Easy Steps to Get Started as a Virtual Assistant

Have you been wanting to transition to work from home but aren’t sure what to do to get started? Are you worried that the startup costs will be prohibitive? Do you feel overwhelmed by the idea of looking for clients?

Don’t worry! If I can do it, living in a small rural town in Missouri, with no formal business education or entrepreneurial background, so can you! (Learn more about my stor here!)

Before I jump into the steps of becoming a Virtual Assistant, I want to briefly explain what software and training programs you’ll need to get started. High-speed internet and a computer are all you really need to begin as a Virtual Assistant. Good news, right?

Having Skype, or Zoom, installed will be very handy for calls with potential clients. It’s also great if you have MS Word and Excel, or Google Drive, but is not required. Other than these items, you really don’t need anything else. Once you have been working for a while as a Virtual Assistant, you will learn what additional supplies and programs will be helpful, but there is no need to spend the money as you are getting started.

Now, let’s jump into the first two steps on how to get started as a VA!

Step 1 – Decide if you will choose a business name or wait and operate under your own name for the time being.

This step is important; you need to find out what the requirements are for doing business in your state. In Missouri, when I worked as a sole proprietor,  all I had to do was file with the state’s fictitious names, it was inexpensive and I did it all online. I’m now an LLC, but it was still quick and easy to file. A little bit of internet research can tell you what you need to know. You may also want to check with your city and county to see if they have any requirements.

Actions To Take

• Research your state, city, and county requirements.
• Decide if you will use your name, or come up with a business name.
• File with your state and pay for your license.

Step 2 – Create a business email.

Don’t worry about using your business name for email just yet. Having an official business email means buying the domain, and that may not be necessary if you operate under your name for the time being and decide on a business name later. I started with my full name @gmail.com and it worked just fine. What’s important is that if you have a silly email, you may consider changing it to something more professional. That allows you to keep business email separate from shopping, Facebook, and all the other distracting emails.

Actions To Take

• Determine if you need to create a new email.
• If you do, search to ensure the email you want is available.
• Set up your free Gmail email account.

Want some more easy steps on how to get started? You can click here for my free 10 Easy Steps to Get Started as a Virtual Assistant.

If you want to start a work-at-home business and didn’t click on the link above, what are you waiting for? Start taking small steps today to make your dreams a reality!

You can also send me an email if you have any lingering questions on how to get started. I’m here to help!

Helpful Links

I have some helpful information if you have enjoyed this article and want more. If you are a mom wanting to work from home but have no idea how to get started, grab my free getting started guide, “10 Easy Steps to Get Started as a Virtual Assistant.” And if you are lacking confidence and wondering if you really can do it, If I can do it, living in a small rural town in Missouri with no formal business education or entrepreneurial background, so can you!

Go here to grab the free guide!

You’ll also be added to my email list, where I’ll send tips about working as a Virtual Assistant and more time-saving tips for busy moms.

And feel free to comment here with a tip of your own. The more we support each other, the better!

What Should You Delegate?

One of the top questions I am asked is “I need to delegate things, but I have no idea what. How do I figure that out so I can free up time?”

I get it! I’ve been there too!

Through my own business and working with my clients, I have developed a process that helps to develop a list of tasks you should hand off. The easiest way I help clients to do this is by using this spreadsheet.

First, think through the tasks you do, how long they take, and how often you do them. If you have a hard time doing this, track what you do in a day and how long it takes you.

We all know, though, it’s not just about how long a task takes you. There’s something about certain tasks that just make us all cringe and dread doing them. Look at your list of tasks and label those tasks “drains me.” Now, those tasks you look forward to and enjoy label “energizes me.” If you don’t have any strong feelings, label it “neutral.”

And this leads perfectly to the last step. Do you have this process written down?

If you have a process written out, it’ll be much easier to hand it off to someone else. If you don’t, maybe take a little extra time one week to write it out so you can hand it off, or train whoever you’re handing it off to and have them write out the process. (Double delegation!)

You can make a copy of this spreadsheet and use it in your own business!

If you are needing to delegate to your Virtual Assistant, this process will be a tremendous help in identifying what to give them!

And if you are a Virtual Assistant, feel free to use this with your clients if they have way too much on their plate but can’t figure out what to give you. Or if you have grown your business and need to get things off your plate!

Is there something you could use help with? If you need help, send me an email and let me know what you need and maybe I can help!

Or if you use it and are able to make some changes and delegate some things successfully, send me an email so I can celebrate with you. I love to hear success stories!

Helpful Links

I have some helpful information if you have enjoyed this article and want more. If you are a mom wanting to work from home but have no idea how to get started, grab my free getting started guide, “10 Easy Steps to Get Started as a Virtual Assistant.” And if you are lacking confidence and wondering if you really can do it, If I can do it, living in a small rural town in Missouri with no formal business education or entrepreneurial background, so can you!

Go here to grab the free guide!

You’ll also be added to my email list, where I’ll send tips about working as a Virtual Assistant and more time-saving tips for busy moms.

And feel free to comment here with a tip of your own. The more we support each other, the better!

I am in a very interesting place in business and life right now. Lots of changes happening and the old Sara would have been freaking out!

But I am approaching things in a way I never have before. Rather than trying to figure out all the details to know exactly how things will work out (AKA control), I am letting go of it all and trusting I will get what I want and I don’t have to understand how it will happen.

Over the summer I had a vacation and it really helped me reset and refresh.

When is the last time you took a vacation or several days off just to have fun, relax and do what you want when you want?

For me it had been way too long, it had been 7 or 8 years since I took a real vacation. I’m talking about a vacation where you get away from home, don’t work at all, don’t respond to email – totally unplugged.

Why did it take me so long?

What it comes down to is I was letting life control me. Sure, there are many things I can’t control but there are many I can.

Life isn’t always easy and starting and running a business can be difficult if you let it.

Catch what I said there? If YOU let it.

Even though there are things in life out of my control that are difficult, I have the power to face changes and difficulty with a different attitude. Admittedly,  I didn’t know any better at the time.

Recently, one of the students in my Virtual Assistant Training reached out with some things in her life that were keeping her stuck. I offered to jump on the phone with her and talk her through it. What I realized after the call is that many want to work from home and build a business that works, but you get stuck somewhere in the process.

In fact, many of you haven’t even started your business because you got stuck before you even started!

With all the changes happening now, the old Sara would let herself become stuck, but thanks to two awesome mentors, I’ve learned so much in the last few months that things will now play out totally different for me. Really I’ve been learning for a few years but it’s the last few months that have made the impact I needed!

Based on what I’ve learned, I know it’s time for me to help those of you that have been where I was: letting life control you, feeling stuck, not knowing what to do but desperately wanting more.

My business has been transforming the last several months and it still is. I don’t know what all the changes will be but I am excited and embracing the change.

What I do know is I will be starting to talk to you more about my story and journey. The lessons I have learned and how they shape my life and business. The thing is, a lot of it has more to do with my beliefs, fears, attitude, balance, and boundaries than my business.

In building a successful business, if you can’t get a handle on what holds you back (which almost always comes back to your fears, beliefs, and attitude), you will never be able to create the business you want! You will always have some sort of struggle happening.

Sure, you may have great success at times but it will be short-lived. I want you to have this success and happiness long term!

When I think about the impact I want to make, it’s not about how many of you I can help to build a 5 or 6-figure VA business but about how I can support each of YOU to create a business that serves you and your family so you all can live a life that makes you happy and fulfilled!

I would love to have you in my community, and I would love to be in your corner. My Facebook page is a place to get connected to others, ask questions, learn something new, and offer a safe space to learn. Come on over, check it out and follow me so I can support you!

I don’t want to just change your business, I want to change your life!

If you need more tips, I love posting about different tips and resources that I find helpful. Come over and like my Facebook page! I try to post something helpful multiple times a week, and other times, we just have fun. And I think everyone needs a little fun sprinkled into their lives!

Helpful Links

I have some helpful information if you have enjoyed this article and want more. If you are a mom wanting to work from home but have no idea how to get started, grab my free getting started guide, “10 Easy Steps to Get Started as a Virtual Assistant.” And if you are lacking confidence and wondering if you really can do it, If I can do it, living in a small rural town in Missouri with no formal business education or entrepreneurial background, so can you!

Go here to grab the free guide!

You’ll also be added to my email list, where I’ll send tips about working as a Virtual Assistant and more time-saving tips for busy moms.

And feel free to comment here with a tip of your own. The more we support each other, the better!