Each month we profile one of our virtual assistants, so you can learn more about who we are and what goes on in the heads and lives of our team.
Here’s a raw, unedited (!) look into Sue’s journey with us with some of the highlights and challenges she’s faces transitioning from an executive assistant in a corporate office to a virtual assistant, working remotely from home. Wherever that home may be!
The Highs of Being a Virtual Assistant:
- Being responsible for my own destiny
- Proud that I’ve learned so much and grown so much in the 3 years of worked with YourVA. And I continue to challenge myself and learn every day.
- I love our YourVA Team. We have lots of laughs and we support each other really well.
- I’m honoured to be a part of the Your VA leadership team.
- I’m proud of what I have accomplished.
- Knowing that I am contributing something to my clients’ businesses.
- I share my office with my cat. He has a bed and a kennel in my office and he often hangs out with me for much of the day. It’s not unusual for him to paddle across my keyboard or sit on my lap during a meeting.
The Challenges of Being a Virtual Assistant:
- Breaking the employee mindset. I worked so long as an employee in large corporations where there were teams of HR, IT, Marketing, Sales etc. that I found it difficult not having that support just down the hall.
- IT challenges – you have to figure them out yourself.
- Getting support from the people you live with. Just because I work from home doesn’t mean I have oodles of time to do all the housework.
- Unbillable time especially during the learning curve period when taking on new clients.
A 'normal' day for Sue looks like this:
7.00am
Alarm goes off – cat jumps on my chest and we cuddle for a bit before my feet touch the floor
7.15 – 9.00am
- Make coffee and straighten up the kitchen
- Yoga stretches & core exercises (10 min)
- Enjoy my coffee while reading my current novel – I always have a book on the go and I prefer to read from a real physical book, although I will resort to reading a book on my ipad if I run out of reading material when the library is closed. My favourite genre is historical fiction.
9:00am – 12:00pm
- Take my breakfast to the office
- VA work and meetings
12:00 – 1:30pm
- Exercise time. This time is flexible throughout the day but non-negotiable. I rarely miss my daily 5K run at the beach, but the time varies depending on work commitments and weather. I always listen to a podcast while running – usually news, current affairs, motivational, learning.
- Runners stretches & core exercises (10 min)
1:30 – 5:00pm
- Snack at my desk
- Check my personal emails
- Client work if needed
5.00pm
- I always try to stop work by 5pm and relax
5:00 – 6:00pm
- Relax, maybe read a little or watch The Chase on TV, one of my favourite shows because it exercises my brain and lets me brag about how much useless information I have!
6:00 – 10:00pm
- Watch the 6pm News
- Cook and eat dinner with my family
- Relax and watch TV. Favourite shows are anything documentary and I’m currently watching: Homeland, Grace & Frankie, Greenleaf, Queen Sugar, Late Show with Stephen Colbert, Daily Show with Trevor Noah, 60 Minutes.
10.00pm
- Bed time, cat jumps on my chest and cuddles for a while!
