Survival Tips for Virtual Assistant

When you graduated from school did you consider working in the corporate world or do freelance work? If you are going to ask me, my answer would be is to work in the corporate world. Back in my generation, which is a decade ago, most newly graduates would apply for a company to gain experience, meet new colleagues and most importantly to earn a living. But nowadays we can see a trend wherein employees are trying their luck as a freelancer or virtual assistant.

What is a freelancer/virtual assistant? According to google, freelancer is “an independent entrepreneur who is not confined to work for a single company but can provide his services to many companies/business owners. He/She is not a permanent employee of any company and is open to working for anyone according to a predetermined time frame and payment agreement.” Imagine being your own boss who can manage his/her time and just use the comfort of your home as your workplace. Isn’t amazing? Well, yes it is amazing and convenient at the same time but is it worth a try?

I have worked in a corporate jungle for over nine years and I would say that it is really stressful. Waking up at the wee hours of the morning so you will not get stuck in traffic then sitting on your desk for eight hours or even extending your work hours to render overtime. Who would not be tempted to look for a job and better yet try freelancing or working from home, right? If you are looking for a breather and want to try freelancing, remember that it is not as easy as 123 as it would require a lot of patience. Why do I say that? Freelancing is not an easy profession, especially if you are new in this kind of work. Most freelancing jobs would require that you have prior work experience in a virtual world. For a newbie like me, I consider that to be my biggest struggle but let us not allow a minor setback to interfere with our goal to be a freelancer. Here are some useful tips on how you can improve or even start your freelancing/virtual assistant journey.

1. Take a freelance course

Learning new things or skills do not stop after we graduated from school. If you feel you are a virtual assistant newbie, you may enroll in a freelancing course so you will be familiarized with the different tasks that a freelancer or virtual assistant can offer.

2. Improve your online presence

Improving your existing social media accounts or better yet create an account designated for freelancing. Since we are already living in a digital world, you would want to look professional to your potential company or client.

3. Patience, patience and a lot of patience

You have been warned, just kidding! Patience is indeed a virtue. Looking for potential clients/employers would take time for some but always remember to be patient.

4. Find your niche

It would be easier for you to look for an online work if you already know your niche or the line of work that you want to pursue. Would it be data entry, social media management and etc? Just know your strength and skills and you are good to go.

5. Lastly, your attitude defines you.

No matter how good you are but if you do not have the right mindset or positive attitude, you will not succeed in your chosen field. Make it a habit to always look at the brighter side and always remember to take one step at a time.

There you go folks, hope this will help you in achieving your goal as a #virtual #assistant . For comments, suggestions or for freelance work offer, feel free to contact me at catherine.anne.legaspi@gmail.com.