A VA might not be for you
What they won’t tell you about VA’s.
(an unbiased breakdown of an off shore VA, pro and con style)
Ever thought to yourself “I could use some help†?
Me too!
I turned to an offshore VA when I got to that point my business.
The thing is, an offshore VA isn’t for everyone, here are some pros and cons that may help you get some clarity on if this is a path you’re wanting to pursue.
I know what you’re thinking….
“No way! There is actually a downside to getting a VA?â€
Like with everything, it’s not for everyone. Check out the list below to see if getting an offshore VA is for you.
Let’s try it in a story…
How fear, construction and a cleaning company got me my first VA.
There was $1500 outstanding, for a young entrepreneur, that could be a lot of money.
The clients were happy, the suppliers were paid, that outstanding cash was mine, if only I could get it into my account.
The fear
For a long as I can remember, I have been someone who goes hard or goes home. I needed to knock it outta the park or it didn’t count. `
Could you believe that this would translate into my professional life as well. I had a few clients at this stage and there was something holding me back. I knew it was there but it didn’t help overcoming the paralysis.
Construction
At the time I had just moved back to Sydney to be closer to family and I was needing some work. I was lucky to have an uncle who was well respected in the construction industry and he got me a job as a labourer. It was mentally easy and physically demanding.
The job paid well and I didn’t have to take work home with me.
The kind of job that many only dream about. I had made it about 3 months in, before I decided that there was a lot more time in the day and I wasn’t being challenged in the mental capacity. So I decided to take on the challenge of business.
The Cleaning Company
I didn’t leave my job right away. Due to my previous roles, I was able to find some good cleaners and quite a few people that wanted their premises cleaned.
It was easy, find the client, find a cleaner good enough to do it at a good price, then put them together with my little cut factored in.
I was swinging a hammer during the day, skipping lunch to make quotes, send emails and call prospective clients. Then get home and keep going.
Finally I was mentally and physically challenged.
Something wasn’t adding up though.
My fear had crept in without me even knowing. I had a block, I couldn’t send out an invoice for less than $200. It just didn’t feel significant enough. Even though I knew that it all adds up and each little bit counts. I found the invoices that I was meant to send piling up.
Thats when I thought to myself, this is getting out of hand. I need someone to help me with this whole business.
Would you believe it if I told you that two days after having that thought, I had a VA email me through a whitepages listing. Stating she was looking to support businesses like mine. That afternoon we were on a skype video call making sure everything checked out.
Karen started off at 4 hours a day, in the first 3 months of working together, she managed to build a website, get the domain name for the business, started scheduling cleaners and clients and she was able to send out all those invoices that I couldn’t bring myself to send.
I was apprehensive about the getting started, we had many hurdles to get through from how to talk to clients to how to properly calculate the margins with each job.
Although I had assistance, I didn’t feel like my work load was less. I was still getting home each day and had to deal with the mountain of tasks and decisions that Karen needed from me.
The lightbulb
It was the simplest but most impactful conversation that we had and set the foundation for the rest of our working relationship together. I called Karen and asked her to make her own decisions, “if it looks like it will cost less than $100 to fix, please make the decision yourselfâ€
Thats all I needed to say and we started flying forward at a rapid rate.
What things are holding you back. What areas of you life could use more attention if you only had the time to give to it?
Getting a VA was one of the best decisions of my life, I can’t see myself ever going back.
When will you take the next step to a better future?
