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New Phenomenon Career Working From Home
Added: (Wed Jul 27 2005)
New Phenonmenon - Women Who Want A Work/Life Balance
The fastest growing career you can do from home
The Virtual Assistant
Virtual Assistants (or VAs) are one of the fastest growing forms of self-employment in the UK and now in Europe. As a result from the many women, choosing to set up from home to be with their children or create a work/life balance, the VA Mastery Course© and VA Mastery Club© were launched to provide VAs with the right guidance to launch their business and to provide full support and guidance with contacts within a much needed VA community.
A VA is a Virtual Assistant, who works from their own office, handling many of the tasks a PA takes care of in the office world, providing professional business support from administration and call minding to marketing, PR and book-keeping. However, they have the added appeal to clients of not needing national insurance, tax, holiday and sickness pay, employment rights or even office space and equipment. Clients also only pay for the time that they use making this an extremely cost effective service.
Using the services of a VA allows companies or the self-employed more time to focus on what they do well. Communication with their clients is via telephone, email and on some occasions face-to-face.
It’s a fast increasing phenomenon as people decide to work around their families, downsize or move out from the city to follow their dreams of a rural idyll. Typical VA hourly rates range from £15-25 per hour dependent on the work provided.
Working as a VA means that they can utilise all the skills and experience gained from previous employment within a time frame and environment that suits them and around their other commitments. For mothers it means that they can keep childcare costs low and be there to collect their children from school/nursery playing a major part in their growing up and it allows the opportunity of work/life balance and with the flexibility to work anywhere in the country (or world!).
But it’s not just a case of buying a PC and getting started. Becoming a VA and building up a practice that supports you financially, comes with as many pitfalls as setting up any other business. And we all know the gloomy statistics for the failure of business in their first year.
One way that many VAs have learnt how to build a successful and thriving practice is through participating on the Virtual Assistant Mastery Course©, now in its fifth successful year. The course answers essential questions such as:
· How to set up a VA business and finding new clients
· Focussing on a niche market
· Personal and business boundaries
· All about Money and Fees
· Marketing your practice and attracting clients you want
· Confidence in networking and presenting
· Work/life balance and much more…
Above all, the course will help you build the VA business that suits you – whether you want a busy schedule with a number of clients, or a small but reliable practice that fits in with your lifestyle or family commitments.
Courses are run via residential or conference call with a combination of weekly assignments, phone support and business coaching – participants can access the courses nationally and internationally.
Participants get the opportunity to share experiences, ideas, and create friendships and support that long outlast the course – something that is vital in this profession.
The VA Mastery Course© and VA Mastery Club© are run by Business Coach Carmen MacDougall (www.cmacoaching.com) who has already built up her own successful VA programme referring new work onto the new VAs and helping professionals find their ideal VA.
Carmen, a personal and business coach, specialises in helping people to set up their own business and create a more balanced life. Carmen has a corporate background in the legal, marketing and investment banking industry having worked at Mishcon de Reya Solicitors, Young and Rubican, Morgan Stanley Dean Whitter and Bank of America..
Carmen trained with the UK College of Life Coaching (www.ukclc,net) and is trained in Neuro Linguistic Programming.
For further information or to have a COMPLIMENTARY coaching consultation, with no obligation, please contact Carmen MacDougall on 01785 224 577, or 07967 332915, or email Carmenmacdougall@aol.com.