real estate virtual assistance: It's Not Personal, It's Business - 07/11/11 04:07 AM
Tish Lloyd's excellent featured post "I'm your REALTOR®, Not Your Punching Bag" reminded me of how some people believe they can say anything they want without any consequence as long as it's under the guise of "it's not personal, it's business". 
I've worked for some pretty rough bosses.  One of them felt that the only way he could get respect was to beat it into your head that he was the boss and his word was law!  (Like I wasn't aware of that.)  I worked with one person who used to cuss to high heaven when he was having a rough … (8 comments)

real estate virtual assistance: Fireworks Displays in Boise - 07/04/11 02:28 AM
Happy 235th Birthday, America!  If you're looking for a place to watch the fireworks display in Boise, head on down to Ann Morrison Park (1000 Americana Blvd, Boise, ID).  Since it doesn't really begin to get dark until it nears 10:00 at night expect the fireworks to start sometime around 10:15pm.  Tune your car stereo to 107.1 FM for musical accompaniment.  Make sure to stay safe and keep all pets inside while fireworks are going off.
Since I'm new to the area and this will be my first 4th of July in the Treasure Valley, does anyone have suggestions other than … (1 comments)

real estate virtual assistance: Husband Upgrade - 02/14/11 07:51 AM
Dear Tech Support:Last year I upgraded from Boyfriend 5.0 to Husband 1.0 and noticed a distinct slow down in the overall performance, particularly in the Flower and Jewellery applications, which operated flawlessly under Boyfriend 5.0.In addition, Husband 1.0 un-installed many other valuable programs, such as Romance 9.5 and Personal Attention 6.5 and then installed undesirable programs such as: Football 5.0, Rugby 4.3 and Cricket 3.0.  Conversation 8.0 no longer runs; it simply crashes the system.Please note that I've tried running Nagging 5.3 to fix these problems, to no avail. What can I do?Signed, Desperate*******************************************************Dear Desperate:First keep in mind, Boyfriend 5.0 is … (9 comments)

real estate virtual assistance: Annotating Your You Tube Videos - 02/13/11 04:18 AM
I was reading Lottie Kendall's post "A Facebook Story for Doubters", where she posted her own video of a not-yet-on-the-market home on Facebook and got a great response from it.  In her video, she made fantastic comments about the area and even made suggestions on what different areas could be used for.  The one thing I noticed in her video and something I have noticed missing in many other videos that REALTORS® seem to overlook is annotating your You Tube videos.  This is a very subtle way to advertise yourself without being glaringly in-your-face.

For REALTORS®, I would suggest adding … (1 comments)

real estate virtual assistance: Google Honors Thomas Edison's Birthday - 02/11/11 11:48 AM

I truly love what Google does to change up their logo.  Just about every day, it's something new.  In honor of the anniversary of Thomas Edison's birthday (he'd have been 164 if he could have invented a way to make humans live longer), the egg-heads at Google transformed their logo into some of Edison's greatest inventions.  You'll have to visit their home page every day to see what is next.
Heather Chavez, Real Estate Virtual Assistant - Second Self Virtual Assistance: When There Isn't Enough of You to Go Around!
If you like this, take a gander at these:
Like … (5 comments)

real estate virtual assistance: Like Apple, Active Rain Has "A Group for That" - 02/10/11 04:24 PM
Thanks to Steve Jobs, you can pretty much get an app for just about anything you have an interest in whether it be serious, social or silly.  Like Apple, Active Rain has "a group for that".  For example, there are...
Fun Social Groups
Addicted to Active RainAlmost Anything GoesBananatudeClub ChaosCosmic Cow Pie...The Rome WayTrivia Tuesday
Positivity Groups
InspirationMotivational MondayThe OptimistPay It Forward Accountability GroupPositive Attitude for the Weary SoulRandom Acts of Kindness
Photo Groups
Express with Photographs at Active RainFriday's FotosGreat ShotsPhotographyPhotosShutter Bug SaturdaySpeechless SundayWordless Wednesday
Sports Groups
NASCAR Nation (my favorite, of course)Sports Talk
Local Groups
Hyper Local Neighborhood and … (5 comments)

real estate virtual assistance: Meaning of Rose Colors - 02/04/11 10:07 AM
I recently had a conversation with some family members about the meaning of rose colors.  I love pink roses, myself.  And red ones are always appreciated.  But, in case you're wondering, here's your rose color guide:
Red - Love and romance
Yellow - Friendship, joy and get well
Pink - Love, gratitude and appreciation
White - Purity, innocence, sympathy and spirituality
Orange - Desire, enthusiasm and passion
Lavendar - Enchantment, majesty, love at first sight
I've never been much of an "orange" kind of gal.  But, I would definitely consider it a compliment to receive THOSE from my husband.
Heather Chavez, … (1 comments)

real estate virtual assistance: Thank You, Connie Harvey - 01/31/11 12:41 AM
Thank you, Connie Harvey, for creating the 31 Day Challenge for January 2011.  Without your challenge, my resolution to blog once a day would have probably fallen by the wayside, much like just about any other resolution I make.  It would have been so much easier for me to just say "Ah, forget about it!" when it got late or I was not sure what to blog about.  Instead, your challenge made me reach deep down inside and create something that I thought would be interesting, not just something that would fill the space.  I greatly appreciate it!
Now, to continue … (10 comments)

real estate virtual assistance: Check Your Keyword Density - 01/30/11 03:40 PM
Everyone knows that one of the keys to good SEO is choosing the right keywords.  Once you've decided what keywords you want to focus on, you need to check your keyword density on your site.  By using these words too little, they become ineffectual.  However, over-saturating your site with keywords not only looks awkward to the website visitor, but can be dinged by search engines as well.  To maintain the proper balance of keywords on your site, use the Keyword Density Analysis tool provided for free at We Build Pages.
By entering your website in the area provided, the analysis tool … (6 comments)

real estate virtual assistance: The Importance of About Me Pages - 01/29/11 02:50 PM
One of the most frequently visited pages after a site's landing page is the "About Me" page.  I am still amazed that there are REALTORS® out there who don't have anything more than contact info on their "About Me" pages, if they even have an "About Me" page to begin with. 
You need to think of your "About Me" page as your online resume.  REALTORS® are always looking for their next "job", right?  If your website is your job interview, your "About Me" tells a potential "employer" (ie, client) what skills and experience you bring to the job.  You wouldn't … (12 comments)

real estate virtual assistance: How Do You Keep Your WordPress Site Secure? - 01/25/11 03:24 PM
WordPress is a very popular, relatively inexpensive and easy-to-use system to create your own independent blog or website.  In fact, Second Self Virtual Assistance offers help in setting up your own WordPress site.  Many website out there offer their own web/blog templates specifically for WordPress.  And, just like an iPhone has "an app for that", there are tons of plug-ins available for WordPress.org users.  However, the more things you add to your WordPress site, the more susceptible to malware and spyware you become.  So, how do you keep your WordPress site secure?
WordPress Themes - The safest bet is to download … (5 comments)

real estate virtual assistance: Save Money With Yollar.com - 01/16/11 03:20 PM
If you're like me (and a lot of other people today), you're trying to find ways to stretch your dollar further.  I love coupons and use them whenever I can.  I recently found a new website that offers spectacular deals for anywhere from 50% to 90% off regular price.  Save money with Yollar.com.
When you subscribe to Yollar, you will receive a daily email with offers for discounted prices on things like restaurants, magazines, spas, golfing and more in your specific area.  You are given the option to purchase the item at the discounted price right away.  When you see a … (6 comments)

real estate virtual assistance: The Signs They Are A-Changin' - 01/13/11 03:45 PM
Up until this morning, I was a Scorpio.  I've happily been a Scorpio all my 40 years.  In fact, my son and I are BOTH Scorpios and proud of it.  However, it appears that the signs, they are a-changin'.  According to a newly released Zodiac, I am now a Libra.  How can I be a Libra?  My husband's a Libra!  But, wait.  Not anymore!  Now, he's a Virgo.  Huh?!  It shouldn't upset me.  But, for some reason, it actually does a little bit.
The newly released Zodiac is based on the location of the constellations.  This is the Eastern way of … (5 comments)

real estate virtual assistance: Do you tend to put your cart before your horse? - 01/13/11 08:49 AM
 
Rhonda makes such a great point here. 
Heather Chavez, Real Estate Virtual Assistant - Second Self Virtual Assistance: When There Isn't Enough of You to Go Around!
 
 
Or are you quick to realize that more efficiency comes from doing it the other way around?
Do you pull on a door that is sporting loud signage stating “Push”?
Do you walk backwards downhill?
Do you paint expansive walls with a brush rather than a roller?
And my favourite, do you choose to drive a nail into a stud by hand when there is a perfectly good hammer sitting right … (0 comments)

real estate virtual assistance: Holy Guacamole, Batman! - 01/08/11 09:48 AM
My husband is QUITE the guacamole snob.  We have often had to re-train wait staff at Mexican restaurants who bring out a couple of avocados, skin them, squish them together and call it "guacamole".  My husband would only eat my mother-in-law's recipe for years.  So, I got the recipe from her.  In her wisdom, she told me that, when it comes to a recipe, you "take the basic recipe and add/subtract to your taste to make it your own".  My husband has since decided that he likes my recipe better (although, he would NEVER admit that to his mother).  In that … (6 comments)

real estate virtual assistance: Cow Tipping in the Rain - 01/03/11 01:21 PM
As many of you know, Carra Riley is busy getting ready for her big Semester at Sea trip soon and has been working feverishly with Margaret Rome to get Cosmic Cow Pie...The Rome Way underway.  This afternoon, I came across an invitation to subscribe to her Cow Tips Newsletter.  Since I recently moved to a rural area outside of Boise, how could I resist Cow Tipping in the Rain?  In it, she promises to share a weekly video "Cow Tip" for all her readers.  I am very excited to see what is in store for the first one.  If you want … (7 comments)

real estate virtual assistance: NASCAR NATION: Jeff Gordon Welcomes Baby Boy - 08/09/10 11:16 AM
Breaking News *** Jeff Gordon and his wife, Ingrid, welcomed baby boy Leo Benjamin Gordon this morning.  He was born at 8:53 am at 7 lbs 2 oz and 19 inches long.  Is this the next NASCAR dynasty in the making?  Only time will tell.  Like a good NASCAR wife, Ingrid was able to hold off on giving birth until Monday so Jeff didn't miss out on Sunday's race at Watkins Glen.  And how lucky is this: Baby Leo was born on 8/9/10.  Congratulations to the happy family!
From Jeff's official website:

 
Heather Chavez, Real Estate Virtual Assistant - … (1 comments)

real estate virtual assistance: What Stage is Your Business In? - 08/03/10 05:55 PM
I've been so busy with family issues that I have fallen out of the habit of blogging and interacting with others here for a while.  I am making a conscious effort to change that as of this minute.  I was reading an article today about how there are three stages in a business cycle: Failure, Success and Neglect.  That made me wonder: what stage is YOUR business in?
Failure - This happens to many people.  In fact, there are many successful people who have failed over and over again: Thomas Edison, Abraham Lincoln and Albert Einstein are the first ones to … (25 comments)

real estate virtual assistance: Twitter: A Fish Story - 07/22/10 12:14 PM
With all the issues I've had in recent weeks with Twitter, I began to wonder...where did the famous "fail whale" come from?  After doing a bit of research, you can now call me Ishmael.  I present Twitter: A Fish Story.
The artist who created what is now known round the world as the "Fail Whale" is Yiying Lu.  Miss Lu originally created it as a birthday card for a friend of hers who was overseas.  When she posted the image on the image hosting website iStockPhoto.com, the people at Twitter liked it so much, they decided to use it as their … (14 comments)

real estate virtual assistance: NASCAR NATION: Damage at Daytona - 07/04/10 04:42 AM
You KNEW there'd be lots of damage at Daytona.  The trick is to hoping your driver isn't in it.  Luckily, mine wasn't.  But, whoo-boy!  What a night of racing on the famous Daytona International Speedway, especially since it's the last race before they start repaving it on Monday for next season.
After a rain delay of an hour and a half, a beautiful rendition of "America the Beautiful" by former Hootie and the Blowfish frontman and current country music sensation Darius Rucker and the recognition of six brave men who had received the Medal of Honor for their service in years … (6 comments)