Next Sunday, 24 March 2019, marks 25 years in business for me. My husband is going to take me out to celebrate. Have I made millions a year? No, although I can say it's been a healthy amount over that period of time. Enough to help support and feed our family, pay for office equipment, stationery, put our kids through various activities and clubs, contributed towards holidays, contributed toward our beloved garden at home, buy gifts for my husband and daughters, and pay for the various … [Read more...]
No, not everyone can be a VA
Seems, these days, that if someone is between jobs, seeking to run a business but has no idea what, or has a job they hate and want to leave, the common cry is 'Why not become a VA? Anyone can do it!' Well, I'm here to say that's not the case. Not everyone. It takes a special set of skills but also a mindset and I would go so far as to say, a certain personality as well. Yes, most people can use a computer these days, but that doesn't mean they're good at it. Yes, most people are on the … [Read more...]
The Value of Professional Development
Regular readers here will know that I often write and talk about the importance of networking and belonging to groups to help build both you, and your business. I came across a post today, written by fellow long-time VA, Kathy Colaiacovo who is based in Canada. She shares about Professional Development: How One Membership brought her $625,000 + in Revenue. Well worth the read. If you've ever questioned how belonging to VA Networks and other business groups, going to conferences and other … [Read more...]
Can you afford NOT to have a VA?
It's interesting seeing posts on social media from time to time, asking for an 'affordable VA'. The operative word being 'affordable'. And this can mean many things, depending on where you live, what currency you work with, and what you're currently earning yourself and so on. It's really quite relative, isn't it? What people really need to think about is how much time they'd like to free up so they can continue to build their business. If you're spending 2-10 hours a month on admin, … [Read more...]
Just because I provide admin support…
doesn't automatically make me an employee. So many clients out there assume that because Virtual Assistants provide administrative and other office based support, that makes them an employee. It doesn't. Even some accountants are advising this is the case. At least here in Australia. So important for you, whether you're a VA or a client, to understand what being a Virtual Assistant means, in Australia, the US, UK, New Zealand and other western countries. VAs are independent contractors … [Read more...]
My first website
I created my very first website in April 1996 with MicroSoft Publisher. The Internet in the business world was very new and I was keen to be a part of it. It was a single page, with some MS Clipart and my contact details and list of services. But later that year I began adding more pages, listing my background, providing a newsletter for whomever might read it, list of services and my contact details. Already I was exploring what else I could do with the site. Are you familiar with the … [Read more...]
Babyboomers started the VA industry
It's amazing what you read out there about the Virtual Assistant industry and assumptions about how it got started. Some even thinking it started with digital products like Siri, but I want you to know that the industry started back in the mid 1990s and was started by...... Babyboomers. Yes, Babyboomers! People who were born between 1946 and 1964. It began with people, like me, who were operating home based secretarial businesses, because they wanted to get out of the corporate world, and be … [Read more...]
Working at home not always good…
Recently my husband was chatting to someone who has been working at home for the past year or so now. At first it was exciting for them and they were very focused on what they were doing. But, more recently, they're finding it hard, can't focus, not feeling productive and feeling very alone. They're losing their motivation. My husband told this person that he and I both also work at home, and we have each other for company. But he's only been at home, himself for just over two years, whereas … [Read more...]
The Cost of Doing Business
I don't know about you, but when I started my business almost 25 years ago, I expected to have to pay out for things to get started. Things such as: equipment, furniture, software, business registration, business name registration, printed business cards and stationery, industry association memberships, advertising and so the list goes on. The old saying 'you have to spend money to make money' rang very true back then. Additional but hidden costs were taxes, insurances, superannuation, … [Read more...]