Advantages of Becoming a Virtual Assistant

Freelancing seems to be on a lot of peoples’ minds lately. One hot topic is virtual assisting. There are many positives and negatives, but we will save the disadvantages of being a virtual assistant for another day.

Advantages of Becoming a Virtual Assistant
The main advantages of becoming a virtual assistant are:

The ability to work from home. Some people like to work from home, while some honestly do not. I actually prefer to work from home. Working from the comfort of my own home is a huge positive. I can create my own schedule. I also don’t have to waste a lot of time by driving to and from work. That saves a ton of time right there! I know of a lot of people who spend a couple of hours EACH DAY on their commute, who wants to do that? You would also save on gas costs as well, and you might be able to eliminate your transportation costs completely from your budget.

The ability to choose the work to suit your personal needs – your schedule, your tastes, your temperament, your unique working style. This is a big positive of freelancing and being a virtual assistant. You have the option for what you want to work on.
The ability to scale your work (take on more vs refuse a client) depending on the demands of your personal life.

The option to get more creative both with your skills and your choice of clients.
The ability to set your own price. Depending on whom you ask, this may actually be a disadvantage, but I believe in taking control of our lives and finances, so no matter how difficult the task may seem, if it puts us in control, we list it in the “advantages” section You can determine your price and what you see as valuable.

And, the best of all, being your own boss! You still have to answer to your clients,  and some clients may have the tendency to micro manage, but hey, once you finish a project for that client, you don’t ever have to work with him/her again, if you don’t want to!
Remember, you may have to wait until you are established before reaping some of these benefits, though. For instance once you have a steady stream of projects, you will have a lot more freedom to pick and choose which projects you want to take on, but in the beginning when you are still trying to get your footing, you may have to take on tasks that may not be as much of a perfect fit for you.

Do you want to be a virtual assistant?