This week I thought I’d share this article by Katherine Giovanni with you….

Why should you hire a concierge?  I can think of a hundred reasons actually. Here are just a few …

People around the world are trying to squeeze thirty-six hours into a twenty-four-hour day, and when you do that you don’t do it very well. If you continue to do it on a regular basis, then eventually your body will resent it and you’ll get sick. Concierge are here to give you your health back. They’re here to give you the extra hours that you have been craving and will do what has to be done, so that you can do want to do like spending more time with your children or spending a few extra hours at work.

Companies around the world are also getting into the act. They are not only starting to use concierge, but they are making them a part of their corporate benefit packages. They are reasoning correctly that the less time people spend running personal errands during the workday, the more time they can spend at their desks and, subsequently, with their families at night.

Still not sure you need a concierge?  Here are a few more reasons why you need to hire us …

• The average U.S. worker admits to frittering away more than 2.09 hours a day, not counting lunch, on personal business. This costs companies an estimated $759 billion a year.” – Salary.com and AOL Survey.
• The average worker skips 24 minutes of his or her lunch break every day, the equivalent of approximately two weeks more holiday per year (figures from Data Monitor).
• Since 1969, family time for a working couple has shrunk an average of 22 hours a week. U.S. Government
• Workplace stress is costing the Australian economy $14.81 billion a year. Medibank-commissioned research
• Stress related presenteeism and absenteeism are directly costing Australian employers $10.11 billion a year. Medibank-commissioned research
• According to the Health and Safety Executive, 6.5 million sick days are taken every year as a result of stress — costing £7m per week and £1.4m per working day.
• Approximately 13.7 million working days are lost each year in the UK as a result of work-related illness at a cost of £28.3 billion per year – National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence.

When looking at these statistics, it is easy to see why time has become the commodity of the century and will be even more so in the decades to come. The popularity of concierge services stems from the fact that people are stressed out, overworked, and need help dealing with life so they can spend their free time nurturing themselves and their families. As good workers become harder to find, businesses are looking for concierge services to offer as perks to keep valuable employees happy.

That being said, below is a list of 20 ways you can use a concierge (the real list of what a concierge can do for you is endless)…

1. Obtaining tickets to concerts, special events and sporting events
2. Transportation Services – train, plane or automobiles … concierge can get it!
3. Travel and Vacation Planning
4. Business Referral Service – need a landscaper or a plumber?
5. Restaurant Recommendations and/or Reservations
6. Pet services
7. Internet Research – need research done and you don’t have the time to do it?
8. Personalized shopping and delivery
9. Dry cleaning pick-up and/or delivery
10. Grocery shopping
11. Senior care
12. Picking up or returning a gift
13. Bill paying
14. Auto Maintenance
15. Home Organization
16. Delivering a Meal – breakfast, lunch or dinner
17. Prescription Pick-up and delivery
18. Repair and Service Calls
19. Sick Care – sick in bed? Call a concierge and they’ll do your errands, arrange for dinner to be delivered and can be on hand to help your family out

So get your life back!  Hire a concierge to do what has to be done so that you can do what you’ve always wanted to do.

About the Author: Katharine Giovanni is an award-winning author and the world’s leading concierge trainer and consultant as well as a Certified Concierge Specialist (CCS) and Speaker. She is one of the founders of Triangle Concierge and is the Chairman of the Board and Founder of the International Concierge and Lifestyle Management Association (ICLMA) as well as the author of several business books including her award-winning book Going Above and Beyond and The Concierge Manual.

Each Generation seems to create subcultures of their own and sometimes it can be hard to relate to their wants and needs, especially when buying a gift.

Other generations grow up experiencing things that we have only heard of or are just beginning to understand.  Although we might not join in their passion for all things electronic and technological, we do want to give them something that they will appreciate and enjoy.

These days most music is downloaded via the internet, and an iTunes voucher or a credit at any similar online music and application store has replaced the record voucher we used to give.

Gen Y also seem to be more aware of their health and diet so a subscription or vouchers for home delivered organic produce or natural personal care product ranges are often well received.

There is a definite trend to move away from wine or confectionary related gifts, with more of a focus on vouchers for massage and alternative therapies and anything that promotes a cleaner, healthier lifestyle.

With more television cooking shows than ever, including reality shows like Master Chef, young people are encouraged to experiment more with their cooking.  Recipe books by celebrity chefs or spice and gourmet food baskets will tantalise their tastebuds.

Still on the cooking theme, good quality cookware or kitchen appliances or any nifty new kitchen gadget that you come across will also work, as would a bench-top herb garden or bean sprouting kit.

Books are still a popular choice for gifts, and there are many choices depending on the individual interests of the person you are buying for.

If you need a hand with gift shopping, call me.  Shopping with other people’s money is always a joy for this personal concierge!

Is your computer becoming progressively slower?  Are you finding it almost impossible to find important files?  If your answer is yes, then perhaps it’s time for a little computer organisation.  This is like behaviour management for your computer!

A good start is to clear out the old files that you no longer use.  If you haven’t used it in 6 months or more, you’re probably not going to.  There will of course be certain types of files that will be exempt from this as they legally need to be retained, but anything else that is of no value can go.  Old files can be saved to an external drive or a disc, or deleted if they are no longer needed.

Make sure that you have a good filing system set up.  Decide what categories of information you need and create a folder with each of these categories. You can always add subcategories later if you need them.  For now, just set up the main folders.  Once established, your files can be moved in to the appropriate folder and will be easily tracked down when you need it.  Windows 7 uses a system called libraries which provides a great starting point for organisation of your files.

It is also a good idea to go through your emails, and delete anything that is not required.  It makes sense to create folders in this area too so that you are able to keep track of clients, projects and topics or dates.  Go through your sent items folder and clear out anything that is no longer needed, particularly emails with large attachments because they take up precious space.

Just taking these few initial steps will help you to organise your computer, save you time, and increase your productivity.  And imagine how good it will feel when someone asks for something, and you know exactly where it is!  Start today!

If you need a hand – call me, your personal concierge, I’d be happy to help!

Whether it is private music lessons, sport or perhaps martial arts, out of school activities are an important part of your child’s development.  Having a Personal Concierge properly organise your child’s access to these experiences takes a lot of the stress out of it for you.

Being able to delegate time consuming tasks to your Personal Concierge takes a lot of the pressure off and you can relax, knowing that your child’s extra-curricular needs are being organised while you get on with your work.

Your Personal Concierge can research:

• the experience and qualifications of local teachers and music schools,
• the costs involved,
• purchase or hire of instruments or equipment,

If you give your Personal Concierge a calendar of your child’s scheduled out of school activities they can ensure that all fees are paid on time, equipment and required clothing is purchased and special events such as concerts etc are also scheduled into your own diary so that you can arrange to attend them.

Let’s face it, is can be very time consuming if you have more than one child that you have to taxi around.  Not only does it cost you in time and petrol, it also costs you in lost income while you are away from the office.  I know that you love your kids and treasure all your time with them but there has to be a balance, doesn’t there?  Well, there is.

While you enjoy spending time with your kids, you can delegate work to your Personal Concierge to take care of while you are gone.  She will keep your office running and your money coming in for the time you are away.  Phone calls, accounts, email, packing and sending – all of these tasks and many can be done for you.

So if the time has come for your child to take up a musical instrument or some similar interest and you don’t have the time to dedicate to organising it all, then it’s a perfect task to handball to your Personal Concierge. Don’t let your kids miss out just because you are too busy yourself to organise lessons for them.

Organisation is the key to confidence and competence.  When you are disorganised and can’t work out your priorities it is easy to feel overwhelmed.  Some days are just too daunting to bother getting out of bed for, aren’t they?  It is also easy to forget something that could potentially be disastrous- your partner’s birthday springs to mind!  When you know what you need to get done each day, life is so much easier.  The best way to organise yourself is with a To-Do List.

A To-Do list allows you to think and plan clearly so that you can get everything done that you need to and all your obligations are met.  Additionally, it let’s you prioritise your tasks in order of importance, ensuring that you get the most important tasks finished first.  If you can keep everything under control it will do wonders for your stress levels.   Checking off the completed tasks as you go gives you a sense of achievement and builds your self esteem, especially if you are using it in the work place.

A To-Do list will evolve as you work allowing you to incorporate new jobs and slot them in according to their level of priority.  If you grade your tasks in order of importance from A (being extremely important) right down to F (being of very little importance) you will be able to tell at a glance what needs to be done first.  You will be far more organised, less stressed and totally in control of things.  There are lots of templates available on the internet you might like to use.  A little adaptation will make them suitable for your purposes.

If your life is a little out of control, try a To-Do list.  It sounds simple because it is but it’s also very effective.

When you have completed your To-Do list, give me, your personal concierge, a call and I will help you with it.