Possible leads in the weirdest places!

So yesterday, I had my first appointment with an acupuncturist. I have been before to someone else so I knew what to expect. (Some pain, some fear of pain, etc).

I'm lying face down on a physio table, trying not to breathe tissue paper in through my nostrils, bristling from head to toe with needles, and I get chatting with the slightly mad (but lovely) Chinese lady doing the acupuncture.

I explain that I'm a part-time Virtual Assistant, working at the opposite end of the week from my other part-time employment until I have enough clients to work full time at being a VA.

Guess what? She has a friend who has recently been made redundant from a firm of solicitors and he's setting up on his own and would I be interested in doing transcription work for him?

Err... Yes! Here's my card and my A5 flier (I carry them around with me now!).

What's the weirdest place you've had a lead from?!

Catch-up!

Well it's been a while since I've visited here. I did post something a few weeks back but ran into trouble and then didn't have the time to follow up the error message.

The website's now live: http://www.diamondva.co.uk/, so please check it out and comment.

Business cards and A5 fliers are all printed and I've been handing them out like a woman possessed!

I've also managed to get 8 of my photographs printed onto canvas and put up in the local pub (The Bird in Hand, Lovedean, Waterlooville, Hants) to sell. I did a little A5 flier to go with those when people ask the staff for more info and I've naturally attached a DiamondVA card to each!

I'm hopefully off to a networking meeting next week (waiting for confirmation) and am definitely going to one in a couple of weeks as a guest. I didn't realise you had to get in quick to be the only one representing your particular business in each group. It's all about the networking!

This afternoon I'm off to see a mad Chinese acupuncturist (she has been recommended I hasten to add!) to see if she can help with my back. Hopefully she'll let me leave some fliers in her reception area even if I don't come out walking straight!

Had a great weekend with my mother, aunt and uncle. Went to Kemble (Cotswold) airshow on Saturday. Bloody freezing on the airfield but managed to get sun/wind burn on my face! Took loads of shots and have no idea when I'll get around to photoshopping them!

Invited to a party on Sat. evening at neighbours of my aunt & uncle. Not many people can say they've been to a party where the host buzzed his guests with his own jet plane!!! Pretty amazing and also lovely, unaffected people despite the obvious wealth (apart from the jet, a Ferrari in the garage, as well as an Audi RS6 and a Porsche 911!). Oh well, something to aspire to! Not that I'd want my own jet!

The website is being built and I have to write lots of copy for each page (5 pages). Goodness only knows when I'm going to do this. Work is so hectically busy at the moment that when I get in I'm just so knackered and feel that I must keep up Twitter, Blogger, Facebook and all the various VA forums. Plus have a husband and 3 cats to look after!

The meeting with the web designers went well and I even networked! I have decided to go ahead with the webdesign and handed over a cheque. I then had to run into town, raid my savings and pay the cash into the bank to cover the cheque! I was going to buy a new wide-angle lens with the money but hey-ho. Maybe one day soon I'll be able to afford to buy a better lens. After all you have to speculate to accumulate don't you? Well, that's what they say! I also booked myself on 2 courses with the Inland Revenue and rang up a local company of Virtual Assistants to introduce myself as a colleague, not as competition, and I have a meeting with them in July! Very much looking forward to it.

Off now for a weekend away to photograph the Kemble Airshow.

This morning I have a meeting with a web-design company. Sort of looking forward to it I guess. A bit worried that there might be too many 'diamond'-named companies out there so I'm going to ask the web developer to do a more thorough search for me and see what he comes up with. So far I've only spent £50 on having a DiamondVA logo done but I've set up email addresses, twitter, blogger, etc all in DiamondVA. Still, if I have to change, I suppose it could be worse...

Here we go...

Hello!

This is my first blog, my first blog-site, my first ever new company, DiamondVA. There is so much to do, research and set up it's almost overwhelming. I keep jumping about from one area of research to another; getting led off down interesting little meadnering side paths! So far I have a company name, a domain name and a logo, oh and sore eyes from all the reading!

There are so many great virtual assistant websites out there, especially the forums, with endless information (that lead me down the side paths!). I must leave this now and go back to my online meanderings.

Cath