How I became a virtual assistant

As I said in this blog, I first learned of the term virtual assistant back in 2016. I always thought I’d make a great assistant, and my goal has always been to work from home. I mean, who doesn’t want to work in their PJs, hang out with their dogs and not have to pack a lunch? Sign me up! It was also nice to work at home during a global pandemic.

I did a lot of research and found a ton of information on Pinterest about becoming a VA. The same names kept coming up: Gina Horkey and Kristen Larson, and I ultimately decided to invest in their courses.

Gina Horkey immediately stood out to me, I love her style of writing and teaching. I’ve known her for years now and have even done some work for her. She constantly inspires me!

I took Gina’s course as well as Kristin Larsen’s course “Become a Pinterest VA today”. I love Pinterest but honestly didn’t have a single clue how things ended up on Pinterest, or that there was an actual strategy to growing and maintaining a Pinterest account. Kristen taught me all of these things!

Investing in myself by taking these courses was vital to my success! They taught me how to start my business, what to charge, and they provide an online community for additional learning and support. Businesses that need VAs come to them looking for help, so a perk of being in their groups is that you have access to these hot leads.

I talk to several people a week who are interested in being a VA but can’t find clients. I totally understand, I had this fear too! This is a big reason I invested in these programs so that I could learn plus have access to the leads instead of just cold pitching. I would never have charged what I started out charging without their support and encouragement.

Referrals are a big part of my business now, and these days I don’t pitch very often (unless I find someone really amazing that I’d love to work with!). When I was first getting started, video pitches are what got me my first few clients. Everyone was sooo impressed with my personalized videos!

If you know me in real life, you know I am NOT one who likes attention or likes to record myself. I mean, there is a reason I picked a job that keeps me in the background! After my first video took 4 hours, I eventually was able to record a video using Loom in just one or two takes. I’d HIGHLY recommend video pitches, especially when you are just getting started! They will make you stand out and they will get easier, I promise :)

I hope this helps you get started on your journey to becoming a VA! Let me know if you have any other questions I can answer for you. Good luck and I am cheering you on!