It's great to be a virtual assistant and work from your own home office. You get to have clients from all over the world. It doesn't matter where they are, you can still provide great service. That's what 'virtual' means. But what about a mobile virtual assistant coach? What?!

Years ago I was a mobile notary. That meant as a notary I came to wherever you were. Now I'm thinking about becoming a mobile virtual assistant coach. Already as a virtual assistant I can work anywhere. I don't need a home office even. I can take to the road with a laptop and use online tools to meet a client's every need.

Now that I and my husband Joel coach virtual assistants, we can also do that from anywhere. Most of our coaching is done by phone on Skype. But what if we became Mobile Coaches? Not only do our work from anywhere, but come to you - the virtual assistant - where ever you are? You could now receive in-person training without leaving home.

What do you think of that idea? We're giving it a trial run in August as we travel from our California home base up into Oregon, through Washington and into Canada. We've already talked with a virtual assistant in Oregon who is going to let us stay a day or two with her in exchange for coaching and Joel's cooking. And we're putting together a workshop in Vancouver for local VAs there. From there - the world!

Read all about our Nomadic Dream at our blog here: http://canfieldofdreams.com/. Tell us what you think. Any ideas and suggestions are appreciated. We're also looking for sponsorship ideas. We'd love to hear from you!

Today I'm attending the local author appreciation fair in Folsom, California. My son James Ashman wrote a fiction book, The Lupine Prince, and he is one of the local authors who will be recognized at this fair.

Have you ever considered writing a book? There are good reasons as business persons to do so.

We live in a virtual world. As virtual assistants, for the most part, it is not necessary to leave our home office to do our work. Yet there are some cons to working solo in this environment. It can be lonely not to have the comaraderie we once had in an office setting. We no longer have the ready access to a fellow office mate to bounce ideas against and get instantaneous feedback on our work. Sure we can get that from other people online. But the connection is not quite the same.

Virtual assistants in many areas are creating meetup groups at Meetup.com. They meet regularly with one another as a group at a local setting. Here they are able to exchange ideas, brainstorm, and get encouragement to help them in their businesses. Some have other people come in and speak on topics that are of interest to the group and can help them develop their businesses.

I belong to such a group that meets in Roseville, Caliornia each month. The Northern California Virtual Assistants Meetup Group usually meets the fourth Saturday of each month. We've had a business coach come in and speak to us; someone else came in and spoke about their time tracking software; another coach came in to speak on getting out of our comfort zone; another came in to discuss our motivation in selling our services; another is coming to discuss organization and productivity tips.

Perhaps you can find or create a similar group in your area so that you and other virtual assistants have a way to brainstorm ideas and grow your businesses. Let's work together to grow the virtual assistant industry.

Small Business Development Centers (SBDC) provide business management counseling and training for local business owners. They offer the assistance needed to be more successful, whether you have been in business for years or are just starting out. They offer one-on-one confidential, expert business counseling to business owners at no charge.

My husband and I have been taking advantage of this free resource for nearly a year. It has helped us focus on what we need to do to grow our businesses. Having a feeling of accountability to the program helps us stay on track. Visit the SBDC in Placer County California.

The U.S Small Business Administration (SBA) administers the Small Business Development Center Program to provide management assistance to current and prospective small business owners. SBDCs offer one-stop assistance to individuals and small businesses by providing a wide variety of information and guidance in central and easily accessible branch locations.

Find a small business development center.

Attend a free one-hour class this summer throughout the months of July and August in Roseville, California. Joel D Canfield, The Commonsense Entrepreneur is teaching his series of four classes.

The class titles are:
Commonsense Customer-Centric Thinking
Effective Entrepreneurial Etiquette
Commonsense Small Business Marketing
Cultivating Quality Employees

Joel D Canfield has been a successful small business owner and operator for over 25 years and recently won the Stu Ed Award for the Most Profitable Business Class.

All the details can be found at the NCAE website.