Like many people, I ended 2021 with big plans for 2022. With Covid restrictions finally easing, 2022 was going to be my year. Cue Covid still being very much a thing, getting Covid over Christmas and infecting all my family. Whilst following our skiing trip, my partner was forced to stay in France over Christmas to self-isolate, it wasn’t quite the start to the year I had hoped for. Fast forward 6 months and we are already halfway through 2022.
After seeing a prompt by the lovely Pamela in her SEO Beautiful Lite Membership this morning, I thought I would put pen to paper and document some of my results and learnings from the first half of 2022…
Q1 and Q2 as an Eco Virtual Assistant in Numbers:
So far in 2022 Planner Bee VA Services has supported 17 sustainable and ethical small businesses and provided 865 hours of support including:
- Writting 40 pieces of website content/ blog posts
- Creating 175 social media posts
- Sending 85 email newsletters
Increasing our Impact and Supporting Small Businesses as an Eco Virtual Assistant
After founding Planner Bee VA Services in 2021, my 2022 goals were all about going BIG by supporting more eco-friendly businesses and working with ethical companies to create an even more significant environmental impact together. Part of this was about helping more sustainable business owners to uplevel and grow their businesses with my eco VA services.
My 2022 goal to go BIG also centered around creating a community of sustainable small business owners and supporting ethical businesses to thrive in every way I can. As part of this, I am launching a Sustainable Small Business Directory for the Planner Bee VA Services website. I strongly believe that eco-friendly businesses are the future and so this directory is my way of giving back and supporting the community that has supported me as a VA. It is completely free to join the directory and is open to any business with a commitment to sustainability. As part of the directory you will benefit from free promotion and a backlink (to help your SEO) – find out more and apply to join the Sustainable Small Business Directory here.
3 Learnings from Being an Eco Virtual Assistant in 2022 so far…
These are my learnings as an eco Virtual Assistant, but they can be applied to any and every sustainable business.
1. A little progress every day creates big results.
This might seem an obvious one but bear with me. Over the last few weeks, I have been committed to making time to work ON my business every day. Many of my clients reach out to me initially because they are finding that they are so busy working in their business, that they don’t have time to work on their business. As an eco Virtual Assistant, this is something I can help with. But not making time to work on my business is also something that I have been guilty of.
Working on my business can include anything from spending 2-3 hours writing a blog post like this one, to spending 20 minutes reaching out to sustainable businesses to ask whether they would like to be included in my small business directory. Once you commit to making time for your business every day, the results add up and the progress becomes addictive!
TOP TIP: Before you commit to working on your business every day, get clear on your goals and exactly what you want to work on and why. If you don’t know where you are going in your business, you will be unmotivated and are also unlikely to get there.
2. It’s not what you know as a business owner, it’s who you know.
After starting to work as an eco Virtual Assistant during the pandemic, I joined an online network, but I had never attended in-person networking. Until now. As a young entrepreneur, I was more nervous than I would like to admit about attending my first in-person networking event in Aberdeen, but I put on a spritz of my favourite perfume and put myself out there. I am now an avid networker and am about to achieve my target of attending 6 networking sessions (both virtual and in-person) in June. Networking isn’t just for finding clients, it is a great way to find like-minded business owners who understand the highs and lows of running a business and it is a great place to seek advice and inspiration. Networking isn’t just for service-based businesses, so if you have never been to a networking event, I highly recommend visiting a local group and putting yourself out there. You never know who you will meet and that’s the best bit!
3. Business strategy will only take you so far.
I’m not hugely into woo (well maybe a little bit), but mindset and personal development have been a focus for me for the first half of 2022. In February I made my biggest investment in myself and my business to-date by joining a Mastermind group centered around mindset and personal growth. And I haven’t looked back. I have become clearer about my business and personal goals which have made me more motivated, grateful and just generally happier. In turn, working on myself has meant I have created the headspace I need to provide an even better service to my wonderful clients. Win, Win!
Being a Business Owner in 2022 and Finding a Balance
It has been really rewarding writing this article about my progress and learnings as an eco Virtual Assistant in 2022 so far. If you haven’t already taken the time to give yourself a pat on the back for all of the progress you have made this year, grab a cuppa and make the time! You don’t have to write a whole article (although if you do, I would love to read it), you could just journal or give yourself the headspace to think and reflect on the last 6 months.
This article has been written with my small business owner hat on, but I wouldn’t be doing it justice if I didn’t mention that my final learning so far in 2022 has been to schedule in fun. Instead of just vaguely thinking I might take a day off (and then probably working), I have been actively organising fun activities and blocking out the time in my planner. I have even put together a summer bucket list of activities I want to do and places I want to go – a mix of big trips and local half-day activities. When I take time to do things I enjoy at the weekends or during an odd day off, I am even more motivated and determined in my work as a eco Virtual Assistant.
If you would like a better work-life balance and think that you might benefit from outsourcing to an eco Virtual Assistant, get in touch and let’s have a virtual cuppa.
