Start Your Own Personal Assistant Business (1 of 5) - Know Your Values

May 21, 2010 - PRLog -- So you're thinking of starting your own personal assistant business. Or maybe you've already done so! Well, I'm going to tell you something that is the most important first step in starting any business. To set yourself up for success, you must first know your values. So if you're just starting out I encourage you to sit down and do this simple exercise that will help get you moving in the right direction. Or if you are already in business, but maybe you skipped this first step, it's never too late to go back and assess where you stand and how you can tweak your business to better suit you and the life you ultimately want to live.

Exercise: What Are Your Values? Start by taking a piece of paper and writing down all of your values. What do you value? Maybe you value joy, freedom, flexibility, open communication, honesty, family, prosperity, etc. You may fill up an entire sheet of paper, or maybe even two or three! That's ok. The most important thing to do is brainstorm everything you value and write down all the the things that you hold to be of high importance to you in life.

Now what I want you to do, is take whatever time you need to narrow this list down to your top 5 values,no more, no less. It may take a little while to whittle down your list, but what you will find is that when you are forced to decide what is of the greatest importance to you in life, you will really have to think about who you are and what type of life you wish to lead. When you are left with your top 5 values listed on a simple sheet of paper, it may surprise you what you see. Or maybe it would be exactly what you expected. Either way, it is important to know where you stand.

I was in business for 5+ years before anyone ever suggested I do this exercise (thank you Ali Brown)! It changed my life! It truly shined a light on what was important to me and it made me re-think what I wanted my life and my business to be. This simple exercise inspired me to make some big changes.

So now you're thinking, how is this going to help me build my personal assistant business, right? I'll tell you. Every time you are faced with a challenge (and as an entrepreneur this will be frequently) or any time you need to make a decision and are unsure of the answer, I encourage you to recall your top 5 values. The direction your business takes should be based on the aggregate of smaller decisions made in alignment with your values.

If you really want to build a successful business that you believe in and are proud of, and you want to wake up every morning excited to start your day, keep your values at the forefront of your mind any time you have to make a choice. Too often we make decisions based on what we think we should do, or based on what everyone else is doing. Instead, ask yourself "Is this in alignment with my values?", "Will this make me happy?", "Will this improve my quality of life?", "Is this important to me? " I guarantee that if you consistently make decisions (both business and personal) that help you live your life by your values, you will be inspired and motivated to live each day to the fullest!

Put this into practice as you build your personal assistant business. You can use this simple exercise to make decision after decision, and to create a successful and profitable business that you love. For example,maybe you are having difficulty deciding what services you will offer. Perhaps you are an excellent bookkeeper, well-acquainted with bookkeeping practices and tools. Maybe you feel this will be an easy sell because your resume speaks to this strength, or because you already do this type of work for one client who is happy to recommend you to others. Additionally, you are compensated well for your assistance in this area and it seems like a quick, easy way to increase your revenues.

But ask yourself this... is offering this service in alignment with your values? Maybe you value being challenged, or you value the presence of joy in your life. But each time you sit down to do the bookkeeping for a client, you are overcome with dread and boredom. While you are really great at this particular task and it is profitable for you, it is not in alignment with your values and you find yourself,instead of enjoying your work, feeling trapped by it. Now that you recognize this, you have the opportunity to create change!

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