If you’ve ever wondered what the heck a virtual assistant is, you’re not alone.
When I told my family I planned to quit my 9-5 job and become a virtual assistant, the general consensus was, "Huh?" followed by their concern of how I would make money to pay my bills.
The concept of a virtual assistant is simple.
According to the Cambridge Dictionary, a virtual assistant uses the internet in their own home and works as an assistant for different individuals or companies.
Virtual. Assistant. Get it?
As technology became more advanced in the 1990s, so did reliable internet connections. Companies started to realize that they could offer work from home options for their employees, including their office administrators.
With that, virtual assistants became more popular.
But today, online virtual assistant services include much more than just clerical work.
The best part of being a virtual assistant is that you can offer almost any service from the comfort of home. Popular virtual assistant services include:
- Email clean up
- Calendar management
- Writing services
- Social media scheduling
- Content creation
- Graphic design
- Marketing
- Web development
… and so much more!
As a virtual assistant, you can niche down and offer just a few specific services, or you can offer a wide range of general tasks.
Plus, ANYONE can become a virtual assistant.
If you have a computer, an email address, and an internet connection, you can offer professional virtual assistant services.
The possibilities are endless!
Another benefit of starting your own virtual assistant business is that you can work from anywhere.
This was a huge part of the appeal for me, as I love to travel and explore new places.
Although I haven’t traveled much this year due to Covid-19, I look forward to traveling and working remotely in the (hopefully) near future.
For me, the decision to become a virtual assistant was easy.
As an office coordinator for a holistic health company after college and at a hair salon during high school, I already had experience supporting small businesses.
Because I spent four of the six years at my 9-5 working from home as a remote employee, I knew how to stay motivated as a remote worker (cue cat snuggles throughout the day to stay positive!)
Plus, I knew what I was good at.
I excel at writing and editing, I love keeping people on task, organization is my middle name, and I’m pretty tech- and social media-savvy.
So, I started my virtual assistant business last fall.
And that was one of the best decisions I’ve made.
I’ve learned a lot this past year, and I can’t wait to see where my virtual assistant business takes me in the future.
Are you thinking about becoming a virtual assistant? Let me know in the comments below what interests you the most!
This was really informative! I've always thought a virtual assistant did mostly scheduling and data entry. I didn't realize how many other more creative tasks this role includes. Thanks for sharing!
Thanks Lexi! VA work is super versatile, which is definitely one reason why I love it! 🙂