Are you a big celebrator of Birthdays?
As a big fan of celebrating the beginning of anything exciting, it is significant for me that AKA Virtual Assistant turns 5 this month on 10th February 2025.
I have been a business owner for 5 years! But what is the significance of this exactly?
It is strange to think that half a decade ago I created something that I didn’t know was going to turn out to be so special, not only for me but for all the people that have joined the journey with me and AKA Virtual Assistant so far.
Whilst it only seems like a few months ago that I was immersed in research, wading through drafted content, pinpointing target markets and reflecting deeply as to exactly what I was going to achieve and how, it also seems like this is what everything I have ever done was for.
Perhaps it’s because it is now my everything, only second to my loved ones.
It was fairly easy to pick out the values I believe in, the vision I have and the mission I was going to put in place, however, the voice in my head still asked who would:
a) believe in me
and
b) believe in me enough to trust
me with their business.
By implementing the skills I had obtained from my university degree, coupled with the decades of corporate experience and work knowledge that I gained, launching a business was fairly straightforward.
What I faced then was the complexities of maintaining a business and running it efficiently and profitably.
Fortunately, I am naturally a hard working professional who cannot bear the thought of intentionally producing anything other than the highest quality or results that I am capable of. I knew I had the work ethic and discipline to make a business a success.
I believed that once anyone would trust me to work with them, they would feel able to continue to do so and refer me to others.
I am grateful to that people have taken the time to kindly recommend me to others which has been, by far, my favourite way to bring on new clients. It demonstrates that recommendations come through genuine trust and that, for me, is hugely rewarding.
As a business owner myself who takes huge pride in what they do and offer, I fully understand how people may take longer to trust someone with their business. After all, I understand how important it is, being a business owner myself.
So why is the 5 year milestone important to me?
The significance of the number 5 was really interesting to me when I looked it up.
It represents freedom, adventure and adaptability.
Freedom
Freedom was, at the beginning of my business venture, a huge challenge for me.
I never truly knew what freedom felt like without negative feelings around it.
I felt guilty if I was not ‘at my desk’ all day. When I ‘nipped out’ to run a personal errand during what would usually have been ‘desk time’ if felt unnatural and wrong.
This is something that has been an issue for me for most of my life and has undoubtedly come about from my school days. Having spent over 8 years with in a strict institutionalised setting that was conducted by rules for everything, an uneasiness of not following rules and landing in a grey area rather than in the black or white was instilled in me, as was a tight schedule.
Whilst it took a while, I now understand that in actual fact, the freedom that anyone should be allowed within their working day is more beneficial than it is harmful.
By living life and allowing it to ‘tick over’ while working bring a sense of achievement in all areas of life; and we know that when we feel we are on top of things, the motivation to do the more arduous tasks come easier (like supermarket shopping or post office runs).
I have control of my business’s destiny and, having had the strict rules and discipline metaphorically drummed into me, I can manage my time effectively. I know when I can and cannot do things outside my work as my Clients’ work will always be met in the best way it can be:-
The experience I clocked up through the years working in Hospitality enabled me to become well versed at making the best use of time. In service environments, the pace is fast and customers or clients still deserve excellent service and quality.
My recognition of when to do things helps free up time. An email that provides information or asks questions can be sent at the beginning of the day so the recipient has adequate time to meet the deadline rather than get around to it after lunchtime. I can then get on with other tasks while that work is being worked on.
Being confident in what I do and how I do it allows me the freedom when I need it. There are always going to be days that get turned upside down with an urgent matter that arises or a new deadline that has been brought forward and so, on those days, I find myself utilising my time wisely, whether it is on my own business rather than a Client’s.
I can find ways to be productive in the time that I have – time management is a key strength.
It is not only about me though...
I have met some incredible people in the first five years of business, some who I have gone on to work with, some who I have met and have formed genuine friendships with.
Having the freedom to work with the people I meet and like rather than having to work with people because I am told to has made a big difference in my life. Being a business owner is enjoyable because you can truly be yourself, not what is expected of you.
Building relationships is something I enjoy doing, it allows both the person I meet and me to tap into genuine synergies and creates an authentic partnership in whatever form that might take.
I have always prioritised everything in my life, in both personal matters and business, to suit the way I work and live. It is something that has been developed within me from my school days.
Choices bring freedom and I am learning that every one of my choices always leads to a new opportunity.
Adventure
Starting a business is certainly an adventure.
For me, although I have always been an independent person, maybe because I was at school on the other side of the world from my parents from the age of ten and had to get on with a lot myself.
This triggered something in me and has allowed me to demonstrate my full capabilities. Up until owning a business, it was very much a process driven, rule abiding existence that I led.
Having said that, I don’t feel that rules are all bad. In fact, I am very good at following them and have never seen an issue in doing so. The discipline and integrity a person demonstrates on any adventure they set out on is important in order to keep on track and not deviate from the main goals they are seeking.
The adventure in starting a new business allowed me to build up bravery within myself. Deep down, I knew what I was doing was right, however, there was always the little voice questioning me and the decisions I was making.
Spoiler alert! This little voice continues throughout the business adventure for many, imposter syndrome and lack of self-belief are two major challenges that most business owner face at times which they are often told and can find challenging to shake off.
As soon as we remember our values, vision and mission, we can dial down the less encouraging thoughts we have and go back to doing that we aimed to do in the first place – but it does take some level of courage to forge ahead.
The adventure continues.
The personal growth that I have experienced so far on my business adventure has exceeded all of my expectations.
Whilst I have genuinely always loved to learn, and I knew that it would be a learning curve, I feel happy that my business adventure has so far made me constantly think of new ideas and ways of doing things as well as meeting many interesting people.
Not only have I learnt how to do things better, there have been so many things that have taken me out my comfort zone that I’ve had to do as a business owner.
It has reaffirmed to me that we often don’t do things, not because they are too challenging, but because it is the unknown and not in our habit which might stop us making the initial step and actually starting something brand new.
Once we gain knowledge of whatever we are doing, it is something well learnt and becomes a new skill.
For me, this has only built my motivation to creating a successful business.
Whilst still relatively young at 5 years old, the adventure so far has led to many questions that result in a variety of differing opportunities that are open to me. Now that I have launched a business, built it progressively and am maintaining it, it is time to decide which direction it could take.
One adventure leads to another and as there are many possibilities it is important to understand why a Business Plan is so important, particularly at an interval such as five years.
Adaptability
Adaptability in business is definitely a two-way street and I am grateful for the adaptability my business affords me.
Working virtually is something that can easily be achieved in business today.
The adaptability this brings means that I can utilise my time far more efficiently and provide a higher quality service affectively to my Clients without the unnecessary stresses of being tied to one particular place of work.
Having always been excellent with time management, my virtual business gives me the opportunity to lead my personal and business life to the full.
Anyone working with me benefits from the adaptability that I offer them. For me, working as a Virtual Assistant adaptability is important, after all that is a USP in itself.
I have never set specific times or blocked out hours that Clients retain me for. It is important that every Client of mine is made to feel they are the only Client I have. If they have an urgent deadline to meet, it is met.
Urgent matters, at one time or other, crop up out of the blue for all of us. I recognise these unexpected challenges can feel stressful to anyone.
My adaptability in these situations gives my Clients peace of mind and reassures them I always have their best interests in mind.
My personal life sees me out of the office and home on most evenings and many weekends which allows me to complete tasks and project work during less traditional ‘office hours’.
I often find myself with set pockets of time that are perfect for completing various projects and tasks.
I love my office and I work really well in it, however, rigidity in business does not make sense and so having the ability to be adaptable in how and where I work to when I work is something that is becoming more sought after.
Flexibility in the modern business world is highly respected.
Adapting to a changing environment, prioritising with logic and adjusting to differing scenarios using resilience is an important soft skill that I have been able to adopt in the decades spent in corporate environments.
Demonstrating flexibility and adaptability in my own business somehow feels better, maybe because Clients understand I am doing it out of me genuinely wanting to rather than them thinking I have to because someone else is telling me to (I have always done my best to be flexible and adaptable when needed).
As I approach my sixth year in business it is safe to say that, whilst the last five years have passed at lightning speed I am looking forward to what the next five will bring.
The amount I have learnt has surpassed all expectations.
It truly has been a special period of my life and I am grateful to all the people that have trusted, supported and encouraged me.
If the number 5 signifies freedom, adventure and adaptability, all of which are essential when starting a business, what is the significance of 6 then?
In business, the number 6 signifies harmony and community.
A harmonious business is undoubtedly the ultimate dream in order to achieve what I set for myself at the outset.
There has to be something said to feeling at peace and in harmony whilst working.
No matter how many challenging problems arise or the number of simultaneous deadlines need to be met, because I am confident that the Clients I work with have complete trust in me, it provides the harmony needed for me to do what I can for them.
Community is significant to me because it is all I have ever known.
One of my very first memories has to be that of belonging within an expat community which became a second family to me wherever I went with my parents.
From the age of 10 to 18, a boarding school environment taught me just what a community accepts and does not. It can be a hard lesson to learn.
The relationships formed in a strict institutional environment immediately offers an opportunity for close-knit bonds to form with people that I am certain I shall be in contact with for the rest of my days.
Although I may not be in regular contact with some of the people I have had the fortune of spending time with over the years, I know that we would and will be there for one another if ever needed.
A community spirit is second to none.
A close-knit community has always been important to me and that could create more ideas for me to ponder on in future years.
Whilst anyone external to a business knows not what will be of it in five years’ time, as a business owner, the next five years and even the previous five years are spent crafting plans to bring ideas to fruition.
In a business, five years is not a long time at all.
I look back at AKA Virtual Assistant’s first 5 years and I am immensely proud, deeply grateful and very excited for what the future will bring.
If you know you want to work with someone who knows the significance of business ownership, get in touch to discuss how you can achieve your next milestone.
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