Happy Holiday's!

I cannot believe the holiday's are here! 2008 is right around the corner and I for one am ready! 2007 has been a great year for my business. Each year it just gets better, so I cannot complain one bit! I am very blessed and am thankful everyday. But I also realize that everything that has happened this past year did not just fall in my lap, it come from hard work, determination and a goal to succeed!

I have to admit I am drivin and I knew from a very young age that if I wanted something I better figure out a way to do it because I was the only one that knew how bad I wanted it!

I never expect anyone to do it for me so I always make a plan and set a goal and make it happen. This comes from alot of how I was raised.

This past month I have been faced in watching my grandmother get older and that I have to face the reality that she will not live forever. I don't want to think about it and I won't talk about it much with family. She is my hero and I love her dearly and I really cannot imagine my life without knowing she is there.

I've also been faced with a situation that is very stressful to me and that is my long lost father may not live much longer. This is also tough since this is a man that choose not to be in my life and now that he is dying he wants me there. His wife and two son's who one I have never met, his wife I just recently have talked to for the first time since they have been together - 30 plus years I think and then the one that I have met and have spoken to a couple of times on the phone. I do not have any anger towards my father, no resentment and I do care about him. But I also feel that I do not owe him anything, but I had to make a choice and the choice I made was I would be there for him and would do anything I can to make his life easier. I realized that even though he made the choice not to be a part of my life it had nothing to do with me or that he loved me any less. That is just the path he choice at the time.

So, I will go visit him in the hospital and will go knowing that he may or may not recognize me, but for me this is closure and even though he was not a part of my life I want him to know that I grew to become a caring, responsbile, loving mother and I must say GREAT wife and my life is complete.

I also feel that we are put on this earth for a reason and regardless of how we are raised we are responsbile for who we are and how we get there. I feel that I am a stronger person, determined to give my children the life I never had and that I have been given the opportunity to give my children the love and security they deserve and if I had not had the childhood that I had I may not have appreciated what I have now and that is a wonderful husband and three amazing boy's who are growing into these awesome individuals.

In addition, I also believe my professional life is a result of my childhood and realizing at an early age I had choices - good or bad - and I always choice the good! Why, because I wanted both of my parents to be proud of me and when the day is over I know they are!

So, as we bring in 2008 - ask yourself - Are you the best person you can be? If you honestly cannot answer this question then you need to ask yourself - what can I do to become the best person I can be and then do it!

And, remember - if you are going to have a pity party just think someone else's life is harder than yours - then you realize you don't have the right to have a pity party! :D

How Does One Benefit From Coaching?

A few years ago when you heard the word "coach" you might have thought of someone that worked with in the athletics field. Now days when you hear the word "coach" you ask "What kind of a Coach are they".

You can find a coach for just about anything from a life coach to a business coach. Why do you need a coach, you might ask. Well, I have found coaches to be very beneficial to me in my business and personal life. About a year ago I seeked out a life coach to help me get my priorities in order and even though I am pretty organized I found her coaching to be of great help to me. She helped me look at my personal life and work on the areas that I was weak and enhance the areas where I was strong. Then I hired a organizer coach to come to my office to review what I was doing and help me improve my systems. This was a great benefit to me even though I was very organized she was able to help me focus on things that I thought were minor, only to discovere they were not. As a matter of fact after 2 hours of sitting with me she told me I really did not need a coach for organization, but I explained I always am looking for ways to improve and I always appreciate another person's opinion.

the other day I decided to do a Google to see how many coaches in particular fields there were and I was amazed at the results. In my discovery I realized anyone can be a coach. A little training here, a seminar there and so on and BAM you are now a coach. Don't get me wrong it takes a special person to become a coach, but in addition to their training they have to have the knowledge and experience to offer their clients to get them on the right track, whatever that may be.

A couple of years ago I realized that I offer something that others could benefit from and that is the knowledge and experience of a virtual assistant. I already was helping people to become successful in their business and obviously what I was doing was working because those that seeked my adviced were making it work.

I have been a virtual assistant for 7 1/2 years now and still love what I do and one of the greatest things I enjoy doing is helping other succeed in their business and in their personal life.

Being a mother of three active boy's, a wife and a successful business owner I have the experience to offer another person who has the same desire to become successful. The first thing I require from anyone I coach is to have the desire to succeed and the passion to make it happen. Once you realize that you to can succeed and have the confidence to believe in yourself you can do it!

If you would like to know more about my coaching and how it will benefit you, please let me know. I want to help you take those babysteps and overcome those obstacles to become the most successful person you can be.

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone!

As we get to close to the end of the year, it is that time again to get organize so we can start the new year fresh and ready to go.

I suggest you start now getting your tax information in order. The earlier you take care of your taxes the better off you will be.

This past year I have found some great programs to make my life easier and I would like to share them with you. I hope each program benefits you in some way in making you life easier and more organized.

OH! I would like to offer you my new e-book for FREE! Click here to receive my 5 Grat Tips To Become A Successful Virtual Assistant. http://www.kimhughes.com/

Ok, so here are some of my favorite programs! Believe me they are worth looking into.

RoboForms is a great program to keep track of all your passwords. I love it even more to also store my client's passwords to their programs. Easy and trust worthy. I think you will find it a huge timesaver in your everyday business. Check it out!



I LOVE Shutterfly! Why, for several reasons, but one is if I need to store photos for my clients to capture the link for another program I can load the photo here for FREE. Easy!

I love to take photos of my family and post on Shurrterfly and then email to family members and friends.

When I have our family photo taken I go to Shutterfly to order my holiday cards and can create my own right online and then ship to me. This is a great time saver for me.

I order photos from Shutterfly and in multiples. Since I have scrapbooks on all three boy's I find it a time saver and very cost effective.

You must check them out and here is an offer for free shipping!

Anyone that knows me will agree that I love animals! I have 4 dogs and 4 cats and it can get expensive buy all their special items. I can go to Drugstore.com and purchase all my pet products and my families products in one location and most of the time shipping is free. Another great way for me to save time!

Time is money!

Have you ever wanted to have a confirmation that your email was received and read? Did it get forwarded to another person, etc. This is one of my favorite programs. Read Notify is a great program to have to ensure you have a confirmation on those ever so important emails.

If you only purchase one program this year, this is the one!




Now that I have shared some of my favorite programs and websites with you, make sure you check them out. There is more to come so stay tuned.

8 Random Facts About Kim Hughes

I have been tagged by Ann Baron so here I go with 8 random facts about me.

1. I always knew I wanted to work in the real estate industry. When I graduated from HS I went to my hometown community college and took some classes in real estate. Everyone thought I was crazy. When I moved to Dallas, at 19, on my own, I found a head hunter and told them to only put in a position to work with real estate. I paid that head hunter $600.00. My career started as a receiptionist for a mortgage banking company. Then I went from there to work for as an Executive Assistant to a Portfolio Manager with The Federal Asset Dispostion Association taking down S&L's. While working I went to college and earned my degree and worked as a part-time cocktail waitress.

2. After my first son was born, I went into Direct Sales with Mary Kay Cosmetics. I loved what I was doing and I will say this about MK - It taught me how to build a business, handle finances and be independent. Not to mention build my confidence. I think she is the one individual I respect the most outside of Barbara Bush! These two women are my hero's.

3. When I discovered the VA industry, I only know real estate and was the first to become a real estate virtual assistant. Anna Baron, my best buddy, coached me on how to build my business and saved me from a lot of mistakes. Michael Russer opened the door for me and the rest is history. Thanks Anna and Michael!

4. Another major step in building my business was to be invited by Kathy Drewien to attend an Allen F. Hainge CyberStar Summit. Another smart move on my part and without Kathy's invitation I don't think I would be were I am today. Thanks Kathy.

5. Howard Britton for inviting me to speak at his 2005 Star Power Conference where I was able to meet some of the most powerful Stars in the real estate industry.

6. Watching my mother struggle to raise her children in a time that divorced woman had a label, she was able to raise 4 kids without child support and only on 1 income, if you want to call it that, without any of us having issues. Seeing how she struggled everyday being abused not just physically, verbally and financially made each of us strong individuals and we learned life is not fair, so get over it and make the most of what God has planned for us! We all have succeed and I am very proud of my brothers! We all made it without the support of our father, without someone handing life to us on a plate. We all achieved our goals on our own.

7. I have three boy's - one in college, 2 in high school and to this day I have only missed one event that they have participated in and that was due to a family emergency. Thanks to my business I can work my family around my career. I have the best kids! I love each and everyone of them with all my heart! I hope that I have given them the foundation to be outstanding individuals and appreciate the life we have given them and they always strive to be the best, no matter what they choose in life.

8. I have been married to Paul for 24 years and we are best friends. He thought I had lost my mind when I wanted to start a home business as a real estate virtual assistant. And, even though he did not support my idea at first, he is now my biggest fan! I am very blessed!