Simplify your life online

• Rosemarie Milsom
• 26 March 2009
• Page 1 of 2 : single page

For Heidi Pollard weekends used to be less about relaxing with her husband and more about balancing the books. But in the past five months, the Newcastle-based business coach has practised what she preaches and outsourced to an assistant one of the more tedious and timeconsuming elements of her job.

“I’ve never met her,” says Pollard of her Queensland-based assistant. “I found her on a Virtual Assistant referral website. She checks my website, clears spam, processes invoices and each month sends me a task list.

“The first time I needed her to fix a glitch on my website it took her 13 minutes and it probably would have taken me an hour and a half.”

Another regular feature of Pollard’s working week is a one-hour catch-up with her own coach who lives in Colorado.

“We use Skype,” she says. “There’s so much more value in being able to see each other. It’s like being in the room with him.”

It also means Pollard, the sole operator of Leading Value, can be at home for the session, which is usually held between 5–6am. She can then enjoy breakfast with her husband and a walk with the dog. Also at home are the countless work-related books and CDs she has bought online without ever having to take time out from her busy schedule to search book stores. Her Blackberry, camera, lawnmower and some clothing were all eBay purchases.

When she logs onto her laptop each morning there is a thought for the day waiting in her inbox, which she subscribes to online, to give her a spiritual boost. There are also Facebook alerts and bulletins from an array of real estate agents (Pollard uses propertywomen.com.au for information and inspiration). The couple, who are keen investors, bought one property without having to travel to inspect it after seizing on a bulletin that included photos and a virtual tour.

Then there are the sites she uses to distribute articles she has written (ezinearticles.com) and also to make audio recordings and upload web videos (motionbox.com). She uses surveymonkey.com to create free online surveys to send to her professional network and members to ask for feedback and find out what they want.

Use time more efficiently

All of these tools mean Pollard can make better use of her time in any location as long as she has access to her laptop. Like many small business operators, Pollard is always seeking a better balance between the demands of work and the need for time out.

“So many of us get stuck in total overwhelm,” she observes. “You’re trying to do everything and please everyone and you can’t quite see your way clear. I struggled with it in the corporate world where 12–14- hour days were the norm.

“I used to let the diary dictate to me but now I see the work-life balance as less about time management and more about energy management.”

The internet has been invaluable in helping Pollard create space away from her job while also helping her grow her business here and overseas without the need for time-consuming travel. When she needs to jump on a plane, she books online with the advantage of 24-hour access. “I can have a flight organised at 11 o’clock at night if that’s what works.”

And by regularly using internet tools such as online banking, BPAY, social networking sites Facebook and LinkedIn, as well as professional networking sites, including masterbusinessbuildingclub.com, Pollard can maintain the pace of her career, friendships and professional links, while fulfilling her desire for time out.

Be there without being there

It’s a scenario north coast property developer Anthony Cougle relates to. As director of Sapphire Beach Properties, Cougle spends most days out in the field. Recently, before giving the go ahead for a concrete pour, he went to the Bureau of Meteorology’s website while having breakfast with his two children to check the weather forecast. Using swellnet.com.au he also checked local beach conditions to see if it was worth having a surf before heading to work.

 “The internet has made me more flexible and my time less regimented,” says Cougle. “I’m more in control of dividing my time between work and home. I can wake up at 5am and start sending emails for the business which then frees me up to take the kids to school, or spend time with them in the afternoon.”

Sending plans and images to clients by email also means Cougle doesn’t have to travel great distances for meetings. He can be around to help wife Samantha with the kids and, despite the demands of the job, can feel involved on the homefront. When he does travel, it’s to his family’s weekender on the Nymboida River. Even then he turns to the internet.

“Before we go, I can check the Bureau’s site to see what the river level is that day and work out if it’ll be good for swimming or fishing.”

He uses Google Earth to see what’s going on in the area surrounding his cabin and also refers prospective clients to it when he wants to illustrate the features of a development site. The internet is also an efficient tool for price and service comparisons.

“I was sorting out our private health care the other night,” says Cougle. “I spent half an hour doing something that not too long ago would have meant being on hold during business hours for who knows how long.”

Shop around from your desk

In early 2008, the demand for online assistance inspired Alison Walter and her husband Paul Murray to launch shoparound.com.au, a gas and electricity comparison and switching website. In April, the site will expand to include life and travel insurance, credit cards and home loans.

Having worked in London where they could buy everything from organic produce, furniture and housekeeping services online, the couple realised that more people were seeking to simplify their home and work lives by avoiding the runaround.

“With two young children and a business to run, anything I can do online I do,” says Walter. That includes banking, tax returns, medicare claims, clothes shopping and managing her health.

Walter uses ezibuy.com.au to buy casual and work clothing and when it comes to monitoring her health turns to calorieking.com.au, a free weight management service.

“It’s all a juggling act, but having tools at your fingertips to help strike a balance makes it all so much easier,” she says.

The internet also made establishing the business much more manageable. Much of the couple’s research was carried out online and the information on government websites made trading over state boundaries much more feasible.