A Virtual Assistant's Reflection on 2008

Have you ever noticed that the New Year seems to sneak up on us? I don’t know about you, but I tend to get so caught up in preparing for the holidays and gift giving that December 26th, when all the buzz begins to be about New Year’s, it almost feels like being hit over the head with a calendar. Hard.
I realized this weekend that I needed to pause in the post Christmas craziness and truly think about what the past year meant to my business and where I want it to go in 2009. Being a true girly geek, I immediately searched for some goal setting help. On AllBusiness.com, Denise O’Berry offers her Free Goal Setting Guide to help us all define our personal and business goals for the coming year. As I began using this tool, true to form, I became sidetracked. I began to reminisce a bit, after all, isn’t that what Auld Lang Syne is all about?
I thought about the wonderful clients that I’ve been able to work with and the varied projects and tasks that I’ve completed successfully. I reflected on what I’ve been able to bring to those clients, both on a professional and personal level, peace of mind knowing that a capable professional is handling their projects as well as giving them additional hours to do the things they love.
I then reflected on the new things that I’ve learned in the past year. Using social media beyond my own blog like Twitter, Linked In and Facebook has been an ongoing learning experience. Working with WordPress and blogsites has been a joy and discovering ‘new to me’ tools like my NeatReceipts scanner and Adobe Acrobat Pro has not only added value to my services, but been downright fun.
I’ve been lucky enough to do something that I love each and every day. I no longer dread Mondays, or any other day for that matter. And I’ve been a poster child for true virtual assistance as I’ve worked from hotel rooms in North Carolina, moved from Maine to a temporary home in Virginia, returned to Maine for the holidays and been able to not only successfully complete my client work throughout it all, but publish an eBook and be a regular contributor at Home Office Warrior.
With all of these wonderful accomplishments in 2008, how can I not look forward to 2009?