The Worst Advice I've Ever Heard Given to  Virtual Assistants

Brace yourselves for some of the worst advice I have ever heard being dished out to VAs, specifically those new to the industry. My jaw has dropped to the floor on more than one occasion when I’ve been privy to some of the whacko things people say.

Look, I’m sure these folks mean well, but unfortunately, their advice tends to be misinformed and often negative; a bit rough for Virtual Assistants who are still trying to get the hang of things in their fledgeling businesses.  

If you’re wondering what type of person would give such bad advice, you might be a bit surprised to discover that it can be dished out by anyone and everyone! From business coaches to other business owners. (I’ve even heard friends and family members serve up some ridiculous comments!) 

Yes, it seems that this horrific advice is given out to unsuspecting newbies from people across the board. Fair enough; others will always have their opinions, but as an experienced VA, VA coach, and VA business owner, I’m confident that I can dispel the myths and drop some truth bombs on this madness. 

 While I could probably write a short book on some of the crazy VA business misinformation floating around out there, I have dubbed the following comments ‘the worst of the worst’ and have spent some time coming up with countless good reasons why this ‘advice’ directed at VAs is just plain wrong.  

TERRIBLE PIECE OF ADVICE #1 

 “Nobody will pay that much for your services! You should really drop your rate…” 

Wrong, wrong, wrong. This is absolute bollocks! In all my years of experience, I can hand-on-heart say that almost every VA I have come across, is under-pricing.

Yes, you heard me right!

They often don’t value their skills and expertise as highly as they should, which means they don’t charge enough for their services.  

 I highly recommend that you take a moment to check out the fantastic blog post my business development manager wrote, where she delves into a case study that showed the phenomenal savings a business could make when using a Virtual Assistant at a much higher hourly rate than if they hired and paid a permanent employee! 

You will find that this type of  ‘you’re too expensive’ advice is given out by people who have no idea about the virtual assistant industry or the concept of outsourcing.

Ignore it!

Charge what you’re worth and review your pricing regularly to ensure you're charging a fair rate for your level of experience and skillset.  

 NOTE:  If you’re not sure what to charge, what you’re worth, or how to set up service/pricing plans, don’t panic! We are happy to help and will be posting an informative blog on this topic in the coming weeks.  

TERRIBLE PIECE OF ADVICE #2 

“You need to be making over $200k in your business for it to be successful…” 

What the heck? Who plucked that number out of thin air?

Ugh! So disappointing to hear this type of misinformation being spread around.

Not to mention that achievement doesn’t always have to be measured in dollars and cents. It is up to the individual what determines success for them.

Hearing crazy things like this will make any VA give up.

The thought of needing to make over $200k per year when you’re just getting started sounds like a ridiculous, insurmountable goal to reach.  

 I’m here to reassure you that it is completely up to you to determine what your financial goals should be, and what success might look like. It could be that the biggest thing that drew you to become a Virtual Assistant was the flexibility it gives you in your life, not the money!

The bottom line is that accomplishment is very different for each individual. Ignore all the comments about dollars equalling success and move forward to carve your own path; working for yourself in your dream job with your own vision and goals.  

 TERRIBLE PIECE OF ADVICE #3 

“You can't work remotely as no one will trust you to do it…”   

For a start, Virtual Assistants are not the only professionals who are not only TRUSTED to work remotely, but also PREFERRED by employers because the cost of physically having someone in the office is much more than someone working off-site with their own equipment!

Plus, there are many workplaces these days that offer their employees flexi-hours; meaning they can work from home 1-2 days per week or start earlier/later and finish earlier/later.

I think the people saying things like this may be projecting.

Yep! It is entirely possible that the person giving you such bad advice has some serious trust issues of their own to overcome!  

 Some clients like to ask how many hours a task will take so they can budget for a specific project. If you have given a fixed price/number of hours for a particular job, no one needs to wonder what you are up to, because the cost has already been agreed.  

Remember, loads of people use virtual assistants all over the world.

With time-tracking software, and the use of timesheets (as well as, um… you know, the delivery of the completed tasks…) there are plenty of ways to figure out if someone isn't doing what they say they are doing.    

All in all, the best information I can give you as a new Virtual Assistant, is to listen to business advice from those you would be happy to trade places with.

If the person giving the advice has been where you are, done what you are hoping to do, and has lived through every up and down along the way, you can bet they probably have some fab tips, tricks, wisdom, guidance and support to share (that are actually worth listening to!) 

~ Jo