HOW TO BREAK INTO THE VA INDUSTRY TODAY
So you’re thinking about becoming a virtual assistant? Great news!
I can help you with that.
Read on!
Some time ago, I asked a group of Executive Assistants on LinkedIn “how many of you are working as a virtual assistant in addition to your day job?”
That discussion had over 400 comments. Suffice to say it got attention and the ladies wanted to learn more.
The reason it’s such a hot topic is because hundreds if not thousands of executive assistants like you want to supplement their income with an extra $250-$2,000 (or more!) a month by working as a virtual assistant.
The good news is that with the skill set and experience you have as an executive administrative assistant you already have all the skills to become a virtual assistant.
Imagine this scenario, your boss is out of the office traveling. You travel back and forth to the office each day to get your work done.
Couldn’t you do the same work from home?
Wouldn’t you be more effective and efficient if you didn’t have to commute to work and deal with the constant flow of distractions that come from working in a busy office?
Couldn’t you send out emails, make phone calls and work on projects from the comfort of your own home?
The answer is YES.
Have you ever thought to ask your boss how he/she would feel about you working from home a day or two a week to see how the arrangement works?
This will give you the confidence to break into the virtual assistant industry without having to leave your day job! But what if your boss doesn’t allow you to work from home? Read my about page to learn how I got started in the VA business. I kept my day job for an entire year while I worked at night as a virtual assistant.
Each night I worked an average of three hours and back then I was making $18/hour. Do the math. $18/hour x 3 x 22 days (average working days per month) = $1,188 a month!
All I did to make an additional $1,188 a month was build travel itineraries, insert the travel details into my client’s calendar and update a contact database on an ongoing basis.
How was I able to do all of this work virtually?
Did I need to learn new software?
The answer is yes and no. A lot of what I needed to do for my clients I already knew how to do. However, in time I needed to learn the latest in online software to help me do my job faster, and more efficiently.
I wrote two blog posts on this subject titled Must Have Software For Virtual Assistants. There is a part II of that blog post here.
You’ll find a ton of information about what software you need to learn and why.
Are you an executive assistant looking to break into the virtual assistant industry?
What questions do you have?
Leave a comment below and while you’re at it come and join me over at the Virtual Assistant Tribe, my exclusive Facebook group for aspiring, new and established virtual assistants.
It’s like one big cocktail party over because where ever I go, I bring the party with me.
Rock on,
Reese
P.S. Tweet much? Tweet out what you’re reading by clicking here.
10 thoughts on “How To Break Into the Virtual Assistant Industry TODAY!”
Good afternoon,
I was in that situation… How to break free. An opportunity came across where one of the partners of the firm that I was working at decided to go on his own and asked my to come with him as Virtual Assistant at 25hrs a week at $20 per hour. I decided to do so and since I “trusted” that he was a man of his word I put my resignation to the firm and went to work with him telling him that in a week I would have the contract ready for us to sign and make it all by the books. He agreed…
After the 1st week he told me that he could not afford me at this time… So now I am in a big dilema because I don’t have any income coming in which means that my mind is not in the right place to think straight and understand that with 12 years of experience I CAN DO THIS!!!
I just don’t know where to start… I have followed your tips regarding marketing myself in social networks and spending some time answering discussions on linkedin. But I don’t know what else to do…
I NEED HELP!!!
Thank you,
Adaliz Borges
Adaliz,Take a deep breath. Nothing really good in life comes easy and right now you’re going through growing pains with your biz. Keep your eye on the goal and push on. YOU CAN DO THIS! You’ve already taken the biggest leap with your decision to leave your job and become a VA now you just have to have faith and believe in yourself. I believe in you. xxx
Hi Reese
This is a great post. I really want to take the plunge but i’m really scared. I have a flexible “on site” job at the moment which is helping me to build things virtually but I’m just so paranoid about having the right foundations in place and how to actually do the job virutally that I can do blindfolded in an office. I think I need to start with maybe just one service and design that package and see how that grows. Do you have any suggestions about what would be a good “comfort” service to maybe get myself up and running to gain experience. My brain is all over the place!
Hey Michelle, I totally get where you’re coming from but what do you have to be scared of? To answer your question start with what are you REALLY good at? What are you really passionate about working on? Write a list of the things you like doing most at work and go from there. Pick one or two specialties and focus on them. It’s totally okay to offer general administrative services, it’s the basis of our work as virtual assistants but put a new spin on it. Say you offer travel planning, why not market your skill as the travel planning VA (just off the top of my head). Make sure you read all of my posts, starting with how to start your VA biz and then moving on to the software you need to succeed and then move on to how to land your first client. Good luck and keep me posted!
p.s I can spell Virtually – honest!!
Michelle are you kidding me? I make spelling mistakes every other minute! 😉
Hello, I have been searching for virtual assistant positions within these last 3 months, with no luck. I recently zeroed in on a posting but it turned out to be a scam. Please advise where one can find postings for virtual assistant positions.
Sincerely,
Luz
Luz, I wrote a post that can help you find companies that are looking for virtual assistants. It’s a great way to get started in this industry with the goal being that you open your own virtual assistant business one day and earn 5 to 6 figures! Here is the link to that post: https://reesebenyaacov.com/2012/09/finding-virtual-assistant-jobs/
I am in a position where I know I can do more and I want to build my own side business. I will be honest I like my coporate america job but I want to do something more. Expose myself to other opportunities. I have alway heard about VA positions but didn’t know how to go about doing so. How do you get your name out there?
Hi Reese
Wow wow wow! Thank you so much for sharing so much valuable information with . I have been reading your posts and have learned a lot. I want to start a VA business, do it part-time before I take a leap of faith and quit my 9-5. I have been doing lots of research on the internet and as you mentioned the information can be overwhelming. I have subscribed to your newsletters as a start and looking forward to your e-mails.
I came across these questions and they just hit home because that I am at:
– Book a client & just try this VA thing out?
– Buy software/equipment?
– Set up website?
– Take an entrepreneurship course? ( I have a degree in office management)
– Advertise? where?
What makes you stand out is your passion, willingness to share information and assist others in starting their own VA business. I am grateful that I came across your website.
Sincerely,
Kedi