So You Want to be a Personal Concierge?

by Alex A. Kecskes

The demand for personal assistants--or personal concierges (PCs) as they are sometimes called--is growing rapidly.

A PC typically works for a high powered, wealthy executive who has neither the time nor the desire to handle all of life's daily little chores. They consider these things time thieves and would rather spend their spare minutes tending to family, business or leisure pursuits.

There are two career options for PCs: Start your own service or join an agency that offers these services to its clients. The first option lets you run things your way with policies and rules you've set up. On the downside, there's more work in running your own business.

Before considering PC as a career choice, there's some self-appraising you'll need to do. That means being honest about your skills, knowledge and personality. Do you enjoy helping others with their personal chores? Will you be happy doing someone else's grunt work?

Busy people with lots of money and very little time will expect you to be highly efficient in working with computers, emails, and phone etiquette. You'll need to know the best way to make restaurant, travel and hotel reservations. How to set up meetings, seminars and conferences, and how to delegate jobs to other service providers—like housecleaners, cooks, car maintenance providers and florists.

If you lack some of these skills, you should consider acquiring them at one of many schools that offer PC training.

For an additional perspective, check out this video: