls.  After a few elections, you’ll be surrounded only by winners!