Welcome to the VA Handbook!
My name is Joanne Munro and a UK-based Virtual Assistant trainer.
I set up my VA business in 2008 within a week of discovering what one was, walked out of my f/t job in June 2009 to see if I would sink or swim, and now I have an extremely satisfying career and frequently work from countries all around the world.
And I want to help you do the same.
You spend over half of your life at work, and I firmly believe that if you don’t love what you do and aren’t valued, appreciated, paid well, and professionally fulfilled, then it’s a life half-lived.
This is why I’ve made it my personal mission to try to educate, support, and encourage (okay, sometimes cajole) you into finding out whether freelance life is for you.
Because there are no rules anymore.
As long as you can pay your rent and eat, there’s no reason you can’t do what you want when you want, where you want and for whoever you want. Millions of people live this way, and there’s absolutely no reason why you can’t too.
You just need to know where to start.
So, if you’re thinking of becoming a Virtual Assistant, I will help you set up our business. And if you’re already a VA, I will do my utmost to make you a better one.
What you’ll find on this site
Useful information
I want to tell you what you need to do to become a Virtual Assistant and then how to work better once you’re up and running so you can expand and adapt as your business grows.
I focus heavily on mindset and how to run your Virtual Assistant business – not just how to set it up.
Integrity and honesty
I sometimes recommend products and services that I know you’ll find useful – but these are always things that I use myself or wholeheartedly endorse.
I promise to always tell you when something is an affiliate link, and everything I recommend will be 100% useful to you. Some things are more important than money, and my reputation is one of them.
More than just business advice
Working as a Virtual Assistant and being a business owner are two very different things.
A VA has to be detail-orientated to support their clients, but they also need to have bigger-picture skills to make decisions that will steer their business in the right direction.
The first one will come naturally (you’re a freakin’ stationery-loving admin machine, after all), but the second one probably won’t.
This is why much of my content focuses on how to be a good business owner and not just how to set up a Virtual Assistant business.
Because you need to be able to do both if you want to be successful.
And what you won’t
Fluff and bullsh*t
Excuse my French, but I prefer to cut through the plethora of waffle and nonsense out there and deliver useful information.
I want you to have a successful business and a happy work life, so I will give you clear and honest facts about working for yourself so you can see what it’s really like to run a Virtual Assistant business.
Unicorns and fairies
It’s not my style to write in a cutesy kinda way. I’m somewhat direct, and I’m not everyone’s cup of tea, but that’s okay.
I just prefer to say what I think and not waste time tarting up a blog post so people will like me.
I’m assuming you’re just as busy (if not busier because I don’t have any kids!) and want clear and simple information.
I also don’t believe in manifesting success from thin air or asking the Universe to do the heavy lifting. I’m not into any woo-woo kinda stuff.
I believe we make our own success.
What to do now
1. Read some posts
There’s a lot of information on my site, and I want it to be really easy for you to find what you need. The best way to do this is to use the categories or search box in the sidebar or to look through the blog posts list on the Post Index page and click on the article you want to read.
2. Download some stuff
Whether you’re just starting out or you’ve been in business for a while, I have loads of guides, templates, checklists and courses to help you set up and run a bulletproof Virtual Assistant business. View them all here.
3. Join the VA Handbookers Facebook group
My VA Handbookers Facebook group is a fun and friendly community of over 24,000 like-minded people, all sharing their freelance journey.
It’s the biggest Facebook community of any UK Virtual Assistant trainer, and you should apply to join immediately. The others can’t wait to meet you.
Such a wealth of information and everyone is so supportive. I didn’t look for another group, this had all I needed. Caroline M
4. Get on the mailing list
If you download my free guide on the tools you need (and don’t need) to set up your VA business, you’ll automatically be added to my (absolutely phenomenal) mailing list.
Disclaimer – Although my website is called the VA Handbook, I’m not actually the person who wrote the book of the same name. The domain name was free and summed up what I wanted the site to be about, so I took it!
