One of the most flexible jobs available online is that of a virtual assistant. A virtual assistant is like an office secretary, only much, much better. Why? Virtual assistants get to work from home in their pajamas. They don't have to drive to work and get stuck in the traffic. They don't have to spend money on gas. Because a virtual assistant's work is online, the people who often gets hired for this type of work are those who are techie and are very good with computers. Working as a virtual assistant also requires good organizational skills. You have to be quick to think on your feet. You have to be efficient.
You remember Ana? Ana is one heck of a virtual assistant. You should check out her oDesk profile. She has consistently received 5 stars from her previous clients. If you have been following my blog, you'll know what I mean. Click this link to read about Ana's VA experiences.
What makes a good Virtual Assistant?
A good virtual assistant communicates effectively. I cannot stress enough how important it is for a virtual assistant to have an excellent command of the English language. This means YOU can converse with native English speakers with ease and confidence.
Being an excellent communicator does not only mean having a high level of English proficiency, it also means being reliable and efficient. You have the initiative to email your boss and update him about the progress of your work. You reply back the minute you read his emails. You don't make him wait. You understand that people's time are valuable. This brings us to the second most important quality that I think virtual assistants should possess.
A good virtual assistant knows how to value time. With some people, being on time is as natural as breathing. Meeting deadlines is a mantra they follow to a tee. With some, it is an everyday struggle. Getting tasks done on time is a hit-and-miss thing. If you belong to the first group then you won't have any problem. You'll do great as a VA. But if you are with the latter, I'm discouraging you from applying as one until you've learned how to value time. Get yourself organized for starters. Find out what keeps you from completing tasks. Find out why you put off things when you can do them straight away. Procrastination should never be in your vocabulary.
A good virtual assistant asks questions. If you're not sure about something, ASK. Don't make assumptions. There is no such thing as a stupid question. The only thing that is outright stupid is asking your boss questions that are not in any way related to work.
A good virtual assistant takes down notes. You either do it with the traditional pen-and-paper or with the many apps and freewares available online. I do my note-taking with the use of Evernote Web Clipper. I also use Awesome Screenshots and Google Docs. Taking down notes keeps me organized. It keeps me focused especially when there are many tasks needing done.
A good virtual assistant is proactive. Being proactive means you think ahead. You anticipate problems. You think of solutions in advance. You get to the bottom of things before it becomes a problem. You troubleshoot. You don't just sit around and wait for something that needs fixing to get fixed. You think of ways and you make things easy for everyone. You are a problem-solver.
Do you have these qualities?
(Updated 5/10/2014)
(Updated 5/10/2014)
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