Content Mastery Guide

Editor and Ghostwriter

Write from the Headlines: A “Giant” leap for diabetes awareness in the Innu community of Labrador

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This is not a brand new story. It was actually Wednesday, March 18th that Michel "Giant" Andrew completed a 300-km, five-walk solitary walk through the wilderness to raise awareness of the high rate of diabetes in his Innu community.

I saw this story last weekend on CBC National. You can read more about Michel here.

I was fascinated to learn about Michel; not just his journey, but the bigger story this news report told of what's happening in his community (particularly their decision to ban alcohol in February 2008), and it led me to these possible coaching topics for your articles:

  • Career coaches: How to turn around your past and create a new future
  • Life coaches: How to keep going when the odds are stacked against you
  • Parenting coaches: 10 signs your child may be involved with drugs or alcohol
  • Business coaches: How to sell an unpopular idea
  • Marketing coaches: How to sell people on what they need, when it's not what they want
  • Spiritual coaches: How to express your inner spirit as a way of healing your outer world
  • Non-profit sector coaches: How to rally a community into action

Writing prompt: Can you expand any of these titles into an article for your target market? Please comment below – I would love to hear what you do with it!

How I’m using Gmail to find anything and create instant folders for everyone I know

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Long before I made the switch from Outlook to Gmail, I discovered Google Desktop Search and I was amazed to see how superior it was to the existing Search options on my PC. [Update December 22, 2012 – Google Desktop was discontinued in September 2011.]

Now I've got that same incredible Search performance in my email and calendar. And I am LOVING it.

While I used to create a folder for every client, so I could quickly and easily see all of our past correspondence and conversation threads, this got very cumbersome as my business grew.

Now all I have to do is type the client's name in the Gmail Search box and I get an instant folder (I had tried this in Outlook but found it slow and unreliable).

Or if I'm trying to find a specific email, I can just type a few words that I remember from the conversation, and voila – amazing results again!

I even find myself emailing information to myself with descriptive subject lines and body text, just because I know how easy it will be to find it later!

As I already pointed out, there's tons of storage space in my Gmail account so there's no danger of clogging anything up by doing this (while that was certainly my experience with Outlook).

Write from the headlines: L’Aquila earthquake miracle survivors

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It may seem in poor taste to choose such a tragic situation, but I believe that if our hearts are in the right place, this can be a big help to folks, too. When we're confronted with tragic headlines, fear and hopelessness are common reactions.

If you can take a tragic headline, and bring some sensitivity and some inspiration to it, your articles can bring healing to people, and can also attract attention because they are linked to such a visible event.

It was amazing to hear about the 98-year-old woman who survived 30 hours in the rubble, and another woman, 20 years old, who was rescued more than 42 hours after the L'Aquila earthquake (see photos and stories here).

I thought about the victims, the survivors, the heroic rescuers, and the coaching messages that might be hidden in these stories. Here is what I came up with:

  • Spiritual coaches: 10 ways to cultivate faith when all seems lost
  • Family coaches: 10 tools for dealing with grief and loss

Writing prompt: Do these topics resonate with you or your audience? Can you think of any others? Please comment below and share your own topic ideas!

Blog Hopping Virtual Assistant Sharon Willams drops by to chat about upcoming Online International Virtual Assistants Convention

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OIVAC-speakers-200

Next month, I’ll be speaking at OIVAC 2009 (OIVAC is the Online International Virtual Assistants Convention). I’ve checked out this event in previous years and I was blown away by the technology. It really is like attending a conference – but without the travel and big expense.

The event runs from Thursday, May 14-Saturday, May 16, 2009, from 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 midnight, daily, and my session is on Saturday, May 16th at 8:30 a.m. [Update: This conference was rescheduled and will now take place on Thursday, October 1st until Saturday, October 3rd, with my presentation taking place on Saturday, October 3rd at 8:30 a.m.]

Since it’s my first year as a speaker, I wanted to find out a bit more about the event, so I agreed to be part of the OIVAC blog hopping tour and get my questions answered. Here is my interview with OIVAC founder, VA Sharon Williams.

Linda Dessau: What is the OIVAC?

Sharon Williams: The Online International Virtual Assistants Convention (OIVAC) is the yearly celebration of the launching of the virtual assistance industry. It is an opportunity for VAs to increase their knowledge and skills by participating in educational seminars, workshops, training and networking sessions led by experienced VAs, industry and technology experts, and niche-specific entrepreneurs. In addition, we celebrate International Virtual Assistants Day (IVAD), the 3rd Friday of the month. On this day, we acknowledge VAs for their Dedication, Experience, Expertise and Determination to Succeed.

As you can see, OIVAC is a great opportunity for the industry to “come together” and increase our knowledge, skills and abilities. But, it’s not all work and no fun – we host several online networking events and giveaway fabulous prizes donated by VAs, exhibitors and small businesses that work closely with the industry.

LD: Should other business owners besides VAs be attending?

SW: Absolutely! We have assembled 35+ exceptional presenters, offering the newest information about technology trends, Web 2.0 social marketing, branding, website development, Quickbooks, SEO, Google Analytics, and much, much, more – all subjects to aid entrepreneurs (not just VAs) in developing and growing their businesses. In addition, we are hosting 2 free and open to the public “Intro to the Virtual Assistants Industry” sessions. Entrepreneurs are invited to attend, ask questions, and learn how VAs can reduce their administrative and Internet-related workload, freeing them to handle responsibilities that fuel their passion. Check out the OIVAC schedule for seminar dates and times.

LD: Can you describe some of the technology behind this virtual conference? 

SW: Seminars are conducted in VoIP, PC and Mac accessible meeting rooms. They are equipped with whiteboarding, web browsing, sharing of PowerPoint slides, desktop sharing and audio –visual capture capabilities. All sessions will be recorded for download and later listening opportunities. The exhibitor halls are equipped with 10-seat VoIP meeting rooms which can be manned by staff, volunteers, etc., designer exhibitor spaces, email message capabilities, video, PowerPoint, pdf, document, podcast, download facilities. We even have bathrooms with all the amenities expected when attending a traditional brick and mortar convention. Note: Exhibitor halls will be open 24/7 for browsing, chat and download of vendor giveaways.

LD: What favourite piece of technology have you discovered from putting on this conference that you are using in your own business today?

SW: Wow! VAs use all of these technologies on a daily basis, and have introduced them to many of their clients. One favorite is the VoIP meeting rooms, where we hold recorded seminars and one-on-one sessions. As VAs stay abreast of the newest innovations, we test and recommend technology to clients that may enhance their operation and business growth. 

LD: Thanks for your time, Sharon! What’s next for your blog hopping tour?

SW: I’m glad I was able to stop by and visit for a bit. However, it’s time to move to my next stop, let me remind followers that we stopped by VAnetworking.com yesterday and tomorrow, we’ll be visiting Janet Barclay of Organized Assistant.com. Before I leave, here’s the second puzzle clue: einssbus. Stop by VAnetworking.com to obtain yesterday’s clue.

  

How Gmail canned responses save me tons of time

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Canned responses is one of many Gmail "labs" – applications created by Google staff and other Gmail users that are still in the testing phase (but we get to play with them already).

Whenever I notice myself typing or pasting the same thing over and over again in emails, I can quickly and easily save it as a canned response. Then, when I want to include it an another email, I just click the list of canned responses to select and insert it.

Here are some of the things I am using canned responses for:

  • Welcome emails to new clients
  • Alternate signatures (e.g., in emails to my music therapy clients)
  • Instructions for clients (e.g., how to use tracked changes in MS Word)
  • Template for project estimates
  • Technical support issues (e.g., where to find missed emails from my Roadblocks to Creativity e-course)

More praise and adulation for Gmail and Gcal coming up in future posts about my transition from Outlook to Google.