I hit my 1-year Assistance by Annie-versary last week.
Although the idea itself and my actual work as a VA began well before that mark, October 2020 was my official launch. I was scared to launch; nervous that I wasn’t ready, that I’d fail, that I didn’t know what I was doing. But I had warm leads and inquiries and had to get up and running before I could take on any legitimate clients. So, I put on my big girl pants, hit live on my website, and announced the official opening of Assistance by Annie on Instagram and Facebook.
The last few weeks I’ve been taking some time to reflect on my journey and my first year of business and there are a few things that stand out to me as major takeaways- good (building an amazing roster of clients) or bad (learning how much I have to set aside for taxes).
In the hopes of helping friends, peers, and other aspiring remote workers, I decided to include a list of three of the most valuable things I learned in this first year of my business.
3 Takeaways From My First Year of Business
Takeaway 1: Do your homework but also invest in your business
I started my business journey by doing my own investigating: I did deep dives on Google, YouTube, Instagram, and countless blogs. I learned all I could about how Virtual Assistants work, what they do, and how they do it. I found out about helpful programs, like Asana and Canva. I connected with a few VA’s who were kind enough to answer my (many) questions and even talk me through some of the things they do. But when it came to actually launching my business, I didn’t quite know what to do.
I had started working as a VA but was nervous about taking the leap and making things official. So, I invested in a course, The Creative VA Academy, with an incredible mentor, Adrienna, over at Ava and The Bee. Her course was vital in helping me find my way with all things business and branding. If you are considering transitioning to any type of remote-based freelance work, don’t be afraid to invest in yourself, your business, and your future - as scary as it might be!
Takeaway 2: You have to have the right personality for this job
The second thing I learned over the last year is that you have to have the right personality to do freelance, remote work. You have to be able to give yourself a schedule and then stick to it. You must create your own priorities, structure, and deadlines and find ways to make it happen. If you are a very talented procrastinator and can smooth-talk your way out of doing something when it needs to be done, this might not be the right kind of gig for you. There is no one watching over your shoulder or checking in to make sure you are getting your work done on time (unless you choose to work with your clients in this manner).
Takeaway 3: Balance is key
This is true with regards to managing multiple clients and life in general and is probably the biggest thing I’ve learned over the last year of my business. As a freelance worker, it is hard to say no to work. The work sometimes comes and goes and we want to make sure we take advantage of it while it is there. But, this can lead to burnout when we spread ourselves too thin. So finding a balance between work and play is necessary. After all, why do we all have jobs? So we can earn money and use it to enjoy the lives we lead! This means making sure you have time to actually enjoy life! Finding a balance between clients, business, and life is the name of the game.
Finding balance within your business is also important. Chances are you will have more than just one client in your business. Finding ways to balance all of these clients and their projects is so important. You want all of your clients to feel valued and that you are giving their projects 110%. Things slip through the cracks sometimes and life happens, but staying extremely organized and keeping track of every little detail will help make sure that every task gets crossed off and followed up on! Balancing clients can be tricky but it is so important to the success of your business as well as your sanity and your life.
There are many more things I learned in my first year. The best programs to use, ways to communicate with clients, the best ways to track my time, time-management tricks, how to balance multiple clients and projects at once, and so many others. But all of those items can be shared another day, another time. I wanted to share these three items above because I believe they can apply to almost any job or situation.
Doing your research and investing in yourself can apply to jobs, travel, buying a house, and just life in general. Having the right personality can be true for any job you have - just happens to be particularly important for any work-from-home, freelance position. And finally, finding a balance is essential for every human, freelancer or otherwise. I plan to bring these takeaways with me as I move forward with both of my careers and my life and I hope you do too!
If you have any questions about starting your own remote job, don’t hesitate to reach out! My journey was far from perfect but I’d love to help anyone looking to make this change!