Hi! I’m Princess 🙂 I live in the Philippines and I’m a Virtual Assistant. I was asked recently what scares me most about being a Virtual Assistant. I took my time addressing that question and I’d like to share with you my answer.
Many people out there aspire to be a Virtual Assistant, and their reasons all differ: it could be they are a single parent who needs to stay at home to look after their child (or children) but also need the monetary support a VA job offers. Some are parents who simply want to be present to see their kids grow up – avoiding the hours of work travel that tears them away from their family on a daily basis. Others prefer the convenience of working flexible hours, while some choose to work remotely to avoid the terrible global pandemic that hit us in 2020.
So while our reasons for becoming a Virtual Assistant may vary – so too can the things that scare us most about being in the Virtual World!
As I entered this new industry of working from home, many things changed:
• My surroundings
• Most commonly used language
• Methods of communication
Adapting to ‘my surroundings’ wasn’t a biggie for me – I’m used to my home, and my family have been more than accommodating when it comes to creating a non-distracting environment so I can work effectively. One of the things I really love is no need to care too much about what I wear each day. Wearing house clothes and pajamas are perfectly fine!
The most commonly used language with my client is English. I’m fluent – so I recognise how using the English language can be difficult for people who don’t have it as their first language. If you are one of these people – just a hint: as time goes on, you just get used to it. So don’t give up hope! Sometimes accents can be a little daunting – particularly, if it is a thick accent. My client admits she has a strong Australian accent – and she has apologised at the very start of our time together. She also stated that she has challenges understanding strong accents too. Again, our time together has allowed us both to adjust… and then one day it just ‘clicked’ and we now communicate very easily.
Methods of communication was a concern at first. This was a huge change since I am communicating with people far from me. Good Internet was a must – and learning how to use applications and platforms helped me overcome my concerns. Like anything, when you use them regularly enough, the ‘foreign’ quickly becomes the ‘everyday’.
I adapted to these changes and I totally love being a VA now…
But there was still one scary thing that stayed with me…
My biggest fear about being a Virtual Assistant was that my client might no longer be happy with my work and eventually I would lose this job that I have grown to love. With that I would also lose my ability to continue helping my family financially.
So being a super proactive person (a very handy talent to have in this industry) I decided to tackle and conquer the fear like I did with those other ‘changes’.
I made the decision I would bring happiness and positivity to my client every day.
Every day I thanked God for everything in my life, especially for the opportunity that He has given to me with my work.
I decided that with any task I took on, I would do my best. I would never just fill in time with tasks – I would work to the best of my ability.
I also decided that I would never stop learning. At the start of my VA career I accepted that I wasn’t that great since I was a newbie. I was well aware that I needed to experience little challenges in this online world, and that everyday I could do something to improve myself. I made it my mission to stay happy and positive no matter how tough a day may be, because even though tomorrow is always a new day – I still have the opportunity to make the tough day a great day. I also learned that little challenges make me smarter and able to handle bigger challenges in future.
With these decisions I’ve overcome my fears and look forward to my work every day, knowing that while I’m helping my client build an awesome business, I’m becoming an awesome VA along the way.