From the Desk of Janet Barclay

My Blog Friend Jacki Hollywood Brown of Adventures in Organizing tagged me to write an interview with myself. So, here goes:

What is the story behind the name of your blog?

Desk: a table, counter, stand, or booth at which a person works (from Middle English deske, from Medieval Latin desca, modification of Old Italian desco table, from Latin discus dish, disc)

Janet Barclay: A Canadian introvert who has found her bliss working from home as a virtual assistant.

Why did you start blogging in the first place?

When I attended Professional Organizers in Canada’s National Conference in 2006, one of the speakers I had the pleasure of hearing was Leesa Barnes, who encouraged all of us to set up a blog. Up until then, I wasn’t convinced that I had anything to say, over and above what’s in my monthly ezine, but the more I thought about it, the more I realized that I am constantly coming across exciting new resources or having insight that has nothing to do with Maximizing Your Time and Space, so I figured I might as well put them somewhere where other people can also benefit from them.

What is your best blogging experience?

Through my blog and visiting other blogs, I have connected with so many interesting people! One of them even chose me as her virtual assistant after getting to know me through my blog. As a business owner, you really can’t ask for better results than that!

So far the worst experience?

I really can’t say I’ve had a bad experience. I’ve had one or two comments from readers who disagreed with something I’ve said, but not in a nasty way. I sure don’t expect the whole world to agree with me about everything!  Sometimes it’s just hard to think of something to write about that anyone would care to read.

What do you think will happen to your blog in 2008?

I’m hoping to make it bigger and better – but that will have to wait until I’ve finished redoing my website.

Who I’m tagging:

Ariane Benefit of Neat and Simple and Alex Fayle of Someday Syndrome

I couldn’t let International Coaching Week go by without stopping to celebrate the business success I’ve experienced over the last couple of years, because it wouldn’t have been possible without the support and guidance of my coaches.

When I decided to leave my job and work in my business on a full-time basis, I knew I needed to speed up the growth process to bring my income to what it had been. I had a lot of good ideas, but didn’t know how to decide which ones were worth implementing or even how to go about it in some cases. The best decision I made was to team up with a business coach, who helped me to analyze my competition, identify my niche market, and strengthen my branding, among other things. I still had to do all the work, but with someone to guide me and to be accountable for, I was able to accomplish much more than I had been able to do on my own. As I’ve mentioned before, I later took part in a group coaching program based on the Law of Attraction, which further developed my awareness of my ideal client and helped me to take my business to the next level.

If you’re a new entrepreneur, you may have limited resources available, but I strongly encourage you to find a way to make the investment. Group coaching tends to be less expensive than one-on-one, and provides the added support of the other group members. Another option would be to offer your services in exchange for coaching.

Just make sure that the person you choose as your coach is someone you respect and feel comfortable with. And remember, you will have lots of homework! Like so many things in life, you will only get out of coaching as much as you put into it.

There are a number of coaches in my blogroll, whose specialties include executive, marketing, productivity, and careers. Why not pay them a visit and see what they have to offer?

Every once in a while, I hear about something someone is doing that I just have to share.

Last year I wrote about a program I took called "Turbocharge Your Business" which taught how to use the Law of Attraction to grow your business. I can honestly say that since then, I have never looked back. Now Law of Attraction Coach Don Giberson of DreamCrafters Inc. is offering his Dream Library, which includes all of the audio files and accompanying documents for Turbocharge Your Business and 12 other programs, at a special introductory price of only $77.00 - less than the cost of one individual program!

That is pretty exciting in itself, but what makes this offer even more special is that the first $100,000 raised through the Dream Library will go directly to Colton, a 9-year old boy with a rare, degenerative disorder that usually claims the lives of its victims by the age of 12. Colton is going to India for a life-saving operation, but his  family needs to raise $400,000 for the trip, the operation, and the years of rehabilitation he will need when he returns home.

Taking three simple steps can help create a miracle for Colton, and they will only take a few minutes. The three steps are: 

Step 1 - Click here to learn more about Colton and the various ways you can help create a miracle for Colton. Some cost nothing.

Step 2 - Order a one-year membership to the Dream Library. It truly is an amazing offer. And the first $100,000 raised goes directly to Colton.

Step 3 - Please help spread the word about this special young boy. It will take a lot of people to create a miracle for Colton.

Wow, it’s such a busy time of year that I haven’t remembered to list what I’ve recently posted on other blogs! I’m sure you’ve been busy too and will forgive me.

OnlineOrganizing.com - Technology as an Organizing Tool:

• Don’t Reinvent the Wheel
• Planning Meetings Across Time Zones
• The Perfect Gift for Magazine Lovers
• Maintaining Your Health Records
• Online Gift Certificates - The Ultimate Last Minute Gift
• Get Organized in 2008 with Google Calendar

Introvert Retreat:

• Introversion: What Extraverts Need to Know
• Maintaining Your Energy During the Holiday Season
• "Sad but True" - how we are viewed by extraverts
• More Holiday Survival Tips

There are also quite a few new articles at OrganizedArticles.com full of tips for Maximizing Your Time and Space as you get ready for 2008.

It’s that time of year when I get to wish my readers a very merry Christmas - or do I?

I think back to when I was a child and my dad had his own business. He didn’t send Christmas cards to his customers, because he didn’t believe in using a religious holiday for commercial purposes. He was also sensitive to the fact that he had a number of customers who were Jewish and would therefore not be celebrating Christmas.

For a few years as a young adult, I belonged to a church which did not allow their members to celebrate Christmas due to its pagan origins. At that time I noticed that in my small department at work there was only one person who officially celebrated Christmas, however, most of the others gave out Christmas cards even though they didn’t practice other traditions.

While our society has become increasingly multicultural, there is also much more focus on being politically correct. One of the biggest debates here in Hamilton is whether the lights at the side of the Mountain should say MERRY CHRISTMAS or HAPPY HOLIDAYS. On the years when it says MERRY CHRISTMAS, some non-Christian residents will complain that they are being excluded. Yet when it says HAPPY HOLIDAYS, some Christians will complain that the Christmas message is being diluted and/or secularized. In a way, since we do claim to be a nation who embraces diversity, yet with roots in Christianity, they are both correct, so what is the solution? Then when you factor in the question of whether or not it’s appropriate for businesses to use the holiday season to stay in touch with their clients, it gets even more complicated!

So I’m going to go out on a limb here, and say this:

If you are celebrating Christmas in any shape or form, whether it be a religious occasion for you or merely an opportunity for special time with your loved ones, then I wish you a very Merry Christmas! If you are celebrating (or have already celebrated) Hanukkah, Eid, Kwanzaa, or any other special occasion, then I hope it is (or was) wonderful for you in every way. And if you’re not celebrating anything at all, I respect your decision, and hope you will still find a reason to rejoice in the wonders of life.