Great interview Tess. And it is so fun to hear about the person who started this forum! When I first found it, I was very impressed because it seemed to be just about sharing and helping one another. As we all know, there are other forums, but this is the only one I feel has no other "agenda". Hearing your story, tells me why that is and that you and this forum are genuine!

Thanks again so much......from a real newbie to the forum and to being a VA
Denise

Wow, thanks! I love hearing/reading these comments!! You all have no idea how much I LOVE that the site is functioning exactly as I had hoped it would. And yes, Denise - I'm all about promoting commerce (there are lots of VAs who work with eachother or sub out work via this site) BUT I cannot stand sites that are chock full of spammy posts and adverts for junk that has no value! We do now take on a few ads to help pay for the server (phew! ) but I am so super picky about what goes up - have turned down more ad inquiries than I can count, but you know, it maintains the integrity of the site and keeps it feeling more like the community we want it to be.

I'm so grateful that each and every one of you is a part of this great group!

Your interview is very inspirational and you are absolutely amazing. The Forums are brilliant and very helpful. Thank you :-)

Tess, thanks for posting this interview. Wow! I hope becoming a VA doesn't require stepping "out on a limb" quite like you did!! I admire your tenacity and confidence to start your business the way you did. Not sure I have that much confidence in myself, but I really do have the desire to work from home. When I started looking for VA jobs, I was just thinking of something part time to supplement my income, but the more I read in this forum, the more I am thinking of [b]full time[b]!

Thanks for the PDF 995 link. I use this at my J-O-B, but didn't have it on my home computer. There is another program that works well too (and it's free too) called PDF Redirect. Check it out: http://www.exp-systems.com/ With this program you can not only convert just about any document to a PDF, but you can also combine PDF documents into one file...and choose the order you want them in! It's great! I use it both at home and my J-O-B.

Sandy J.
Louisiana

Sandy/Tess,

Thanks for the info on the PDF link -- I have used PDF Creator in the past, but was not able to combine documents. I appreciate this resource!

Best Regards,

Sharon

Thanks for the links and the site. It was nice to be able to read this interview after reading some of your posts. This forum is a great resource. Thank you!

Wow...you are officially my new hero! All that traveling...how fabulous! That's one of the reasons I've decided to pursue the virtual industry - freedom to travel. I intend to begin homeschooling my daughter in January so we will be free to explore other countries whilst I (hopefully) continue to generate an income. Just need to round up a few clients first...all those pesky details...hah.

It is nice to see another homeschooler!! I tried to send you a private message but I do not have enough posts yet!
We have been homeschooling for 5 years. I have three children still at home who I homeschool. Two are highschool and one is elementary.

Oh..that's great! We don't know any other home schoolers yet, so I'd love to talk to you about it. I'll send a PM as soon as I reach the posting quota too!

OUr baby is only three weeks old but we'll be homeschooling/unschooling as well when the time is right, I'd love to learn more from you ladies about what you do in your own homes!