The Secret Sauce of Outsourcing

If you trust your OFS, why not? It's their job to help you with your business. It's your job to provide stability and take on the risk as an entrepreneur. I do understand why some people wouldn't be comfortable with this arrangement. I just got an email from a client explaining why they don't like the idea of their OFS handling billing. Want to know how we resolved this? Let's talk about it in thi...

Here in Utah, we usually take things easy in the week between Christmas and New Year's Day. It's relaxed. Offices and business are closed, so we take this time to visit family and go skiing. In the Philippines, it's a different story. It gets hectic, and everybody's out to visit family and run errands. I'll tell you more about what happens this week in this episode.

Today, your OFS (online Filipino specialist) isn't going to be working. But it would be a good day to send them an email saying, "Happy Holidays." In that email, you could also thank them for the excellent job they've done for the year and give them an overview of what they can expect for the future.

We just updated the holiday calendar that we maintain for the Philippines. You'll find it in the blog post link below. The calendar is a Google calendar that you can download and integrate on your own. In the blog post, we also talk about the different kinds of holidays in the Philippines, paid time off, and expectations.  For the 2022 calendar, we added designation, so you'll see right away...

Christmas is it for me. It's the day that I looked forward to the most when I was a kid, even now with my own kids.  But in the Philippines, the party happens the day before. Christmas and New Year's Day is when they sleep in.  Want to know what happens in the Philippines during Christmas and New Year's Eve? That's what I'll be talking about in this episode.

I know I talk a bunch about the 13th month already. But I keep getting these questions, so  I will give you more answers. I'm also going to read what Julia (my OFS) wrote about the 13th month. It will explain why it's such a big deal in the Philippines and why Filipinos expect it. That's all happening in this episode.

When does Christmas start? Like, in my family, we have this friendly debate on when to start playing Christmas music and putting up the decorations. Do you begin after Halloween? Thanksgiving? First day of December? In the Philippines, Christmas starts in September. They have a lot of other Christmas traditions that I think you're to find interesting, and we're going to talk about them in this epi...

I get asked all the time how to give gifts to their OFS in the Philippines. Sending stuff to the Philippines is not simple because of shipping issues. But sending digital gifts like ebooks or games can be an option if you know what your OFS likes. Let's talk about it in this episode.

One of the things people look forward to during the holidays is the food. I don't have that relationship with food. But I understand why people would feel that way. According to my OFS Julia, most Filipinos have that relationship with food, especially during Christmas. I'll share with you what she told me about the food traditions in the Philippines.

It's not that Filipinos don't want to own businesses. The process of opening and closing a business is just so complicated. It's easier to stay employed. Want to know how complicated? I'll talk about it in this episode.

Just last week, we had a major SEO crisis. We couldn't find Onlinejobs.ph on Google or DuckDuckGo. So I emailed my guys in the Philippines and within the day, they figured out the problem and fixed it. There is more to the story, and I will tell you all about it in this episode.

When your OFS (online Filipino specialist) isn't working as much as they should or as well as you expect, it's easy to assume that they have another job. But before you accept that, there's one thing you should do first: Ask. Why? Because asking solves a lot of problems, and the answers may surprise you.

Just so you know, now's a good time to send the 13th month. Filipinos depend on it.  They expect it. They worry when it's late. You'll want to send it early rather than later. I'll answer some of your questions about the 13th month in this episode, but check out the links below if you want more information.  https://blog.onlinejobs.ph/13th-month-pay-practical-advice https://blog.onlinejo...

I mentioned in my last episode that Filipino funerals are complicated. Just how complex is it? I will tell what goes on at a Filipino funeral in this episode. Once you hear this, you'll start to understand why Filipinos ask for several days off to help out with the funeral.

"Please don't fire me!"  That was the email Dylan got from his OFS when she told him that she had a death in the family and needed to take some time off. Dylan had no intention of firing her. But his OFS almost expected that he would because Filipino funerals are so complicated.  Why is this a thing? I'll explain in this episode.

We did a great case study with John Abbas. He runs a podcast where his OFS manages it and helps him stay on track. They built the website for the podcast, do graphics, do SEO, manage the YouTube channel, etc. It's a really classic example of an OFS helping to grow a business.

I got this great question from Jared, asking what I do when I need to subscribe to services that my OFS uses for our business. Like, how do I pay for it? Do we have a corporate credit card? The answer is, it depends. I'll explain my answer in this episode.

Thanksgiving and Bonifacio Day (a regular holiday in the Philippines) both happen in the last week of November. The thing I love about these holidays is they revolve around gratitude and love.  My OFS, Julia, gave me a lot of cool facts about Bonifacio Day. Keep listening if you want to hear more about it. You can also check out the link below to read the poem I talked about in this episode....

I got an email from Giuseppe, who has this cool method of teaching his OFS to do something new.  He has them follow a 1:2:4:8 pattern. Want to know what that's all about and how it can help your online worker? That's what we'll be talking about in this episode.

I'm thankful for a lot of things. A lot of what I have was made possible because of my OFS (online Filipino Specialists) and the work that they do. Are you thankful for your OFS? How do you show your gratitude to your workers? Let's talk about that.

I always try to help people and I try to help when I can. I know this is the culture we have at Onlinejobs.ph, we just don't talk about it too much. That's why I was featured when one of my OFS was featured on the local news for doing something pretty heroic. Want to know what he did? I'll tell you about it in this episode.

People are shocked that I can run an 8-figure business working 17 hours a week. This is something I've done since around 2008 or 2009. I'm able to do this is because my OFS (online Filipino specialist) team gets the small stuff off my plate. Things that just aren't worth my time, I give it to them and it makes me more productive. Want to know how you can do this for your business? Let's talk about...

Moazan sent me an email. His Filipino virtual assistant (VA) has been working for him for a year now. He's asking me what's expected when a VA achieves this milestone. Do you give them a bonus? A raise?  I'll share my perspective on this milestone in this episode.

Typically VPNs are marketed towards giving you more privacy. But it's not unusual for an OFS to get a VPN for work. How would they use a VPN for work? What options are available if you want to get your OFS a VPN? Let's talk about that in this episode.

I just got an email from Rosalie about holiday pay for her OFS (online Filipino specialist) who's working part-time. She's asking whether she should give holiday pay or not and if she has to pay holiday pay, how much. I'm going to answer her questions and plus more information about holiday pay in this episode.