Your Name: Vickie Turley
Type of business: Virtual Assistant; Master Mentor
What does your business do? In my virtual assistant business, I provide uplifting administrative support to extraordinary consultants. In my mentoring business, I provide "been there, done that" mentoring to aspiring, seasoned and veteran virtual assistants who are struggling with different aspects of this business.
Why did you start the biz and when did your business open? Virtual assistant business was started in October 2005. I started this business because I developed a medical condition and was fired from my corporate job. I wanted to continue to contribute financially to our household and began researching ways to make money from home. When I came upon the term "virtual assistant," I knew I had found what I was meant to do. I am living my passion with my virtual assistant business.
My mentoring business was started in April 2009. I started this business because my VA client roster was full and I was looking for an additional stream of income. I had been mentoring in a different company with a partner and people began telling me I should continue doing it as I had a gift for it. I decided to go out on my own and again, I am living my passion. I truly believe you should use your gifts and I believe mentoring is a gift of mine.
How many people in your company? 2 - me and a VA to help with some of my administrative tasks.
What's your office location like? My office is in my home. I took one of our spare bedrooms and turned it into a professional office space. I painted the walls a beautiful, soothing green (Guacamole) color and I have chimes hanging in the window. I bought a gorgeous desk and hutch with matching file cabinets.
I have a vision board where I have pictures from my grandchildren, my favorite quote, and notes to myself of ways to distress each day. I put shelves in the closet and keep all my office supplies there. It is a beautiful place to work each day. My family knows that if the door is shut, I am not to be disturbed. I have a laptop so I am able to move to other rooms of the house, or even outside, if the mood strikes.
What's the toughest part of running your biz? The toughest part of running my business was trying to
decide on my target market and what type of people I wanted to work with every day. I only work with ideal clients and it's hard figuring out who they are and what they are like. Most of my clients have been that perfect match, but some have been trial and error. It's difficult to figure that out until you've spent some time with them. I have a really good process in place now that helps tremendously, but you still really can't tell if they are a good match until you've spent some time with that person.
What's the most fun part? Wow, this answer could take me forever. Honestly, I absolutely love what I do. I know I was meant to do this. I love being a business owner, setting my own boundaries, working with those I love to be around, doing things I love doing. I love the variety in that each client is different and their needs are different. So I am doing different things each day which keeps the work interesting. I also enjoy traveling to on-site projects for my clients because I also have time to have fun during thosetrips. So far, I've been able to go to DC, Miami, Ft. Lauderdale and the Blue Ridge Mountains in Virginia. Without my VA business, I probably would not have visited some of those places.
But the best thing is that I decide when I want to work and I schedule my work around spending a lot of time with my grandchildren. That was something I was unable to do with my own children when they were little.
In my mentoring business, I also love the feeling of helping others through difficult situations. I am able to take my experiences and use them to help other VAs build their businesses and sometimes even keep them from making mistakes I made. It is truly rewarding to have someone say, "Thank you for all you did in helping my business grow and succeed." I love looking at their goals and together coming up with ways to reach those goals.Anything you would have done differently? There were many things I wish I had done differently, and I am now able to help other VAs with those experiences. Some specific examples include: acknowledging that having a supportive team around you is key to growing your business - and spending the money to get that team in place; spending more time in actively marketing my business; networking as much as possible when first starting my business.
Explain what's next on the horizon for you and your business? I will be scaling back my virtual assistant business as my mentoring business grows. I am also just about finished with my first book and I would love to write another book when this is complete and my mentoring business is where I want it to be. I would also like to begin speaking at live events and doing more speaking at virtual events.
What advice do you have for others? For anyone who is thinking about becoming a business owner, I would say to think long and hard before jumping in. It is NOT for everyone! Ask yourself tough questions and be honest with your answers as you think about running your own company. If you cannot stand being on your own, making your own decisions, setting your own schedule, you may not be a good candidate to run your own business. If you are not a disciplined person, it may be difficult to run your own business. If you are very outgoing and social, you need to realize how much time you will spend on your own.
You need to understand the workings of the different types of companies you could start, such as a corporation, a LLC or a sole proprietor. You should treat your business as a professional entity. You should be prepared to spend money as the old saying is true, "You have to spend money to make money." It might not take a lot to start your business, but it will take money. And you need to have a plan in place regarding how long it will take before your business sees a profit or really starts making money. Those are just a few of the things you should think about before becoming a business owner.
How do you use OnlineBizU.com to help with your biz or sanity? I am very new to OnlineBizU.com as I won a membership at a recent VA conference. But I must say that since I've been a member, I've been able to find so many resources through OnlineBizU. They have some amazing experts who give away some great information. Membership with OnlineBizU would be money well spent. I look forward to contributing to the forums in an effort to give back a little of what I have received from OnlineBizU.
Personal Info:
School : Henderson City High School; Graduated in 1975
Prior jobs or business? 30 years in various administrative assistant roles. Experience includes fields of medicine, education, legal and retail.
Favorite food? Dark chocolate is my favorite!
What are your pets' names? Toot is my half Yorkie, half Maltese dog.
Do any of these pets help with your biz? Toot lays at my feet in my office when I work. He actually helps me when I am stressed as I can lean over and pet him until I feel calmer.
What person or event in your life led you to go into business for yourself? I had a medical condition and was fired from my corporate job. I knew I would never be able to work a "normal" 9-5 job again because of this condition. I found the term "virtual assistant" while researching work from home and I've never looked back.
Website URL (If your biz has a live site you want to link to.)
www.abalancedalternative.com/
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