Becoming a Virtual Assistant was one of the best decisions we ever made. But, it wasn’t easy. We stumbled and fumbled along the way and were faced with all types of challenges we never even considered.

✓ Problem clients
✓Worked for hours and never got paid
✓Had clients calling us at 2am and fire us when we were sleeping!

Yeah, it wasn’t pretty.

If we knew then what we know now, we would’ve saved ourselves so much time (and money!). So, to put yourself ahead of the game here’s what we wish we knew BEFORE we started working as virtual assistant.

Only Work With Your IDEAL Client.

Before taking on any client work, talk to the client first. You should view this call as a Discovery Call, and use it to ‘discover” more information about the project(s) and the potential clients’ working style, demeanor, etc.

If you get a bad feeling on this call, just say no. Listen to your gut, it’ll guide you when deciding whether you want to work with a client or not.

Never, ever take on a new client you’re not sure about.

PRO TIP: Stay tuned for Part II of this post to learn how to handle common client problems. And, if you’re not sure who your ideal client is, we give you all the tools you need to figure it out in the Virtual Academy.

Set Boundaries.

You are an entrepreneur and you control your schedule, your clients don’t.

Before taking on a client explain what your response time policy is, your normal working hours, planned time off, etc., and include this in your agreement with them too. Then, stick to it!

It’s harder to do than you may think.

When you begin working with a client, you want to impress them so you may work late one night, then another night, and then maybe help them on a weekend. You want to show them how awesome you are.

BUT…now the client expects you to be available ALL THE TIME. This is the BIGGEST mistake we see virtual assistants make. So, set your boundaries and let them protect you.

PRO TIP: You can still work on projects outside of your stated hours, just don’t let the client know. Use a program like Boomerang to schedule emails to be sent later so you can work when you want without messing up those boundaries.

Don’t Go It Alone!

It really does take a village. When we started we were alone.  Then, we found a place to connect with other virtual assistants.  That is when we really started living our dream.

Being an entrepreneur and a virtual assistant is way too hard to do it alone.  You need support for yourself and your clients too.  You’ll get asked all types of questions by your clients, and it’s simply not possible to know the answer to all of them.  It’s also not possible to be an expert at every single task. 

That’s why having a community to support you is so important. We never considered other virtual assistants as competition; they’ve always been our partners.  Think of it as a community of people cheering you on.  People you can ask for help when you’re busy, offer to help when they are and build relationships that can make your biz even more profitable.  Now, that’s what we call a win-win.  

PRO TIP: That’s why we created the v.a. chicks to form a community of support for the best chicks in the world. It’s a place where you can delegate work to other, get answers to your tech questions or client problems, and find the support you need. 

Next Steps…

These are just some of the obstacles that stood in our way of become successful virtual assistants. If you’re ready to take the next step, take this 60-second quiz now to discover your virtual superpower and all the tips and tricks you need to succeed: www.virtualsuperpower.com