I can hardly believe that it is already the end of May.  Five months have already gone out of the year and I’m still feeling energized and ready to go. It’s a good feeling to be busy and know that you have not been wasting time but working on maintaining the business that you put your hard work and time into growing over the past year.

As we move into the end of the second quarter it’s a good time to take stock on some of the things that you might not have had the time to do. For example, I’ve been so busy working that I needed to take time to regroup and do my accounts, finalize outstanding client contracts, and bring my office administration tasks up to date. Today was a good day to do this and to my surprise I’m right on target to have a good year.

I have managed to set aside time for family and myself on a regular basis so that I’m not  catatonic by the time the third quarter rolls around. With good time management I’m able to have at least two full weekends each month where I don’t thing about work or even turn on my computer. I find that you need to regroup your thoughts and center yourself in order to continue to provide top quality work. There is no sense getting all the clients in the world if you’re going to be tired and can’t perform to your utmost perfection. So make the time to rest and regain your composure so that you can continue to be a top performer.

It’s also a good time, for those of you who might have kids and summer vacation is upon us, to look at your work schedule and make it a little more flexible to enjoy some of the summer sunshine and the family. Last summer I took the leap of faith to check out some independent contractors to work along side me. When it comes to transcription we all have our different standards and variations, but for me what I’ve found works best for me is to be quality control for my service. Working with others in the industry has opened my eyes as to how other transcribers work and do things, and just how similar we all are in the service that we provide. But I have also come across those few who need to do a bit more training to be up to my standards. My tip for working with others in your field is to be the final eyes on the product before you send it out to your client. It’s good to have help but at the end of the day you need to make sure that the service/document you provide is of that standard that your clients are used to getting from you. On this point I proof all documents before they go to my clients to make sure that the format and style is uniformed.

So as we begin June just take some time to take stock and look back on your plan that you made at the beginning of the year. Check to see if you’re on target, if you need to change anything. Make time to gather your thoughts and give yourself some off time to prepare your mind, body and soul for the rest of the year. And above all enjoy what you do, work is a lot easier when you enjoy it. I love to type, play around with my laptop, and learning new things, so for me transcription is a natural choice. So have fun doing your thing and enjoy the rest of 2014.

Althea