Q. |
When
did you go into business for yourself? |
A. |
April
2001. |
Q. |
Why
did you decide to go into virtual assisting? |
A. |
To
cut down on traveling time and to enable me to be
home when my children need me. |
Q. |
What
is your background in your field of expertise? |
A. |
About
25 years of Office/Secretarial/Administration experience,
working in both England and South Africa. |
Q. |
Did
you research the industry before launching your
business? |
A. |
Not
as thorough as I should have. |
Q. |
Are
you a member of any trade organizations? |
A. |
Yes,
Chamber of Commerce. |
Q. |
What
do you enjoy the most about being self-employed?
|
A. |
Doing
my work in my time and juggling my work time to
fit in with my children. |
Q. |
What
do you enjoy the least about being self-employed?
|
A. |
Help
not being available when I need it, example if my
computer breaks down. |
Q. |
Do
you have employees? If so, do you have any positions
open, including subcontracting opportunities? If
so, how would someone inquire? |
A. |
No
I work my company on my own at present, but sometimes
I do ask for help for jobs I cannot manage, example
if I receive a job in Afrikaans, instead of turning
it down I rather advertise the job amongst other
VA’s I know. |
Q. |
Do
you have family members that help you out with your
business? |
A. |
Not
at present but I am thinking of opening an office
in the UK which will be run by a friend doing the
same as me. |
Q. |
What
is your specialty or niche, if any? |
A. |
Typing,
I touch type and work at a fast speed. |
Q. |
What
are the long term goals you have for your business?
(i.e., do you intend to expand, focus on a specific
niche, branch out to more countries, partner with
other VAs, etc.) |
A. |
Yes
I am thinking of opening an office in the UK, Sunderland. |
Q. |
Is
your office in your home or do you rent space? |
A. |
My
office is in my home, It’s a spare room we
have which we had built onto our existing house
in 2000. |
Q. |
Do you find it hard to stay focused if working from
home? Is your office completely separate from living
spaces? |
A. |
Yes
my office is separate from our living space and
I find it very easy to switch off from my family
demands and complete my work, I just shut the door
and carry on. I know my husband is in with the children
and everything will be fine and I do get the occasional
cup of tea or lunch when its time. |
Q. |
It
is well known that though working from home can
be very rewarding and flexible, it also has some
serious stress-inducing capabilities, such as a
tendency to work far more than your general business
hours due to the close availability of your office
and eagerness to please clients. Has this presented
a problem for you? If so, how have you handled it?
|
A. |
I have a client who is quite demanding and often
work after hours or weekends for them, I have no
problem with this. My husband takes over and looks
after the children when I need to work. Its easier
working after hours as the children have gone to
bed and the noise level in the house is low and
I find I can concentrate more. |
Q. |
If
you had to give 3 pieces of advice to someone wanting
to start a virtual business, what would they be
and why? |
A. |
1.
Keep in touch with other people either via the
net or the telephone, so that other people are
there if you need advice or just to let of steam.
2.
Network, non stop.
3.
Be prepared to work hard and not give up on your
dream to work from home, there is work but you
must advertise and network to get it. Try to get
your business known, talk about your business
at every opportunity. |
|
For further information, please
feel free to contact Alison:
|
Find A VA
