It came up in coaching again this week….this notion of specializing. So many clients are looking for some specific things, and rather than going to people who specialize in them (smart), they are STILL hoping to find VAs who specialize (stupid). That’s added to by folks within our profession who continue to say that the only way to be successful as VAs now is to specialize in social media/internet marketing strategy.
My position hasn’t changed. That’s crap.
No specialization in the world will make you a super-successful Virtual Assistant. It’ll simply make you the specialization and not a Virtual Assistant at all. If you want to be the specialization, I fully support that decision; there will simply be less confusion in the Virtual Assistance marketplace as a result, and that will be good for literally everyone.
But for those of you who really want to be Virtual Assistants, I’ll say it again: You don’t need any one specific skill set to become successful. The idea that you do? That’s crap, too.
Bit O’Moxie: What you do need is to step up and into this big beautiful world we’re now living in that includes social media/networking and internet marketing (using all things Web 2.0-related).
Why? Well, first of all, because it'll improve your practice and let you build something with greater ease. And that's really a good enough reason, yanno?
But for those who want more, let’s take a jaunt down memory lane…
If you’re old enough, think back to the day when you were happily typing away on your IBM Selectric…the biggest, yummiest, most elegant typewriter on the planet, and the new IS guy showed up with your very first computer (or was it a Wang?).
Chances are you didn’t really want the new technology. You were happy with your typewriter, and thought the learning curve would be too steep, all your systems would have to change, it would impact your productivity, you’d get behind and never catch you, and the “upgrade” wasn’t…well, really wasn’t an upgrade at all, as far as you were concerned.
If you didn’t actually wrap your arms around your typewriter to keep it from being replaced you mighta sure felt like it, and I'm betting that internally, that's exactly what you were doing.
That’s the place I see TONS of VAs in right now. Web 2.0 is the basis for everything worthwhile today. Social media and social networking are it . They’re here. The time is now. They are no longer in the future, and maybe something to think about…something to consider…somewhere down the road. These are not tools for "others." These are the tools we use to communicate with clients, with the world, and with each other. Without these tools, our professional world would be oh-so-much smaller. And to push them away--to keep them at arms length, rather than getting involved with all your might--it's foolish in the extreme.
If that’s where you are, you're in great company. Lots of people abhor change. And this change is mighty big. But if you're in that place,then you’re just like our retro babe still hugging her typewriter, and although you might not really want to, you have to let it go. LET IT GO. You simply cannot become a troglodyte.
Web 1.0 has a future…a very little one. And standing along side it are print media, old-fashioned marketing and networking techniques, and many “traditional” ways of communicating, connecting, and building businesses. Will they continue to be around? Sure. But in significantly smaller amounts. The world--at least our world--is online, and starting to kick ass and take names.
So to thrive (because it’s really not enough to survive, is it?) you have to step into and deal with what’s current. Our entire profession is one of forward thinking; hugging the typewriter and all other related behavior is really antithetical to everything we’re about.
You absolutely cannot afford to wait one more moment to step into this reality, because every second that you do, the early adopters are one moment MORE ahead of you. In fairly short order, you’ll find yourself so behind you really will never catch up. And then? Your business simply won’t survive.
There. I said it.
So what’s the difference between what those other people are saying about having to become expert at social media/networking, and what I’m saying? Just this:
In the world according to them, this is the holy grail; the service offerings without which you will never have a successful and thriving practice because you won’t be able to get clients without them. In the world according to me, you don’t have to be expert with these skills or make them high-level service offerings, you just have to be experienced enough.
And what’s “enough?” Enough is the place where you can use these tools to your own benefit, and then help your clients do the same. If the strategy piece eludes you, then at least become proficient with implementation, and knowledgeable about the different tools and services.
And the way to get to that place is through doing. This is stuff you learn by doing. This is not stuff you learn by listening to other people talk about it, or by reading books or articles about it. You must get involved. A class or two might be helpful in shortening your learning curve, but if you’re a self-directed learner, or an intuitive learner, getting to understand the sites and tools and platforms available simply requires doing. It’s truly not rocket science, and it’s ALL been designed for the user to be able to sign up and GO. So GO. Do it. Get involved. Start today—because you’re already behind if you haven’t begun.
Feeling stressed? Not sure where to begin? I'll tell ya:
First, go to LinkedIn and set up an account (use your name!). Create a profile. Connect with people you know. Be sure to add your picture!
Second, go to Facebook and set up an account (use your name!). Create a profile. Connect with people you know. Be sure to add your picture! Update your status at least once a day. Read what your friends are doing. Write short comments on their Walls.
Third, go to Twitter (these form my perfect trifecta for integration into social networking, btw) and set up an account (use your name if it's short, be more creative if it's not!). Create a profile. Connect with people you know. See who they follow and follow some of them. Be sure to add your picture! Tweet about what you're doing at least three times a day. Talk with people you're following. Share valuable information when you have it to share (could be a link to a blog post, another tweet, an article you read, a web site, etc.).
Be sure to add me in all three places (LI, FB, T) and let me know you're a VMoxie reader. I'd love to connect with you!
All along the way, follow links. Read about stuff you didn't know before. Be authentic. Be transparent. Be interested to be found interesting. Spend 30-60 minutes each day (combined--on LI, FB, and T).
Use these three tools/services/communities repeatedly (as in every day--weekends, too) for 30 days. Just 30. At the end of that time, your world will be a much bigger happier place, you'll know more, will understand more, you will be able to do more with social media, social marketing, and Web 2.0 tools than you can possibly imagine sitting there right now, you'll have stronger/better resources, and you'll very likely be more successful (in general) than you are today.
You really have nothing to lose--except your typewriter :)
My position hasn’t changed. That’s crap.
No specialization in the world will make you a super-successful Virtual Assistant. It’ll simply make you the specialization and not a Virtual Assistant at all. If you want to be the specialization, I fully support that decision; there will simply be less confusion in the Virtual Assistance marketplace as a result, and that will be good for literally everyone.
But for those of you who really want to be Virtual Assistants, I’ll say it again: You don’t need any one specific skill set to become successful. The idea that you do? That’s crap, too.
Bit O’Moxie: What you do need is to step up and into this big beautiful world we’re now living in that includes social media/networking and internet marketing (using all things Web 2.0-related).
Why? Well, first of all, because it'll improve your practice and let you build something with greater ease. And that's really a good enough reason, yanno?
But for those who want more, let’s take a jaunt down memory lane…
If you’re old enough, think back to the day when you were happily typing away on your IBM Selectric…the biggest, yummiest, most elegant typewriter on the planet, and the new IS guy showed up with your very first computer (or was it a Wang?
Chances are you didn’t really want the new technology. You were happy with your typewriter, and thought the learning curve would be too steep, all your systems would have to change, it would impact your productivity, you’d get behind and never catch you, and the “upgrade” wasn’t…well, really wasn’t an upgrade at all, as far as you were concerned.
If you didn’t actually wrap your arms around your typewriter to keep it from being replaced you mighta sure felt like it, and I'm betting that internally, that's exactly what you were doing.
That’s the place I see TONS of VAs in right now. Web 2.0 is the basis for everything worthwhile today. Social media and social networking are it . They’re here. The time is now. They are no longer in the future, and maybe something to think about…something to consider…somewhere down the road. These are not tools for "others." These are the tools we use to communicate with clients, with the world, and with each other. Without these tools, our professional world would be oh-so-much smaller. And to push them away--to keep them at arms length, rather than getting involved with all your might--it's foolish in the extreme.
If that’s where you are, you're in great company. Lots of people abhor change. And this change is mighty big. But if you're in that place,then you’re just like our retro babe still hugging her typewriter, and although you might not really want to, you have to let it go. LET IT GO. You simply cannot become a troglodyte.
Web 1.0 has a future…a very little one. And standing along side it are print media, old-fashioned marketing and networking techniques, and many “traditional” ways of communicating, connecting, and building businesses. Will they continue to be around? Sure. But in significantly smaller amounts. The world--at least our world--is online, and starting to kick ass and take names.
So to thrive (because it’s really not enough to survive, is it?) you have to step into and deal with what’s current. Our entire profession is one of forward thinking; hugging the typewriter and all other related behavior is really antithetical to everything we’re about.
You absolutely cannot afford to wait one more moment to step into this reality, because every second that you do, the early adopters are one moment MORE ahead of you. In fairly short order, you’ll find yourself so behind you really will never catch up. And then? Your business simply won’t survive.
There. I said it.
So what’s the difference between what those other people are saying about having to become expert at social media/networking, and what I’m saying? Just this:
In the world according to them, this is the holy grail; the service offerings without which you will never have a successful and thriving practice because you won’t be able to get clients without them. In the world according to me, you don’t have to be expert with these skills or make them high-level service offerings, you just have to be experienced enough.
And what’s “enough?” Enough is the place where you can use these tools to your own benefit, and then help your clients do the same. If the strategy piece eludes you, then at least become proficient with implementation, and knowledgeable about the different tools and services.
And the way to get to that place is through doing. This is stuff you learn by doing. This is not stuff you learn by listening to other people talk about it, or by reading books or articles about it. You must get involved. A class or two might be helpful in shortening your learning curve, but if you’re a self-directed learner, or an intuitive learner, getting to understand the sites and tools and platforms available simply requires doing. It’s truly not rocket science, and it’s ALL been designed for the user to be able to sign up and GO. So GO. Do it. Get involved. Start today—because you’re already behind if you haven’t begun.
Feeling stressed? Not sure where to begin? I'll tell ya:
First, go to LinkedIn and set up an account (use your name!). Create a profile. Connect with people you know. Be sure to add your picture!
Second, go to Facebook and set up an account (use your name!). Create a profile. Connect with people you know. Be sure to add your picture! Update your status at least once a day. Read what your friends are doing. Write short comments on their Walls.
Third, go to Twitter (these form my perfect trifecta for integration into social networking, btw) and set up an account (use your name if it's short, be more creative if it's not!). Create a profile. Connect with people you know. See who they follow and follow some of them. Be sure to add your picture! Tweet about what you're doing at least three times a day. Talk with people you're following. Share valuable information when you have it to share (could be a link to a blog post, another tweet, an article you read, a web site, etc.).
Be sure to add me in all three places (LI, FB, T) and let me know you're a VMoxie reader. I'd love to connect with you!
All along the way, follow links. Read about stuff you didn't know before. Be authentic. Be transparent. Be interested to be found interesting. Spend 30-60 minutes each day (combined--on LI, FB, and T).
Use these three tools/services/communities repeatedly (as in every day--weekends, too) for 30 days. Just 30. At the end of that time, your world will be a much bigger happier place, you'll know more, will understand more, you will be able to do more with social media, social marketing, and Web 2.0 tools than you can possibly imagine sitting there right now, you'll have stronger/better resources, and you'll very likely be more successful (in general) than you are today.
You really have nothing to lose--except your typewriter :)
Thank you!
Posted by: Janine@VoilA! Virtual Assistance | January 15, 2009 at 09:09 AM
Stacy, your comments are spot on! I'm one of those folks who adored my Selectric, and that's all I needed. Well, that and the Telex machine. Anyway, I have managed to drag myself kicking and screaming into this "newfangled" world of Web 2.0. (Since I have the phrase "cutting-edge technology" in my tag, I really didn't have a choice.) I am signed up on FB, LI and Twitter, but I need to make better use of all three. Thanks for the reminder that social networking is becoming an essential component of a successful VA practice.
Posted by: Kathy Watkins | January 15, 2009 at 09:22 AM