The day Google saved my life.

I love Google. I mean I love Google. Did I tell you I love Google?

What's kind of funny though, is up until the end of 2007 whenever I heard various business owners and executives quote Google as their essential website, I never really got it.

Until I totally got it.

I've wasted so much time flipping from one Google application to another. From Google search, to Gmail, to Google Calendar, to Google Reader.. the list goes on. And having so many screens open! It was confusing and incredibly time consuming. And as a virtual assistant, I don't have the time! I'm busy helping you get your time back!

And then I discovered iGoogle. You can completely customize the page to suit your needs and wants. It's fantastic! I have everything I need in one place (now, if they only had a Google Submit to get my articles and blog posts directly to syndication with the simplest click of the mouse. Speaking of which, perhaps I should check out Google Labs to see if they have that up their sleeve.)

So, back to iGoogle. I have Google Reader up front and centre. This saves me probably 30 to 40 minutes a day right there. I no longer have to search my favourites for, well, my favourites. Techcrunch, Duct Tape Marketing, Seth's Blog, Entrepreneur.com, etc etc; I've set up Google reader to automatically show these sites when they're updated. I can quickly zip through for headlines that interest me. My finger is, literally, on the pulse.

Gmail: I've added Gmail to my iGoogle homepage. It saves me from trying to remember to check twice a day. It automatically shows me when I have new mail; I have it right in front of me. Same goes for Google Calendar. I simply click the link and it pops open for me. No more having to log in, open more windows, etc. It's right there.

I have some fun stuff to: local weather, local news, Facebook. There are so many widgets you can add to your iGoogle homepage, I'm still discovering them. It does take a while to set up, to get everything you want on your homepage, but boy, it's worth it! You get that time back in the first day.

How are you managing your time? Or is your time managing you?

This is just one small service that Scratchpad Secretaries can provide to help you get your valuable time back. Check out our list of services for further ways to help you ease your workload overwhelm!

If you pay peanuts, you get monkeys.

I'm all for bargains. Completely. Love 'em.

The best possible price for the best possible outcome.

But when that doesn't happen, when I don't get the outcome I had desired, I get frustrated knowing full well that I should have just went about it the right way the first time. Did some further research to save me the time and the money. Shopped around a bit more. Got on the Internet, found out what people were saying about this particular product. But I didn't. You know why?

Because it was $13.97 dishwasher detergent.

Last night I was unloading the dishwasher and to my dismay I found that about 1/4 of the dishes were not completely clean. So I ran it again, using the same detergent. This morning what did I find? Same thing. (Fool me once shame on you, fool me twice....) So I have about 100 pellets of high-phosphate detergent sitting under my sink and I don't know what to do with them. That's 100 pellets that I am probably going to get rid of. That's like opening my wallet and shredding money. Sure, it's only $13.97, but it's the POINT of it all. It's aggravating.

Here I am, focussed on going green and yet I bought this harsh detergent that was extremely disappointing and did not have the desired outcome, just to save a few bucks.

I've recently discovered that a very trusted brand has developed a line of green, and economic!, products and dishwasher detergent is one of them. I'm wanting to run out and purchase right now, but I'm going to do my due dilligence first. Research, and research some more. Find out what people are saying. Perhaps see if I can purchase a smaller quantity to test it out.

All of this made me think of you, of other business owners, of my clients and potential clients. Are you doing your due dilligence? Where are you spending your money? Are you getting the desired outcome? Why not?

Drop us a line or give us a jingle. Let's work together to see what's happening with your business; what's working and perhaps even what needs working on. Let's look and your processes and what can be expanded or streamlined. Let's brainstorm to get you headed back in the direction you originally set out on.

Let us Mind your business so you can Grow your business.

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