Revelyn Tomas – Accountant

For the footsteps I make each day to continue life, these are steps I needed to move forward and battle in order to be happy and live a life of content.

Each day becomes a miracle waking up and a strength to fill-up an empty space within. And I do it repeatedly to create joy and hope.

What’s next? What’s to look forward?

Job and Career

 I just woke up one day and felt like everything does not excite me anymore. A road to somewhere seemed very boring, flat and always predictable. I always saw a man standing with the same shirt and position, a big Stone along the road (unattended and undisturbed), an old woman selling the same stuff for almost 3 yrs. of driving, and a garbage uncollected, and more mundane scenes.

My job and position became predictable, too. I arrive half an hour before office time, stand up 10 minutes before lunch time, take an afternoon nap for 20 to 25 minutes, brush my teeth, clean my dirty table 20 minutes before the closing of the office hours, drive home, pass by this road until I reach the house. I do this routine every day until I finally said: It’ over.  I am done with this boredom.

Something I am happy starting and ending my day

I started with nothing after I decided to resign from office. I have no laptop and only had a mobile phone that was under a 5-month credit card. My last office payroll was held back by my employer to ensure that I return back the things that were issues to me and turn over my accountabilities. All of my obligations were settled.

Where will I start? I have zero level of confidence but I have a Big Pound of faith in my big heart. I just prayed that this pitfall of miseries will just be temporary.

Now I see changes in my routine. I wake up in a non-routine time. I am so happy, no more intervention of the alarm clock. It was the gadget that made me upset every morning and kept me sad the entire day.

Change of Daily Priorities

Lately, I have developed a morning habit of checking Facebook post for Career opportunities. Various posts attract me now and more on Virtual Assistants (VAs) opportunities: work from home, part-time or full time, with or without VA experience, can speak English language fluently or can speak locally dialect fluently.

I am a Professional Regulatory Commission passer. A Certified Public Accountant (CPA) with a Master’s Degree in Business Administration Major in Corporate Planning.

I felt so overwhelmed by the opportunities that available for everyone. So, I am very thankful of the equal opportunities this global pandemic has offered to the community. Everyone was given hope for an employment.  Our Oversees Filipinos Workers (OFWs) are even filled up with grace-filled blessings of career opportunities. They lost their respective jobs abroad and left their work assignment and were forced by circumstances to stay home because of the effects of the global pandemic.

Opening Doors of Opportunities to World of Virtual Assistants (VAs)

In times of turbulence and trials, your creativity and wisdom teach you more ways and cross paths to solve a problem. I tried to raise funds for a new laptop thru online selling of home and office products bought from Manila and distributed to Davao buyers.

This seemed to be very difficult –  manage purchases, client’s delivery and after sales. (i.e., product quality checking, on-time delivery to clients and prompt collections of payment done through on-line banking and remittances like: GCASH and fund transfers.

Everything about VAs and online career hunting are so new, so inviting for me. I tried to direct apply to seekers of Virtual Assistants, but failed the pre-screening period because of my newbie status.

I found various trainings offered for aspiring VA. I had a hard time choosing what is the best VA training to suit newbies and trainees like me. I needed to communicate and keep in touch with my previous batch mates and officemates who started years in this field. Most were classmates in college who are also Accountants and are now working as VAs.   I never thought that I will also be following their big steps to the world of VAs.  I cannot compare my present situation to the overwhelming successes they have ventured with in this field now. While I am starting as new VAs trainee, they are now my seniors who are freelancers and have now their own business clients here and abroad.

I will just run fast to catch up and possibly reach their levels and peak of successes, but I knew deep inside, I am still a neophyte about to grow up and one day be like them as Team Leaders. Wisdom and Faith are my leading anchor to enjoy soon the Success of Hard work.

Change of Daily Routines

Is this VAs career opportunity just a MYTH or Truth? Is this real life, an imagination or fantasy and I am just an Anime?  Laughing out loud with a wiggle, I may describe my feeling as a neophyte. It was a roller coaster of feeling of trying to venture an Unidentified Flying Object (UFO), as I describe this new career.

The path is wide open. The invitation to enter the Road to A Career Path is so inviting yet so confusing and fearful knowing I will be doing anticipated tasks on my own under a work –from-home set-up. The usual habit of calling and dialing officemates for a technical assistance & support is no longer the present situation.  On my own and the Do-it -Yourself (DIY) style is the name of the game.

Indeed, a virtual world exists now. No more siesta among officemates in the pantry. No more “group chats and storytelling” during break-times. I am inside my bedroom with a side table and started browsing and exploring the new opportunities and learning new jargons. More reading, learning and exploring are done during non-routine schedule. No more office overtimes and going home late at night. But doing late tasks inside my bedroom until dawn time.

My First VA Training.

My very first VA training was with Coach Jomar Enercio, Trainor of Virtual Assistant Training Phils. (VATP) in Cebu City. I scrolled up and down 10 to 20 FB paid sponsored Advertisement/ Posts to look for a suitable training to start up to get basic knowledge of VA. My aim is to get an over-all knowledge, i.e.  so basic and simple to understand what is this career all about and what makes it so attractive during the global pandemic and how will it convert our career loss to career growth & opportunities.

How will this training be a link to my present career design and description in order to obtain Financial Freedom without being tied-up in the office under the old 8 A.M. to 5 P.M. office hour scheme?

My first day of virtual training was pure observation. I noted around 120 participants, all Filipinos, both young and old, some have VA experience, some don’t, originating from call centers and from other fields of work.  Our Coach is very young and very proud of telling us how he reached this level. He came from a BPO Industry and was tired of a P20,000 -P 30,000 compensation.  He dreamed of increasing his 5 digits compensation. He is now a recipient of 6 digits training fee on a weekly basis.

We are batch 10 of VATP. Social media marketing & platforms were presented and discussed comprehensively.  Thank God, I am not innocent and blind. At least I am a millennial too.  In spite of my age at 50, I can still vividly understand what these young female & male coaches are talking Infront of us via zoom virtual training that started at 6pm and ended at 10 pm daily for 5 days from Monday to Friday of the last week of June 2021.

We were given access to canva.com. and required to produce FB post & logo using the application We were also required to prepare a website using WordPress. Our website portfolio was enhanced by the output we came up from canva.com

My previous knowledge acquired during my teaching years in the University also helped me update my skills in the preparation of a website but under a different application.  My previous knowledge in Microsoft Office (Microsoft word, excel and powerpoint) and Office Accounting software also added confidence to understand and be adept to the world of computers & technology.

Very Promising VAs Career Opportunities.

 All my co-trainees after the one-week VA Training still have opportunities to update. We created a Group Chat and the Coach of VATP still provides leadership training for Team leaders so there will be continuity of VA updates and we can still have chance to get clients through our own resourcefulness or through the resourcefulness of the team.

We are encouraged now to go on freelancing and venture to find what is best for our VA careers. We can apply to companies hiring VAs or find clients through our connections abroad.

Our learning should not stop after the training.

There are still room for improvement and room for career growth. Our chance to widen our horizon to success is unlimited.

A questioning mind made me think severally. Is this a change I am dreaming of? I am ready for the next shot of challenges.

Whatever this new career will bring me, I am now welcoming new changes in my career path.

For a copy of Revelyn’s resume please click here.