You provide several great tips! I'll be starting by business part-time while working my day job. Reading how everyone does it sounds exhausting, but it's the way I'll have to go. Thankfully I'm off on Friday's so I've got some cushion.

Lily, are you still working full-time currently?

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Prins Cowin, CPS/CAP, Virtual Business Manager
www.KingBusinessManagement.com

Originally Posted by King Business Management

Lily, are you still working full-time currently?

Yep, I am. I also have 5 p-t clients at the moment (2 of whom are new) so I am still doing the before/after JOB and Saturday morning Goddess schedule.

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Lily Chambers, The Virtual Office Goddess, LLC
Author "How to Do Your Own Small Business Bookkeeping"

Wow, Lily, you really are the Office Goddess!

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Prins Cowin, CPS/CAP, Virtual Business Manager
www.KingBusinessManagement.com

I have been kicking this around....your thoughts are appreciated.
I was thinking about taking out a small business loan in order for me to quit my F/T job. I would pay myself a salary (considerably less then what I make at the F/T).
This way I could devote a ton more time to my VA business. I know taking the loan is a risk, but if I could contribute to my VA business F/T then I would reach my goals faster.
Has anyone gone this route?

I am so glad I found this thread! Another site I found before this one made it seem impossible to start a VA business part-time while holding a full-time job. I feel SO much better now!!

I'm with you Stacey. FT job and PT business is gonna be tricky but I just keep thinking of the light at the end of the tunnel.

I too have been doing this for three years and I was upfront with my clients. They are accomodating to me which makes me have even more respect for the client. It really can be done it's a great way to get your feet wet.

I, too, am still working fulltime. I haven't tried to get any clients yet because I wasn't sure how I would juggle it all. I am glad to see that I am not the only one having this problem.

I work part time at another job and am still in the process of starting up my own business. I appreciate the comments. All the advice is helpful.

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Cristina Payne
www.VirtualLegalStaff.com

I'm so glad I found this post, this is exactly what I'm going through now. As a new mom I would love to stay home with my baby but I do need to feed and clothe her so I was having doubts about being able to do it all.

I'm glad I read this, it has given me the support I needed!

Thanks girls.

I am working full time and doing va stuff part time. I started in March and I am at 3 clients. Thankfully I had a couple weeks with my first client before the other 2 start up.

I am scared for how I can handle all of the demands once everyone kicks into gear at the same time. How do you cope with feeling overwhelmed when your working what equals to about 4 jobs?

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The Admin Diva
www.theadmindiva.com

Originally Posted by nlawanda

I am working full time and doing va stuff part time. I started in March and I am at 3 clients. Thankfully I had a couple weeks with my first client before the other 2 start up. I am scared for how I can handle all of the demands once everyone kicks into gear at the same time. How do you cope with feeling overwhelmed when your working what equals to about 4 jobs?

Boy, that's a tough one! I work my 9-5, have several clients w/Goddess, do my bookkeeping class, and now own TVE Magazine. I guess that DOES qualify as 4 jobs. My best coping methods are sticking to a schedule, and ABSOLUTELY POSITIVELY NEVER working Sundays (I try not to work Saturday afternoons, either, but...)

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Lily Chambers, The Virtual Office Goddess, LLC
Author "How to Do Your Own Small Business Bookkeeping"

I'm so glad I found this topic. It has been so helpful and inspiring. I have just started thinking about being a VA. My plan is to keep working my full time job and just work part-time as a VA for awhile. I would really like to work for another VA to start out. I have been working in banking industry for the past 30 years and it's definitely time for a change! I really want to do this, so any advice on how to get started would be greatly appreciated. I want to start out doing bookkeeping, data entry, general office work. Eventually I would like to learn real estate and bankruptcy VA work.

This is an excellent plan! I plan on doing the same! Fortunately, with the services that I specialize in (proposal writing), this can be done anytime, which usually equates to in between the hours of 9pm-12am for me!

I have to have a very thorough plan and really esetablish and prove myself to my husband that I can market and maintain a client base that will support the company enough such that after expenses and taxes that I bring home the same amount of income or more than my FT job and being that this position is well over $60K, I think that it is best for me to train someone else to do the administrative and legwork so that I can still maintain my full-time job.

However, there is no other freedom than to be able to get out of the shower, put on something comfy, walk to your office across the hall from your bedroom and get started on your daily work . . . so maybe I won't be maintaining that full-time job!

Originally Posted by Office Goddess

Repeat posting BTW just signed my 4th client, have a meeting wed. about my potential 5th! I, too, still work a "9-5" job while getting my VA business going strong enough to support my household. I devote 6am-8am and 8pm-9pm M-F and 8am-noon on Saturdays to "The Virtual Office Goddess, LLC"; it's understood at home that I am "working" those hours and not to be disturbed. I also check emails/posts at lunch time and on breaks during the day. This makes for a long week but, that's what it takes to run your own business in the beginning! I have been "officially virtual" for approx 7 months and am (hopefully) going to sign up my 4th client next week. Each of my clients is only 4-8 hours/month of billable work so I devote the rest of my "Goddess" time to marketing, networking, etc. while maintaining my 40-hour full-time job so that my hubby and I can continue to eat. Once I am up to 20 hours/week on top of my 9-5, I will go full-time virtual and offer 25-30 hours/week to my current employer as a VA (that way, if they decline, I'm not TOTALLY dead in the water for finances ) I anticipate working 60+ hours/week for at least the next 3 years if I want to get my practice solid and develop "Goddess" into a good living. I hope to find a part-time assistant at that point to take over the "drudge work" and let me go back to working 40 hours/week and still be able to live comfortably. Let me know if you have any questions about working full-time while building your practice; I'll answer what I can...

Originally Posted by Wordpro Wizard

Maybe return calls via cellphone away from the Job during lunch and breaks? If they want to see you right away "I'm (in client meetings, working on a large rush project) most of today - let me check my schedule. (My last meeting today is not far from you/I should be finished the project late afternoon) would 6p.m. suit you?" Depending on your/their location this might work for you. Lynne

I have been upfront with all of my clients so that they will know my workload, however, for those potential clients, that may have tasks other than proposal writing (as my current clients' tasks), I typically only disclose the fact that I work full-time if they ask, because in most cases, my ideal client, would give me a project that can be done at anytime and has a deadline several days/weeks out. Therefore, I typcially use some of the scenarios above.

I have been in business sice mid January officially and I am still trying to secure my second and third client which I hope to close by today!

Frances Harvey, CAP
Harvey Business Solutions, LLC