I will be participating on Saturday in a Read-a-Thon. It’s 24 hours that you’re supposed to read as much as possible. Those of you that know me, know that I love to read. I haven’t been able to read as much as I usually do (I figure I’ll hit 50 book this year instead of my usual 100). It’s [...]

One of the things many women in business have trouble with is dealing with conflict in a positive manner and learning to negotiate for themselves without coming across as difficult to work with. We know someone who knows a thing or two about these situations.  Pattie Porter (aka the Texas Conflict Coach), is hosting a [...]

My 10-year-old son had a friend over this Sunday morning and we were all sitting down at the breakfast table talking when the question of how Santa really could possibly to get to all those houses in one night. We batted around the idea of teleportation and time travel. Eventually, I suggested that I think [...]

Last week, it was pouring rain for a few days straight. My son is really good at entertaining himself. He was off playing by himself, but my daughter is not nearly as gifted. She wants someone to entertain her. There’s only so much I can bribe my son with. He likes being alone. My husband [...]

Years ago, at an IVAA conference, Beth Quick Andrews gave a talk that she opened with “What would you do if you were brave?”. It was a powerful question for me at the time. I chewed my lip a bit and wrote down “Grow OffAssist beyond just myself.” It had been something I was considering, [...]

Today (a Saturday) my husband had a bunch of stuff to catch up on, so I took the kids and went to the grocery store and then to Target to spend their allowance. They were terrible at the grocery store and to make a long story short, I ended up telling them in the car [...]

If you have hired someone recently, you could be eligible for a tax credit as well as not having to pay the employer’s portion of the social security tax… first, this is just my own understanding, you should check with your tax adviser of course. If you hired them after Feb 3, 2010 and before [...]

As many of you know, I attended the IVAA Live Summit in Phoenix last week. This was my 5th conference that I’ve attended for the virtual assistant industry and I must admit that my reasons for attending have changed. I still go to learn and attend the sessions, but I no longer feel compelled to [...]

I was talking to a long-time client on the phone earlier today who is shifting things and wants me to start printing checks for him. It’s a fairly easy thing to do. About half my clients still use checks on a regular basis. For them, it’s fairly easy, we just set up their check for [...]

I’m a huge fan of our local newspaper here in Austin, The Austin American Statesman. However, I couldn’t tell you the last time I actually touched a newspaper. I’m skeeved out by newsprint. It comes off on your fingers and smudges and well, I’m a diva deep down, I suppose. Aside from that, I prefer [...]