Humblebee

Author: Humblebee ~ Secretarial and administration support

  • Accessible document production

    Sometime ago I wrote a blog post about website accessibility. In this blog post I continue the theme by looking at accessible document production and provide ideas to help you make your documents more accessible. The post focuses on making Microsoft Word and PowerPoint documents accessible but the ideas can be applied to other documents.…

  • A beginners guide to digital images

    Digital images are now part of our daily lives. From capturing memories and sharing experiences on websites, blogs and social media, to documentation such as news articles, educational materials, presentations and research papers, whether in your personal life or in the workplace, the chances are you use digital images but how much do you actually…

  • Age of indifference

    Did you know the Collins dictionary word of 2022 was ‘Permacrisis’? The word means the feeling of living through a period of war, inflation, and political instability. Over the last few years we have been through a lot and news headlines have been relentlessly bleak — Brexit, a global pandemic, wars, strikes, violence and unrest…

  • How to clean your computer

    To keep your computer running smoothly and to protect it from viruses and malware it is important to clean it regularly. In this blog post I offer some simple ideas to clean your computer. The post focuses on Windows computers but the ideas can be adapted across computers, browsers, software and platforms.

  • Year in review 2024

    A roundup of 2024 blog posts.

  • File naming conventions

    When you open the file storage on your computer what do you see? Can you easily identify the file you need? Can you tell from the file name what the file is without opening it or whether it is the latest version of your file? If the answers to these questions are no, then you need…

  • World of spam

    If you are active online, you have almost certainly received spam.  Similar to junk mail, spam is any unsolicited communication sent in bulk but rather than being sent in the post, it is sent via the internet. Recently I have been dealing with a lot of spam posted to a social media group I manage.…

  • Why your website needs categories and tags

    If you maintain your own website, you may be aware that it is possible to add categories and tags to your posts but not know what this means. Categories and tags are known as taxonomies, with taxonomy being the practice and science of categorisation or classification, especially hierarchical classification, in which things are organised into groups…

  • What you need to know about domain names

    A domain name (also known as a website address or URL) is what someone types into a search engine to find a website. Every website has a unique domain name which enables the creation of an online presence and enables other internet users to find and contact the website owner.

  • Communication preferences

    Communication preferences are the ways that people choose to communicate and be communicated with. They influence how people express themselves, listen, respond and interpret and can vary depending on factors such as age, personality, disability, culture, context and mood. In this blog post I write about the reasons people may have particular communication preferences and why…

  • Why you should never send financial, personal or sensitive information by email

    Have you ever been asked to send financial, personal or sensitive information about yourself by email? It is something I have been asked to do many times and has now become something of a bugbear. Why? Fraudsters are becoming increasingly savvy — if you send financial, personal or sensitive information by email, there is a…

  • Rules of netiquette

    Recently someone I had never met took a dislike to something I had posted on Facebook. Commenting on my post he told me ‘Give it a rest love. There are men in the room.’ I should have let it lie and usually I would have — I have always had a zero tolerance attitude to…

  • All about cookies

    When on the internet you cannot fail to have come across cookie consent forms asking whether you want to accept or decline cookies but what exactly are cookies? In this blog post I write about cookies, why they are important and what you need to know about them to ensure you stay safe and compliant…

  • International Women’s Day 2024

    International Women’s Day (IWD) takes place on 8 March each year. It is a global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women. The day also marks a call to action for accelerating women’s equality.

  • Three little words

    Mistakes happen. No matter what some people may tell you (I once had a work colleague who told me he never made mistakes and others who I am sure believed they did not), we are all human and everyone makes them. When mistakes happen in your business, the way you handle them is really important…

  • Screen time

    Have you ever considered how much time you spend online? It bothers me hugely and I am constantly trying to get away from my digital devices. If you are looking to reduce your screen time too, in this blog post I share ideas and resources to support your digital wellbeing.

  • Client briefs and why they are important

    In business a client brief refers to a document that details the requirements of a project and the solution required. The word brief means a set of instructions given to a person about a job or task and to instruct or inform (someone) thoroughly, especially in preparation for a task. In this blog post I…

  • A short history of virtual assistants and remote working

    A virtual assistant (VA) is a person who works remotely online. With technological developments virtual assistants are now able to perform all the tasks a secretary or administrator would traditionally handle while working from home but how did virtual assistants come into being?

  • The Right to Disconnect

    Recently I received an email and underneath the signature it read ‘Your right to disconnect: I have sent this email at a time that is convenient to me. I do not expect you to respond if outside of your usual working hours.’ Prior to receiving the email I had never heard of the right to…

  • Year in review 2023

    To end 2022 I have pulled together a round up of blog posts. In my blogs I write about the services I provide as a virtual assistant, things I need to know about for my work and training and development I have undertaken. I also write about topics my clients ask me about, to hopefully…

  • Reasons to write a year in review blog post

    A year in review is as an overview of events, milestones or accomplishments from the previous year which you want to celebrate or highlight to the outside world and an opportunity to summarise the year that has just passed. With the end of the year approaching, I thought it would be interesting to write a…

  • Fees, prices, rates, charges

    Since becoming a Virtual Assistant (VA) one of the things I have found most challenging is setting rates for the services I provide, so for this blog post I thought I would write about the different ways services can be priced and the pros and cons of each.

  • Everything I Wish I’d Known About LinkedIn

    Before I started my own business, I never gave much thought to LinkedIn. All that changed when I became a Virtual Assistant. For the first time in my life I no longer had an employer telling me what to do and paying me a regular sum of money. And while I had created a website,…

  • Emoji history

    Love them or hate them, we live in an emoji filled world. Thousands of emoji now depict people and things and as the world becomes increasingly digitalised and increasingly globalised, emojis are becoming a common language and an important communication tool.

  • Spreadsheets versus databases

    Do you know your spreadsheets from your databases? This blog post aims to show the difference, the advantages and disadvantages and generally help you get to know your onions.

  • Word processor wars: Microsoft Word versus Google Docs

    For many years now Microsoft Word has been the go to word processor but there is a new kid in town. In May 2021 Jake Anbinder a PhD candidate in US history caused a storm on Twitter after tweeting ‘Gen Z just does not use Microsoft Word, period. When you ask them to submit .doc…

  • A short guide to backing up

    Have you ever lost an important document you created on your computer or had a moment of panic because you thought you had? If the answer to these questions is yes, then you will understand the importance of backing up the data on your computer. Hard drive fail, accidental deletion, natural disaster, theft, ransomware, malware, they…

  • Questions for web designers

    The importance of having a website today is indisputable but if you are not a website designer by trade, creating one from scratch can be a daunting task. In this blog post I draw on my experience of working as a web editor and advise on questions to ask a website designer before you employ…

  • The future is digital, the future is now

    Recently I had the opportunity to attend a webinar on how we can fight the cost of living crisis using digital technology. It was organised by BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT and the Digital Poverty Alliance, organisations that believe we are all responsible for ensuring technology-led change is safe and positive for everyone in society. I…

  • The rise and rise of the QR code

    Have you noticed? QR codes currently seem to be everywhere. Changing your bank, you might be asked to scan a QR code for information about your new account. Taking part in an online event, you might be provided with a QR code to give feedback. Watching a tv show you can vote using a QR…