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Articles by Tracey Osbo e

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By Tracey Osbo eRecently published1 topic

20 Little Leadership Tips for Big Time Success

Today, I want to make things easy for you. (Actually, I want to make things easy for you everyday. That’s my job!) I know how much you must have going on right now, so I’m sharing 20 easy-to-swallow tips for leading your business to success in 2016. 1. Never stop learning and investing in yourself if you want people who work for you to do the same. 2. Take care of yourself. If your cup isn’t full, you have nothing to pour into others. 3. Celebrate your own wins. Celebrate your teams’ wins even more.

Primary topic: Business Consulting

Business Consulting

1,519 views3/5 (2)

By Tracey Osbo eRecently published1 topic

Preventing Year-End Burnout

Are you ready for everything the next few months is bringing your way? The holidays, the end of the calendar year (and fiscal year for many of us), school wrapping up for our kids, the parties, the shopping, the cooking… and trying to get work done in there somewhere. Whew! It’s exhausting just thinking about it. And it takes a toll on our productivity and well-being. Work suffers as a result of the stressed late-nights with too much to get done, and that just leads to more stress.

Primary topic: Business Consulting

Business Consulting

1,515 views3/5 (2)

By Tracey Osbo eRecently published1 topic

8 Work Habits That Make Your Day Harder as an Entrepreneur

Being an entrepreneur is hard enough already. Add to that the hustle and bustle of the holidays and the end of the year for your small business, and you’ve got a recipe for stress. Even worse, many of us unconsciously keep work habits that make everything more difficult. So make sure you’re not doing any of these 8 things that drag you down and make your days less efficient.

Primary topic: Business Consulting

Business Consulting

1,614 views2.5/5 (2)

By Tracey Osbo eRecently published1 topic

Dos and Don’ts of Working With Team Members

Working as a virtual assistant for the past seven years, I’ve worked with a wide variety of clients. Different industries, personalities and managing skills can either make for a good relationship or a bad one. Having a team of my own, also allows me the opportunity to see things through the eyes of a client. I’ve made mistakes when working with team members, just like any entrepreneur. Being on both sides of the coin affords me the ability to know what clients want, and also what team members want. Here are my top dos and don’ts when working with team members.

Primary topic: Business Consulting

Business Consulting

3,355 views

By Tracey Osbo eRecently published1 topic

3 Simple Tips for Highly Effective eMail Organization

3 Simple Tips for Highly Effective Email Organizatio In this day and age, we tend to let our emails control us instead of us controlling our emails. Here are 3 tips to help you get your email back under control. 1. Folders – folders allow us to organize our email for easy finding. My ...

Primary topic: Business Consulting

Business Consulting

2,224 views

By Tracey Osbo eRecently published1 topic

5 Ways to Kill Your Telesummit

I’ve been hearing rumors that telesummits are dying, but that couldn’t be farther from the truth. The model is changing, but there’s never been a better way to boost your list building than hosting a telesummit.

Primary topic: Business Consulting

Business Consulting

2,005 views

By Tracey Osbo eRecently published1 topic

7 Time-Saving Ways to Grow Your Business Through Content Marketing

At this time of year, especially, marketing your business is easily the first thing to go when you have a full day with lots of tasks that just can’t wait. But it is possible to efficiently market your business to the right people without it taking all of your time. So here are the 7 best ways to grow your audience while saving your time.

Primary topic: Business Consulting

Business Consulting

1,863 views

By Tracey Osbo eRecently published1 topic

5 Tips to Stay Productive During the Summer

The kids are out of school. Vacations are being planned. The air conditioning is on full blast. And productivity is… not what it was a few weeks ago. Can you identify? It’s hard to stay productive during the summer, when you not only have a lot going on, you also have more fun things to do with your time than work! And one of the benefits of being an entrepreneur is that you have the luxury of taking time off to go on an ice cream run or head to the beach.

Primary topic: Business Consulting

Business Consulting

1,727 views

By Tracey Osbo eRecently published1 topic

15 Tasks You Could Be Outsourcing That Will Save Time & Make Money

If your to-do list feels endless and you’re drowning in work, you’re not alone. So many of us as small business owners feel that way. And yet often, we don’t seek support because the perception is that it eats away at our profits. I see over and over again with my clients that the opposite is true. The more they free up their own time to do the important work that only they can do, the more work gets done efficiently, and the more profits they make.

Primary topic: Business Consulting

Business Consulting

1,671 views

By Tracey Osbo eRecently published1 topic

My Top 7 Tips for Hiring a VA

As a multi-VA business owner, I’ve hired a lot of VA’s over the years. At the same time, I’ve been hired as a VA and later, as an OBM many, many times. So I’ve learned a few things about how to hire and how not to hire VA’s. Here are my top 7 tips so that you don’t have to make the mistakes I’ve seen (and done)! 1. Shed the employee mindset. Hiring a VA is different than hiring an employee, and if you approach it the same way, you’re setting yourself and the VA up for failure. Approach the process as the start of a partnership rather than an employer-employee relationship.

Primary topic: Business Consulting

Business Consulting

1,634 views

By Tracey Osbo eRecently published1 topic

Growing Your Leadership Confidence

For many of us as business owners, we feel unprepared for the leadership roles we find ourselves in. Perhaps you wanted to grow a small empire, and maybe you had management experience previously in your career, and yet I talk to so many entrepreneurs who still don’t feel confident about their ability to lead. It’s a common myth that leadership skills are either something you are either born with or you’re not. The reality is that leadership is a learned skill that you can take steps to improve.

Primary topic: Business Consulting

Business Consulting

1,630 views

By Tracey Osbo eRecently published1 topic

Are You Missing These Key Team Members?

Being an entrepreneur is an amazing journey. At some point in this journey, you’re going to need a team. Your industry, size of business and future goals will determine what kind of key players you need on your team. Now when I say team, I don’t mean a dozen full-time staff members or subcontractors. I mean key people you can use when you need them…team members you trust.

Primary topic: Business Consulting

Business Consulting

1,617 views

By Tracey Osbo eRecently published1 topic

Here’s to Better Time Management in 2016!

Happy New Year! January is a great time to take a good look at what worked in the past year, what didn’t, and what you want to do differently in the year to come. I’ve got lots of exciting things coming down the pike for my business, but there are always areas that I could improve in too. One of those areas for me is time management. The nature of my business is really fast paced, so while I would love to sit down and devote a full, uninterrupted hour or two to one project, that’s just not easy to do. Maybe you can relate.

Primary topic: Business Consulting

Business Consulting

1,617 views

By Tracey Osbo eRecently published1 topic

The Juggling Act: When You Drop the Ball

As busy entrepreneurs we juggle a lot of balls. Client requests, team member demands, family demands…the list goes on and on and on. When you have so many balls in the air, eventually you’re going to drop one. It happened to me today. I received an email from a client asking me if I sent a promo email out last week. I created the template, but for whatever reason, the email never got sent. So what do you do in a situation where you’ve dropped a ball…an important one and now you have to face the music?

Primary topic: Business Consulting

Business Consulting

1,587 views

By Tracey Osbo eRecently published1 topic

5 Myths and Truths About Delegating Your Work

Taking things off your plate can be hard. You want your work to be excellent, and you’ve probably been burned before by VA’s or employees who don’t even come close to meeting your standards. So if you’re like a lot of business owners, you have a usual excuse for why you hold certain projects close to your vest. Here are the five I see most commonly, and the truths about them. It’s just like they say: the truth will set you free. Myth: “I’d love for someone to take things off my plate, but no one can do what needs to get done as well as I can.”

Primary topic: Business Consulting

Business Consulting

1,579 views

By Tracey Osbo eRecently published1 topic

5 Ways to Make Your Email Marketing Easier and More Effective

If you’re like most of the small business owners I work with, the marketing emails you send take up a lot of your time. They’re worth it because they drive traffic to your landing and sales pages that lead to increased income, but they can be complicated and time-consuming. However, there are ways to automate your email marketing efforts to take the burden off you and make them more efficient and effective at the same time. 1. Get the most out of new subscriber follow ups.

Primary topic: Business Consulting

Business Consulting

1,576 views

By Tracey Osbo eRecently published1 topic

Are You Making These Expensive Mistakes With Your VAs?

Hiring mistakes can cost you a lot of time and money, even if you’re only hiring contract-based virtual assistants. These common hiring mistakes apply from your first VA all the way to your team with lots of full time employees. 1. Their Job Descriptions Aren’t Clear – If you want them to do a little of everything, but you still want to have your hands in everything, chances are, you’re going to bump heads and waste time. And of course, time is money. Define what they will do really specifically, allowing that to evolve as you go.

Primary topic: Business Consulting

Business Consulting

1,506 views

By Tracey Osbo eRecently published1 topic

Setting Up a Sales Funnel

Today, I want to go into more detail about how to set one up that’s going to increase your sales and be easy to maintain. Let’s get started. 1. Opt In – We’ll start with someone subscribing to your list. This is one you’ve probably got covered already. If you have any kind of freebie that incentivizes subscribers to join your list, you’re off to a good start.

Primary topic: Business Consulting

Business Consulting

1,464 views

By Tracey Osbo eRecently published1 topic

Legal Basics You Should Know as a Business Owner

I know legal stuff sounds pretty boring and dry, right? But consider the consequences… lawsuits, your products stolen from you without any laws being broken, fines and penalties, and higher taxes. Now do I have your full attention? It’s important you know these basics as a business owner. They’ll keep you, your clients, and your products safe, and they aren’t that hard to implement, once you know these 5 basic rights and obligations. 1. Photos

Primary topic: Business Consulting

Business Consulting

1,463 views

By Tracey Osbo eRecently published1 topic

5 Signs Your Team Needs to Grow

I remember the moment I realized I needed to grow my team from being a solopreneur to a multi-VA company. It was clear as day that I needed to expand, and yet, I was scared to death to pull the trigger and hire my first contractor. Did I really need another person? How would I ensure the extra expense was covered? Was I hiring the right type of contractor? If you’ve ever thought about those questions, here are 5 ways to know it’s time to grow (and how)… 1. Your Time is Being Vacuumed

Primary topic: Business Consulting

Business Consulting

1,460 views

By Tracey Osbo eRecently published1 topic

5 Time Management Mistakes That Will Make You Crazy

Every once in a while, I’ll find that I’m making myself nuts over everything there is to get done in a day. Ever feel that way? As entrepreneurs, there’s a lot to do, and once you pile family, friends and community on top, it’s easy to feel like the to do list is going to smother you. Before you go crazy, are you making any of these common time management mistakes? 1. Doing All Things at Once

Primary topic: Business Consulting

Business Consulting

1,428 views

By Tracey Osbo eRecently published1 topic

The 5 Types of Specialty VA’s Who Can Make Your Business Faster and Smarter

Many business owners assume when they are starting out that a VA (Virtual Assistant) is a VA. But actually, there are several different specialties within the VA industry. Hiring the right type of VArnfor your unique needs means they handle work more efficiently, saving you time and money, and they serve as experts on a particular specialty. If your needs have grown beyond one VA, or you mostly have one type of task you need assistance with, a specialty VA could be the right fit for you at this stage of your business. Here are the 5 common types of specialty VA’s. Techs

Primary topic: Business Consulting

Business Consulting

1,398 views

By Tracey Osbo eRecently published1 topic

The Biggest Myth About Hiring A Virtual Assistant

Every day I talk to entrepreneurs who are interested in hiring a virtual assistant (VA) or an online business manager (OBM). So over the years, I’ve heard it all – the good, the bad, and the ugly. If there’s one thing I’ve heard over and over again, it’s this… “I need someone to take things off my plate, but no one can do what needs to get done as well as I can.” It’s time to dispel this myth. If you feel like you’re the only one who can do what you do, you’re right (partially). You ARE the only one who can: * See the big picture and goals for your companyr

Primary topic: Business Consulting

Business Consulting

1,386 views

By Tracey Osbo eRecently published1 topic

5 Ways to Do a Telesummit (Without Driving Yourself Crazy)

Over the years, I’ve seen so many entrepreneurs fall into the same traps of running telesummits. They usually swear them off, declaring, “I’m never doing one of these again!” …Right up until they see the hundreds and hundreds of new email addresses on their lists as a direct result of the telesummit. I’m here to tell you there is a better way! It doesn’t have to be stressful, overwhelming, or feel like juggling knives! Here’s how you can avoid driving yourself nuts while putting on a successful telesummit: 1.Book the right speakers (and only the right speakers).

Primary topic: Business Consulting

Business Consulting

1,379 views

By Tracey Osbo eRecently published1 topic

Falling Back Into the Swing of Things

If you’re anything like me, you’ve been counting the days until your kids are back in school. School has started back up around here and I must say, it’s nice to have peace and quiet again! I love my kids, but I’m more productive when school is in session. However, school starting always reminds me that there are only four full months left before the end of the year. It’s time to buckle down and work smart to meet your year-end goals. Here are 5 steps to get back in the groove… 1.Glance in the rear view mirror.r

Primary topic: Business Consulting

Business Consulting

1,374 views

By Tracey Osbo eRecently published1 topic

Are You Meeting Your Goals? Here’s How to Find Out

This is the perfect time of year to think about goals – goals you’ve accomplished so far in 2015, goals you still want to meet before the year ends, and goals you start setting for 2016. There are the 3 determinations to figure out what your goals are and whether or not you are meeting them. Determine your priorities. If we’re being honest, you probably have 20 ideas for your business swimming around in your head right now, don’t you? Come on, it’s ok. I do too!

Primary topic: Business Consulting

Business Consulting

1,370 views

By Tracey Osbo eRecently published1 topic

4 Ways to Increase Revenue Before 2016

There are less than 4 months left in 2015, but that gives you plenty of time to meet and exceed your revenue goals for the year, if you’re smart about it. These four ideas will turn up your sales volume before New Year’s… 1. Find the money sweet spot. Ever heard of the hedgehog concept? Jim Collins made it famous. Think of your business as 3 circles of a Venn diagram: * What you’re passionate about doing. * What you’re really great at. * What the world will pay you for.

Primary topic: Business Consulting

Business Consulting

1,357 views

By Tracey Osbo eRecently published1 topic

10 New Tools to Make Your Life and Business Easier

Like we talked about last week, summer is the hardest time to keep the productivity train moving, when there are so many better things to do with your time – splashing in the pool, chasing after the ice cream truck, and late nights outside, just to name a few. So today, I’m sharing 10 of my favorite new tools to make everything a little easier on you this summer (and year around).

Primary topic: Business Consulting

Business Consulting

1,343 views

By Tracey Osbo eRecently published1 topic

5 Time Management Strategies that Separate the Best from the Rest of the Entrepreneur Pack

How many times a week do you find yourself saying something like this? “Things are good. I’m just so busy. There aren’t enough hours in the day.” Part of the crazy life of being an entrepreneur is learning to feel good about being busy, to not stress out over being busy, and to thrive when you’re busy. The other part of it is making sure you’re spending your very in-demand time wisely. We all try to do that, right? But let’s be honest… Most of us fail at it. Or at least we feel like we’re failing at it.

Primary topic: Business Consulting

Business Consulting

1,339 views

By Tracey Osbo eRecently published1 topic

To Podcast or Not to Podcast? Whether to Join the Trend in 2016

How many podcasts did you listen to at the beginning of 2015? How many are you listening to now? I know for me, it’s at least doubled. Podcasts are exploding, and for good reason. They have the ability to… * Laser target your perfect audience * Develop a relationship with them where fans feel engaged * Lead to sales and sponsorship opportunities At the same time, they’re a lot of work. And it’s easy to feel like you’ve missed the boat – like if you didn’t start your podcast at least a year ago, it’s hopeless.

Primary topic: Business Consulting

Business Consulting

1,332 views

By Tracey Osbo eRecently published1 topic

Are You Ready for the Year-End Hustle?

There’s only one month left in 2015. So I’ve put together a list of my top 20 ways to manage your time, get it all done, and stay on track without getting overwhelmed between now and New Year’s. 1. Slow down and focus on one thing at a time. Multi-tasking isn’t going to get it done faster and certainly not better. 2. Create a plan for your day, giving yourself enough time to get each thing done. 3. Remember that how busy and stressed you are is a choice. Choose calm and focused. 4. Do a time audit and see how you can use your time better.r

Primary topic: Business Consulting

Business Consulting

1,295 views

By Tracey Osbo eRecently published1 topic

How Testing Is the Key To Your Marketing Success

I’m sure I’m not the first person to tell you to test, test, test. It’s really easy to say, but the fact is, not enough of us are actually doing it. I’m guilty myself too. I split test email subject lines and changes on landing pages here and there, but there’s a ton I could be testing that I just… don’t. Life gets in the way. But the fact is, there is so much value you can gain through testing.

Primary topic: Business Consulting

Business Consulting

1,282 views

By Tracey Osbo eRecently published1 topic

Head to Head Battle: Virtual Assistant vs. Online Business Manager

I get a lot of questions about what makes an online business manager different than a virtual assistant. You might have wondered about this yourself… Which one is better? What are the advantages of each? Who should I hire? So today, I’m putting them head to head, outlining what each of them do so you can hire the right person for your team. The Virtual Assistant (VA) Operating as one-stop shop, they do a little of everything: admin, web design, email marketing, social media, simple graphics, copywriting, organizing, and project management.

Primary topic: Business Consulting

Business Consulting

1,245 views

By Tracey Osbo eRecently published1 topic

Should You Start Using Periscope in 2016?

I’ll be honest, I’m always a little skeptical of the latest and greatest trends, especially on social media. So I’m not going to be one of those experts who tells you, “You just HAVE TO get on Periscope!” Maybe it could be great for you. Maybe not. But I’ve talked to several business owners lately who simply wonder “What is Periscope? What would I even do with it?” So today, I want to share what Periscope could do for your business, so you’re informed and can make the right call for you. Here are 5 reasons to get on Periscope:

Primary topic: Business Consulting

Business Consulting

1,238 views

By Tracey Osbo eRecently published1 topic

7 Tips for Creating a Telesummit with the Top Speakers and Hoards of Listeners

If I’ve heard it once, I’ve heard it a hundred times… lady on phone “Telesummits don’t work for me.” “I’ve tried it. It didn’t grow my list. Products didn’t sell. Speakers were unhappy,” and on and on. Here’s my response… That’s because you didn’t do it right. I don’t mean to be harsh, but telesummits do work, if you do them correctly.

Primary topic: Business Consulting

Business Consulting

1,219 views

By Tracey Osbo eRecently published1 topic

Leadership Lessons for Tiny Empires

Whether you have a large, full time staff or one full time employee and then a number of contractors or other types of team members, you still do a lot of managing, delegating, and serving as a leader. Even if you’re a true solopreneur, you need leadership skills to keep yourself motivated and your business moving in the right direction so that one day, you can lead an empire. So here are a few lessons from top leaders that apply to even the smallest business empires… “To handle yourself, use your head; to handle others, use your heart.” —Eleanor Roosevelt

Primary topic: Business Consulting

Business Consulting

1,217 views

By Tracey Osbo eRecently published1 topic

Suffering from Digital Burnout? How to Relieve It

Do you have to run and get your phone if you leave it in another room? Do you check Facebook so often there are hardly any new posts since the last time you checked (half an hour ago)? Does your email inbox run your life, with notifications popping up and grabbing your attention every time you settle in to get work done? If you answered yes to any of these questions, you might be on your way to a digital burnout, which can hurt your online business if you’re not careful.

Primary topic: Business Consulting

Business Consulting

1,200 views

By Tracey Osbo eRecently published1 topic

Which of These 4 Time Management Styles Sounds Like You?

If you wonder where your time goes, how you don’t get more done each day, or how to fit in everything there is to do, your time management style might be hurting your ability to be productive. It helps to do a time audit, where you find out what you’re doing at all times for a few days so you can get a really clear grasp on where your time is going. Usually, how you think you spend your time and how you actually spend your time are very different. I know that can be the case for me. Here’s a simple way to do a time audit:

Primary topic: Business Consulting

Business Consulting

1,199 views

By Tracey Osbo eRecently published1 topic

5 Blog Strategies to Fuel List Growth

It’s tried, true, and tested. Writing consistently on your blog is one of the best ways to… Increase audience engagement and your own authorityr Grow a bigger following through SEO and list growthr Sell more products and services (cha-ching!) However, that’s easier said than done. Writing regularly takes time, effort, and practice. Here are 5 strategies to make regular blogging easier and more effective:

Primary topic: Business Consulting

Business Consulting

1,148 views

By Tracey Osbo eRecently published1 topic

Are You Making the Most of Your Marketing Funnel?

By now, you’ve heard that you should have a sophisticated marketing funnel firmly in place. But for many business owners, that advice is like hearing you should floss twice daily. It sounds good in theory, but it’s not quite there in practice. There’s a good reason for that. Developing a marketing funnel can be complicated and time consuming, and it’s easy to push to the back burner.

Primary topic: Business Consulting

Business Consulting

1,086 views

By Tracey Osbo eRecently published1 topic

7 Steps to Build an Audience for Your Podcast or Radio Show

You may have heard that podcasting is the next big thing – the way to grow your business, a new mechanism to make money, and a different medium to connect with a whole new audience. But if you’re anything like me, you’re wondering… “How am I going to build an audience for a podcast? I’m not looking to invest 100 hours in something that no one listens to.” Podcasts can get a great return on the investment of your time and money if you follow a few simple, proven steps to marketing it effectively.

Primary topic: Business Consulting

Business Consulting

1,049 views

By Tracey Osbo eRecently published1 topic

Is the New Trend in Telesummits Right for You?

The latest trend among entrepreneurs for fast list growth is starting to eat away at the popularity of the traditional telesummit. It’s the giveaway summit, and you might remember that I offered one a few months ago. They’re win-win-win scenarios for your fans, partners and your business, so read on to see if a giveaway summit is perfect for you… They take less time than telesummits. Because you don’t need to record interviews, giveaway summits will save you some time. But keep in mind, they still require a good deal of back end set up, working with your partners, and promoting.r

Primary topic: Business Consulting

Business Consulting

977 views

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