If you hadn’t thought about being a virtual assistant in the past, there’s a chance you’ve thought about that or another virtual job in the past few months. Covid-19 hit the US in March and according to this article published by Pew Research Center, unemployment rates have risen higher in three months than they did in the two years of the Great Depression.
Odds are, you’re looking for options that will allow you to work from home. And if you’re reading this, you wonder if you have what it takes to be a virtual assistant.
My guess is that you do! First I’m going to answer some common questions about Virtual Assisting. Then we’ll look at some of what it takes to be a VA.
How am I qualified to determine if you’ve got what it takes?
I’ve been a virtual assistant, or VA for short, for about 5 years now. I get confused about how long since I was working virtually before I called myself a VA. But I can estimate that it’s about one year less than my daughter’s age since I started after she was born.
I’ve taken several courses over the years to help me up my game as a VA. I love the courses from Horkey Handbook. This is actually the course that got me started. It’s just from experience, I have a pretty good idea of what it takes!
But it’s not up to me to “determine” if you’ve got what it takes. YOU need to make that determination. And really, a lot of it comes down to your belief in yourself, your skills, and your ability to learn and grow.
What is a Virtual Assistant?
A virtual assistant is an independent contractor who works independently for a small business owner. Usually, the business owner needs some sort of help with their business, but they don’t have the need for a full-time employee.
Sometimes, a Virtual Assistant knows how to do something that the small business owner doesn’t know how to do. So you would bring your expertise to the table. But not always, so don’t get hung up on knowing something special.
What do Virtual Assistants do?
VA’s do many different things for their clients. I have done the following things for clients.
- Email management
- Content creation
- Website updates
- Social media
- CRM support
- Customer service
- Database creation
But what if you don’t know anything “special?” Don’t worry about it – you WILL learn new things as you go! I bet there are several things that you can do that you would never think of. Here’s a list of 150+ VA services you could offer.
What are the hours for a Virtual Assistant?
Your hours will vary depending on a lot of things. Your client may need work to be done at a specific time. For email management, it is common that you will log in twice a day to check emails. Maybe you will do this at a specific time, maybe not. It all depends on your client and the expectations that you set when you start working for them.
The nice thing about website updates and content creation is that you can usually do it at any time, day or night. So if you’re watching your kids during the day, maybe doing homeschooling or other “kid” activities, you can work in the evening and later after you put your kids to bed.
I talk about my schedule in this short post. I can tell you, one of my favorite things about being a VA is being in control of my schedule!
Do you have what it takes to be a Virtual Assistant?
What have you decided at this point? Do you think you have what it takes to be a VA?
I have a variety of resources I’d like to share with you. One is my Asset Pack. This is a pack of documents and such that you will need as you get started as a Virtual Assistant. This Asset Pack is starting off with 2 contracts. As I add more documents, you’ll get all the updates for free! You can check it out here!
I also have an application to be a VA – if you want to get started as a VA but don’t know where to begin, check out my application. I am always looking for the right people to work with!
Last, I’d love to hear if you think you have what it takes to be a VA!