Last August, I was into my eighth month of maternity leave since having my daughter and naturally, started wondering what work would look like for me on the “other side”...
Don’t get me wrong, I had been continuing with my previous work before this point: recording podcasts, creating a podcast course, running a podcasting challenge, delivering a masterclass to a membership (I loved the podcasting!)… the“thing” I was doing hadn’t quite been figured out yet.
Over the years I had been experimenting with a variety of options including coaching and online courses, which I loved doing, but now needed to seriously consider how my business would work with a young child in tow.
I have always had a tendency to overcomplicate things, so I decided to look for any “low-hanging fruit” options for my business that would provide the flexibility I desperately needed (fun fact: babies are unpredictable!).
Question: What could I help others with?
Answer: Lots of different things. Content Creation, Social Media, Blogging, Podcasting, and Planner Creation (the list continued on).
Lightbulb moment: I could be a virtual assistant!
For context, this wasn't the first time I had been struck with this idea - I had explored the exact same path the previous year. But... in between approaching the halfway point of my pregnancy and being ghosted by a potential first client, my intuition said "Not now".
But it definitely felt different this time - I was filled with a new sense of determination.
In this blog, I’m going to share with you the key mindset shifts I experienced to help me start a virtual assistant business. In future, I will share a more practical step-by-step process, but this one will be called “the mindset edition”.
I kept it simple 🧠
This was a really tough one for my perfectionist tendencies. To start a virtual assistant business, I had to stop myself from doing the following:
Overthinking it
Thinking I needed everything to be perfect first
I decided to keep it very basic and took very impulsive action before I started to question myself. I came up with a name for the business, created a logo in Canva using a template, and opened a Facebook Page. No website page or fancy headshots… no specific niche!
Using existing connections, friends and family
Thankfully, my time spent online since 2020 meant that I had connected with women in business from different online communities, so I had built up some contacts on my friends list. So in the spirit of keeping it simple, I shared my brand new VA page on my personal profile (eek!) and within a few days signed my first client. This was a very special moment and it gave me a massive confidence boost.
Local Facebook Groups
Next, to keep up the momentum, I knew that I needed to share beyond my circle of friends into external FB groups but I was terrified, so naturally procrastinated for a week or two. Then when I finally plucked up the courage to post in a local group - the admins rejected it.
It was really uncomfortable and frustrating as a new business trying to put myself out there. I had to jump through many hoops to ensure my post met the requirements but I believe my persistence paid off - my 2nd client contacted me as a result of seeing it.
Diving timing? Perhaps! But I believe that you have to create your own luck too.
I didn’t overload myself with expectations 🙌🏼
To be clear, I’m not saying that you shouldn’t set goals, but I think there is sometimes a fine line between having lots of them and putting too much pressure on yourself to create something amazing from the word “go”.
My mindset was essentially “Let’s see how this goes” and allowed myself to take baby steps, not thinking too much about what it needed to BE and look like. Having that sense of curiosity to explore and experiment is an effective approach that has seen many, many businesses thrive. I’m fully aware though that this mindset can be difficult when there are financial pressures and external factors that are relying on you to make it work.
However, I am a big believer in our ability to receive what we need, WHEN we need it and if you can have that trust in yourself and the process, it will help you to create success when you start a virtual assistant business.
I wasn’t afraid to share 📣
Correction - I was afraid but shared anyway! As someone who had previously created many things including courses and coaching programs, I felt SO worried that my audience would judge me and eye roll at my posts (she’s got “shiny object syndrome” again!).
I felt that I was breaking so many rules by starting a new venture and genuinely wasn’t sure how people would react… but they honestly gave the best support. And guess what? The more I shared, the more it highlighted the message “I’m serious about this” and it helped to build more trust with them, which in turn led on to additional clients over time.
If you are someone like me who has a set of digital skills in any area (admin, creative etc) then please know that you CAN make it as a freelance virtual assistant. I can’t emphasise enough how much you have to offer with what you already know! But the thing that will stop you from sharing your brilliance is fear and limiting beliefs - you can find out more about these in this blog post.
The bottom line here is this: the only way to create success when you start a virtual assistant business is to make sure you’re sharing at every opportunity. Not necessarily just on social media, but telling family, friends… your hairdresser - you never know who might need your help!
So... Are You Ready to Start a Virtual Assistant Business?
I hope you’ve enjoyed reading this post exploring the key mindset shifts I experienced when becoming a virtual assistant. Please do let me know which one resonated the most with you!
"Be a VA" Coaching Program... 👩🏼💻
If you are feeling overwhelmed with ALL the things and riddled with self-doubt, I am creating a coaching program for women looking to set up their own VA business, focusing on the practical side but also using NLP-methods to help navigate through mindset blocks such as limiting beliefs.
Click here to register your interest on the waitlist and you’ll receive a special offer when I launch!
