Neilia and I met at a local meetup for virtual assistants. She is enrolled in Sierra College’s VOP (Virtual Office Professional) Program. Her specialty is in Genealogy. Let’s learn some more about Neilia.
1. When did you start your business? 2008
2. Why did you choose to become a Virtual Assistant? To be able to stay at home with my children, continue my education online and supplement my husband’s income.
3. What advice would you give new and aspiring VAs? I would advise taking a class in marketing so you can tell people about your business.
4. What resources have helped you in your business? I have used Virtual Assistant, FindVirtual.com, and IVAA Forums, and attended class at Sierra College in their VOP program. I also blog on my website and use Hootsuite to blog on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn.
I have been personally coached by Sue and Joel Canfield at Chief Virtual Officer.com. They help me to set and achieve goals, work with my first client, and help me to start marketing myself successfully. I have also attended the bi-weekly teleseminars which are reasonably priced at $20.00 each. Additionally, I have purchased two of their books, “The Commonsense Virtual Assistant” and a workbook called, “Building Blocks, Succeed as a Chief Virtual Officer”. I have found these books to be well written, informative, and very useful in getting my business started.
5. Share a success story or something about yourself – a hobby perhaps. My goal as a Virtual Assistant is to use my 15 plus years of experience to help other people in their business life. I also want to share my hobby as a virtual genealogist to help others find their ancestors and build their family history.
Thank you for sharing your thoughts with us today Neilia. Learn more about Neilia below.
Jo first contacted me after being referred by a fellow member of Find Virtual. Joel and I immediately knew she was the type of person we would enjoy working with. It’s been a pleasure to coach Jo as she’s growing her business in the UK.
1. When did you start your business?
I started the business in October 2008.
2. Why did you choose to become a Virtual Assistant?
I have a family and wanted to continue working whilst being there for my children.
3. What advice would you give new and aspiring VAs?
Have faith that you can do it and have faith in your abilities. Its hard work but the benefits for my family have been immense!
4. What resources have helped you in your business?
I have had experience of all of these but have found a real gem in 2 VA business coaches that helped me focus when I had lost my way and their advice has been invaluable. I didn’t read many books but did subscribe to other VA blogs and forums.
5. Share a success story or something about yourself.
I have changed my focus to being a Virtual HR Officer and am now on the verge of signing a contract with a company for over £10k a year… I still get to work from home and be with my children!
I first met Marie online just before she left her corporate job to launch her virtual assistant business full time. From the moment we connected I was impressed with Marie’s spirit and obvious passion to help other people.
1. When did you start your business?
Well, I started putting things in motion August 2009, officially opened for business February 1, 2010, and dove in full-time (leaving a corporate job of 7 years) on April 1, 2010.
2. Why did you choose to become a Virtual Assistant?
I was finished with being undervalued and underpaid by my employer. Owning my own business had been a dream of mine for a long time and after facing several disappointments at my corporate job that culminated in utter frustration last July (2009), I started researching my options. I knew I wanted to work from a home office, I knew what I was good at and I knew what I enjoyed doing … when I discovered the VA industry, it just clicked. I’m a helper by nature, and I love being in a support role and seeing those I support succeed. Being a Virtual Assistant would bring all the things I needed and wanted together into my dream career! I knew that I would work harder than I ever had, but I’ve always felt that I would be better off working 12 hours a day for myself than 8 for someone else in an unfulfilling, boring job.
I’ve only been out on my own for a few months, but I can already tell you that I feel like I have the best job in the world. Even on the difficult days, I would not trade it for anything. My goal is to be a VA until I retire at 55 and to never again be anyone’s employee.
3. What advice would you give new and aspiring VAs?
Network, network, and network some more! Join Virtual Assistant Networking Association (VANA), FindVirtual, VA Forums, IVAA, and any other VA networking sites that work for you and get active on their forums. The VA industry is the most supportive, friendly industry I’ve ever had the pleasure to be a part of and you can learn so much from your fellow VAs who have been around the block a time or two. I started hanging out at VANetworking in August 2009 and I can honestly say that if has been like going to school to be a VA. I’ve made some great online friends, met VAs who live in my area, found a local VA group to provide friendship and support, and got connected with my first 3 clients from networking with other VAs.
Face-to-face networking at live networking events is also very important. The majority of your business will come from networking (online and off) and word of mouth/referrals. I highly recommend joining local small business and entrepreneur-focused networking groups. A great place to find networking groups in your area is www.meetup.com. Its free and easy to use.
Mentoring and coaching is also critical to a VA’s success. You need to have the support of someone who has been there, someone who will help you identify your strengths, weaknesses, and opportunities that you may not be aware of. A good coach and mentor will also give advice and criticism in an honest, helpful and friendly way, and be there when you need to vent.
4. What resources have helped you in your business? Forums, blogs, coaching, books?
Like I said, the VANA forums have been an amazing resource and I follow several VA and VA Coach blogs (Virtual Moxie, The Gritty VA, Chief Virtual Officer’s Blog to name a few). I also get a lot out of the group coaching calls that you and Joel host. I’ve been able to apply things I’ve learned on those calls right away with my prospects and clients and, because funds and time are tight for me right now (that’s how it is when you’re a start-up!) the calls are ideal for me. Eventually, I’ll have the resources to spend more time with a coach (I’ll probably be hitting you up for that when the time comes, Sue!) but until then, the coaching calls are a perfect fit!
5. Share a success story or something about yourself.
Well, I consider my journey in getting my VA business started to be my biggest success story so far, so I’ll leave it at that. A few things about me that not many people know are that I was once in an improv comedy group, I had another small business on the side a few years ago in which I designed and sewed one of a kind clothing and accessory items on eBay, and once upon a time I was a social work major at CSULB!
6. Additional comments you’d like to share.
I truly enjoy knowing you, Sue, and I love your coaching group!
Virtual assistants provide valuable services to many solo professionals. Are you a stay at home mom looking for a way to be a work at home mom so you can be with your children and contribute to the household budget? You may have what it takes to a virtual assistant (VA).
Before deciding to set up a business as a virtual assistant you should do your research to determine if this is the career for you. There is a lot of information on the VA industry and what it takes to be a VA. This article won’t cover every detail. The purpose of this article is to give you some basic information so you can begin the journey of discovering whether becoming is VA is right for you.
There are 3 basic factors to consider:
1. Do you enjoy working independently and taking the initiative? For the most part a VA works alone. If you are used to working with other people, this could be a challenge for you. Also, your clients will expect you to take the initiative, coming up with ways you can help them in their business.
2. Do you have the necessary skills and equipment? If you’ve had experience as an administrative assistant, you most likely have the skills needed to get started. But you may need to take some time to add to your skill set by taking some local community college business courses or online courses specific to the skill set you intend to offer to your clients.
You’ll need to have a reliable computer, internet access, basic software programs and a telephone, at minimum.
3. Do you understand what it takes to run a business? When you decide to become a virtual assistant, you are also choosing to be a business owner. Have you put in place what it takes to run a business?
Here are just a few things to consider:
Business license
Business name
Website
Business plan
Marketing plan
Bookkeeping – invoicing and collecting payments
Contracts
Rates you’ll charge
Hours you’ll be available
Services you’ll offer
Once you’ve determined that you would like to pursue becoming a VA, join one of the VA online communities. I recommend FindVirtual.com where you’ll find many friendly, helpful virtual assistants and resources to continue your research.
Contact some of the more experienced Vas and ask them if they’d be willing to spend 30 minutes of their time talking to you about how they got started. You might ask these questions:
• Why did you choose to become a VA?
• What’s your greatest challenge?
• What does a typical day look like for you?
• If you could start over, what one thing would you do differently?
• What’s the best piece of advice you can give someone hoping to become a VA?
Look for free or low-cost teleclasses you can take to learn more about the VA industry. Subscribe to other virtual assistant’s newsletters. Find a VA coach who offers a free 30-minute coaching session. Read books about the industry. Several can be found at Amazon.com. Find a local VA meetup or an online meetup at Meetup.com.
Another option could be to do sub-contracting as a VA. There are multi-VA firms you can contact who are looking for sub-contractors for specific tasks. This can be a good way to get experience and help you decide if this is really the career you want to pursue.
Is the VA career for you? It may be if you enjoy working independently and taking the initiative, have the skills and equipment, and know what it takes to run a business. Do your research! Join VA online communities, talk with experience virtual assistants, take some teleclasses, read books, contact a VA coach. Begin your journey to becoming a virtual assistant.
