The most frequently asked question when someone wants to become a Virtual Assistant (VA) is “How do I become one?”
Simple. You need to have a personal computer and a reliable Internet connection. Okay, that’s too obvious. There are important points that you need to take note of in able for you to bring it to the next level, such as:
ONLINE JOB SITES
Know the legit online sites that offer home-based jobs. To name a few are:
www.onlinejobs.ph
www.upwork.com
www.virtualstafffinder.com | VSF FB Page
Of course, you got to know and identify what and where you are good at. The rest follows. If you are lucky enough, your client/Employer will train you. Otherwise, Google and YouTube are your best friends.
WORKPLACE
Offline or online, home-based or office-based, having a comfortable workplace is very important (this was the before by the way, the photo below is the latest and renovated home office of mine). What more if you are able to enjoy the biggest advantage of working from home with flexible hours. Just make sure that your working corner is convenient for work. Working in bed is okay but I don’t see it ideal because it makes me feel sleepy, making me doze off and leave the works that I still have to complete.
In my case, I have a workspace, with proper computer table and office chair, set up with a night lamp since I mostly blog at night when the kids are asleep.
EQUIPMENT/INTERNET CONNECTION
As I’ve mentioned above, these are the two major things that a VA needs to have, a stable Internet connection and a working computer. Laptop or desktop, it doesn’t really matter for as long as it can pass and handle technical requirements that every employer asks. if you think, it’s impossible to have the most reliable connection in your place, just try to find an employer who is not strict on this or a non-voice job.
IDENTIFY YOUR SKILLS
Look back to your previous experiences and re-assess your skills. Identify what you are good at, and then try to discover what else you can do. Who knows, the job requirements that you thought you can’t be good at is something that you’ve always been wanting to try but afraid to do.
ONLINE TOOLS
You must educate yourself with the latest online tools like Gmail, Dropbox, Zoom, Slack, ActiveCampaign and the likes, or whatever your client/employer prefers to use.
SETTING A WORK SCHEDULE
One of the many perks of becoming a VA is that you get to choose your working hours unless the employer requires an overlap in their timezone a few days a week. In case, you can work on your flexible hours, as most VA do, make sure that you set your schedule wisely in a manner that your house chores and other daily activities are not affected. Remember, working from home also has a disadvantage. It could get you into trouble if you don’t schedule everything properly.
COMMUNICATION
Your boss cannot see you and vice versa. Even your clients don’t. Make sure that you make use of the time allotted for working hours. Communicate well with your colleagues as it would also help you maintain a well working online relationship with them, making the work process flow smoothly, happily and productively.
HOW DO WE GET PAID? It’s either hourly or fixed rate. In my case, I’ve always settled for a fixed monthly rate. It’s more of long-term employment than finishing a project then again find another one once it’s finished. But really it doesn’t matter. It’s all about your preference and how you can make it work. If you want to know how do we receive the payment, the majority use PayPal. Just create a personal account, have it linked to your local bank account and get it verified. Some send directly to your bank account but please never give out your online banking username and password if that’s the case. RED FLAG! A legit employer/client will never ask for your bank’s confidential info or even a cashout. Be smart, please! Don’t fall for it.
GET ORGANIZED
I have always been organized since the day I started working. I tend to panic more when I see scattered and un-filed papers on my desk. That happens the same when I see a lot of files on my desktop. So I make sure that everything is properly filed, by folder and by the client, categorized as needed.
ANTICIPATING YOUR CLIENTS’ NEEDS
Being proactive is something that every client and boss appreciates. Taking the initiative and giving suggestions on improvement will surely take you and your online career to the next higher level. It’s pretty much the same when your child starts to deal with things with his/her initiative, that is also the time when you begin to let him/her do his/her own, trust more, and probably give a bigger responsibility for betterment.
You see, it’s not that really hard. It still all depends on you and your Internet connection. Kidding! Of course, it all depends on you just like every dream job you had when you were young. You have to make it work! Also please remember that it’s not for everyone. There’s always the ugly side of it but of course, if others survived, you can, too! I repeat you have to make it work and love it!! Once you’re at it, you also need to know the effective ways to avoid the WAHM blues.
This is also perfect for me since I have just started my online jobs recently. Yes, truly a dependable internet connection is really a must to every digital nomads and a working place. I want to become a VA as well in the future if I get the opportunity. You have inspired me after reading this blog post.
I am glad I did. Thanks for dropping by!
This is something that is very new to me! I only started blogging April of this year and did notice a few bloggers who had other people doing the ‘back work’ for them like joining engagement threads for comments, social shares, etc. Now, I understand why! This is certainly very interesting and I love how the requirements are fairly simple. Now, my next question is–where do you find employers?
I am sure you will enjoy blogging. Just don’t be too commercial. Don’t forget to include a personal touch when you’re writing.
I found my job via Virtual Staff Finders on FB.
Can I just suggest you do a post on how to actually stay on schedule and organized? I find it so hard to do it myself, I’m sure a lot of people would appreciate a post like that! I’ve found all your tips really helpful but need a little bit more help, hehe xx
Sure, I’ll keep that in mind. I will also try to include apps and tools that go with it.
Thanks for suggesting!
That’s true, having a place to do your work at home is important. It sets the working environment that will tell the brain something like, hey be productive with your time! Haha. I was totally lost on the part about having to know online apps. Hay! Just have a lot to know with the sophistication of technology nowadays. Good that you’ve done successfully on this field! Thanks for sharing valuable tips.
I have a working corner for myself, yet, I still feel sleepy most of the time haha! Working on wee hours is definitely a challenge especially for a 40 y/o mom like me.
Hi there! It’s great that you wrote this blog. I’m also a freelance writer on top of having a full time job. I’ve since quit full time freelancing because it didn’t work for me. I haven’t tried VA work because it really sounds daunting. You painted us a great picture on how to keep the workload manageable. Looking forward to more stories… esp working relationship as a VA!
It works for me especially now that my kids go to school. Just got lucky to have found an employer that allowed me to do the rest of my 4 hours split into 2 during daytime, PHT, while the kids are in school. Then, I do another 4 hour-overlapping US time. So far it’s manageable.
I’ll keep that in mind re: more stories.
I just recommended a friend of mine to become a VA for another friend of ours. He said that it’s a really demanding job, but he likes the fact that he can do it at home and that he practically owns his time. I wish I could do that, but the pay won’t cut it out for me. Unless I find someone who can pay me as much as I am earning right now then maybe I can consider doing this. Nevertheless, becoming a VA is definitely one of the great options there is for those who are working at home or freelancers.
Yes, it really is. I just started with my new full-time VA job this month and luckily found an Employer that pays quite decent, in fact way higher that what I was earning from my office-based job 3 years ago. Just keep looking if you really are interested and you’d land on the right one for sure.
Until a few weeks ago I wasn’t familiar with this profession at all. It’s very interesting. It’s a great job that you can do freelance and from home. I think there are major benefits. And it’s true there’s so much to learn about online tools. And that’s great. It’s a good thing to learn about new tools and stay up to date. Getting organized would probably be my biggest challenge.
I was just lucky that my Employer was generous enough to train all of us because he himself said that nowadays it’s hard to keep up with the new tools that keep coming in the online marketing world.
This is informational for people who’d like to be in the online community. Being a VA is quite hard because at most times, this job is demanding but it’s up to you to take up the challenge. I definitely would do this once I am decided. IT jobs are for me but unfortunately, on my line of field, it’s hard to get jobs remotely.
True, it really is a demanding job. You really should know how to organize yourself and your time.
Working at home as VA or other forms of work has become a viable alternative for job seeker. It has it’s upside and downside too.
The tips you shared addresses the common pitfall of working at home, too much flexibility and lack of order.
And I liked your little office, cute and elegant looking
I have yet to learn about Zoom, Slack and ActiveCampaign. I am planning to reconsider a client-based or freelance work but I can’t continue because of my full time job. I am planning to take a break from my day job to give time to freelance work until everything is set. As of now I am doing task-based online jobs.