If you are afraid to start your VA business, here’s one thing you need to know: you are not the only one. It’s so common to be afraid to make the leap to launch.
It’s scary to put yourself out there when you have never done it before.
It’s kind of like a first date, except on our first date we have zero experience so that’s usually the thing that causes us anxiety.
With your business, you aren’t a young kid. You are older, you have some work experience (even if it is not as a VA). You are making a plan to operate a business.
The anxiety is the same – it’s still the world of the unknown, but remember that the reason you are starting your business is that you have work experience in administration, and you know that there are LOADS of clients that you can help. Yes, you!
I remember thinking that I just didn’t really know what I was doing starting a business, so the uncertainty scared me.
I also remember feeling like I didn’t want my family and friends to see what I was doing, in case it didn’t work out. The fear of putting myself out there – and maybe being seen!
I also remember pushing myself to attend networking events, but as an introvert, being terrified to talk to anyone. The fear of saying something and sounding stupid.
I also remember stumbling through my rehearsed infomercial in my car – recording it so I could play it back to see how dumb it (probably) sounded – all the way to a business event. Many times when I got there I was too scared to even say it in case I screwed it up. And sometimes, I did screw it up.
Through it all, I lived. And you will too. It doesn’t mean it’s not scary, but it does mean that when you move through something you are scared of, you will not be scared of it anymore!
There are lots of reasons that fear keeps us from launching our VA business and putting ourselves out there for the world to see.
Here are a few that you might be experiencing, and how to push through them:
1. Fear of Failing
Our biggest fear is often just of not being able to make a go of the business, and having to tell our family and friends that it didn’t work. We know they were probably skeptical anyway, so it’s validating to them and humiliating for you. How to push through? Don’t give up. Learn what you need to know to take the right steps towards your success. If you are not meeting enough people, expand your connections. If you are meeting people and not closing clients, how can you improve your technique? Failing is just deciding not to try again.
2. Fear of Making a Mistake
One of the biggest issues I see with VAs is that they don’t want anyone to see them making a mistake. I’m not sure why, but we seem to think that any time we write something or post something online, that the entire world sees it. If you have great SEO and a huge following, this happens (think Rachel Hollis). When you are first starting out as a VA (and your mom and husband are the only two on your mailing list like me, when I started!), all you have to do is edit or delete something. If you do something that turns out to be the wrong decision, just change it. Make a new decision based on what went wrong last time, and move forward.
3. Fear of Making the Wrong Decision
Decisions are never final. It can paralyze you to want to be sure that you are not wasting time, money, or your pride – but once you realize that things are always changeable, you will feel more empowered by decision making. As a VA, you are a business owner who will need to make multiple decisions every single day – some small ones and some huge ones – and yes, sometimes things will not turn out the way you thought they would. So dust yourself off and make a new decision – take a new path!
4. Fear of Looking Dumb
Similar to #2 above, just because you do something doesn’t mean the world will see it. You also need to remember that everyone who owns a business, including our clients, all started off where you are. They all had to learn a lot of things to get to know how business works, and they had to ask for help too. If you don’t know how to do something or where to find it, ask. And then go and find it. The only thing that could make you look dumb is asking the same things over and over and never moving forward with any presented solutions. Oh yes, this happens too! When you get the answer you were looking for, it’s time to move forward.
5. Fear of Embarrassment
Introverts often struggle with the networking part of being a business owner. VAs are accustomed to being lower on the totem pole than the ‘boss’ used to be in the corporate setting – and often feel that the client is above them. But clients are not smarter than you – not by a long shot. Most times they hire VAs to get help with something they have no idea how to do – something that we can do easily. So there is never a need to feel embarrassed in their presence. They need you, and they know it. You just need to know it too.
Fear is a very common emotion when it comes to starting a VA business.
But just because you are new at something doesn’t mean you are bringing nothing to the table. Once you realize that everyone has been where you are, and that everything is fixable, your fears will be on their way out.
Be sure to do the mindset work you need to move past the fears that are presenting themselves. You can do this!
As for me … some days I still don’t know what I’m doing – but it’s not scary anymore. I’m also not scared that my family and friends will see me fail. They are actually interested in what I do. I actually love networking now because I know what to talk about and I don’t feel stupid. And I simply stopped doing elevator pitches ages ago because they are fake and boring. Now I have conversations – natural ones. And it’s FUN.
If you want to learn more about how to clarify your marketing message so you get GREAT clients, be sure to join me for the half-day Get Clients! Live Workshop. They are small group sessions where we work together live to clarify your service offerings, who your target market is, why your clients should hire you to help them in their business, and exactly WHERE you need to connect with your audience to get clients. Register here: www.YourVAMentor.com/getclients-live