Calendar Management Walkthrough For Virtual Assistants

Summary

In this video, Lean Li, a seasoned entrepreneur and founder of a virtual assistant agency, shares a comprehensive guide on managing a client's calendar effectively, especially for virtual assistants. She emphasizes the importance of assessing the client's routine, blocking out personal time, and creating templates for recurring meetings. Lean walks viewers through using Google Calendar to organize tasks, handle conflicts, and ensure clarity in calendar invites. She also introduces tools like Google’s booking link for scheduling and discusses best practices such as time zone management and regular calendar reviews to help clients stay organized and focused.

Takeaways

• 😀 Review and assess your client's day-to-day schedule to identify patterns, recurring meetings, and breaks before managing their calendar.
• 😀 Plot out both personal and business-related activities for your client, including meals, breaks, and work time, to prevent conflicts.
• 😀 Use Google Calendar's shortcuts (M for month, W for week, D for day, T for today) to navigate and efficiently manage scheduling.
• 😀 Make sure to schedule personal tasks such as lunch, sleep, and time off to avoid burnout and to ensure important self-care isn't overlooked.
• 😀 Block out recurring meetings and events in the calendar (e.g., daily syncs, company scrums) to avoid scheduling conflicts.
• 😀 Set up calendar templates for recurring meetings to ensure consistency and clarity for your client and meeting attendees.
• 😀 Add clear and concise meeting descriptions in calendar invites to ensure everyone knows what to expect and can prepare effectively.
• 😀 Always double-check meeting times, dates, and invite details to prevent mistakes and ensure all parties are correctly informed.
• 😀 Check for conflicts regularly, especially when meetings are moved or new events are added, and reschedule when necessary.
• 😀 Use scheduling tools like Google’s bookable links or third-party scheduling apps to allow others to easily book time with your client without overbooking.

Q & A

What is the first step in managing a client's calendar as a virtual assistant?

The first step is to review and assess the client's existing calendar. Look for patterns in their daily, weekly, and monthly routines, identify recurring meetings, breaks, and important tasks. This helps you understand their schedule before adding new events.

Why is it important to block out personal time on a calendar?

Blocking out personal time is crucial to prevent over-scheduling and ensure that the client takes care of themselves. This includes time for breaks, meals, sleep, and other life events, so they don’t miss important personal activities while managing their work commitments.

How can you ensure that a client’s personal and professional time doesn’t overlap?

You can use calendar tools like Google Calendar to block off personal activities, such as sleep, meals, and focus time, ensuring these events are clearly marked as non-negotiable. This prevents conflicts with work meetings or tasks.

What are some helpful shortcuts when using Google Calendar?

Some helpful Google Calendar shortcuts include 'M' to view the entire month, 'W' for the weekly view, 'D' for the daily view, and 'T' to jump to today’s date. These shortcuts help you navigate through the calendar efficiently.

What is the significance of creating recurring events in Google Calendar?

Creating recurring events in Google Calendar ensures that regular tasks or meetings, such as daily syncs or weekly check-ins, are automatically scheduled without having to manually input them each time. This saves time and ensures consistency.

How do you manage the scheduling of client meetings with multiple time zones?

To manage scheduling across time zones, you can use tools like Savvy Time, a Google Chrome extension that helps you visualize different time zones when scheduling meetings. This ensures that all parties are available and that meetings are scheduled at convenient times for everyone involved.

What is a scheduler tool and how can it benefit a virtual assistant managing a client’s calendar?

A scheduler tool, such as Google Calendar’s new booking feature, allows clients or employees to book meetings based on available times in the client's calendar. It simplifies the process, especially when coordinating with multiple people, and reduces the back-and-forth communication often needed to find a suitable time.

How can virtual assistants use templates for recurring meetings?

Virtual assistants can create templates for recurring meetings, which include predefined descriptions, agendas, and locations. This ensures that all necessary details are consistently included in calendar invites, saving time and providing clarity for both the client and the meeting participants.

What should you do when there is a conflict in your client’s calendar?

When a conflict arises, communicate with the relevant parties to reschedule the conflicting meetings. You should adjust the calendar to accommodate the new time or move other appointments to avoid any overlap, ensuring the client’s schedule remains manageable.

Why is time blocking important in calendar management, and how can it be applied?

Time blocking helps ensure that important tasks or focus time are not interrupted by meetings or other distractions. By allocating specific blocks of time for different tasks, a virtual assistant can protect the client’s time and keep them focused on priority activities.