Author name: Kristina

When I hear people talk about mom guilt, I usually picture moms with toddlers hanging onto their legs while they try to answer emails. My son is 16. He doesn’t need me to tie his shoes or make dinosaur-shaped sandwiches anymore. Most days, he’s in his room doing his own thing while I’m working from home. So I always thought, “Mom guilt? I don’t really have that.” But the more I thought about it, the more I realized that maybe mom guilt doesn’t disappear when your children get older. It just changes. I Thought Mom Guilt Was Only for Moms With Little Kids For the longest time, I thought mom guilt belonged to moms with little kids. My son is 16 now. My husband and I both work from home, and because space is limited, we all spend most of our days in the same room. He’s doing schoolwork while we’re working, and somehow we’ve made it work. So no, I don’t worry about missing bedtime stories or school plays. Those seasons have passed. In fact, we’re together more than most families. Which is why I never thought I experienced mom guilt. But every now and then, I wonder if simply being in the same room is the same thing as truly being present. Then I Look at Our Everyday Life We’re an NBA family, which means basketball is basically our fourth roommate. My husband is working. I’m working. Our son is studying. But somewhere in between deadlines and assignments, somebody is checking scores, somebody is bringing up trade rumors, and somebody is complaining about a terrible call. And yes, that somebody changes depending on the day. Random NBA highlights are shared without warning. Debates about MVP candidates happen when they’re least expected. And if there’s a close game on, productivity suddenly becomes optional. You would even hear us shout and share shocked moments on whatever happened on that game! (Our OG Anunoby split second game winning tip on Game 4 finals reaction is one of my favorite this season!) Nothing extraordinary. No elaborate family game nights. No Pinterest-worthy traditions. Just three people sharing a room, sharing life, and occasionally acting like assistant coaches from the couch. And honestly? Maybe that’s enough. Maybe Ordinary Is Enough Sometimes I wonder if we should be doing more. You know, the kind of things people tell you you’ll miss someday. More conversations. More outings. More memory-making. Even though we’re together more than most families, I still catch myself asking, “Am I making the most of these years?” That’s the funny thing about mom guilt. It doesn’t always come from being absent. Sometimes it comes from wondering if simply being together is enough. But then I look at our normal days. My husband is working. I’m working. Our son is studying. Somewhere in between, someone brings up the latest NBA trade rumor, someone complains about a bad call, and someone insists that their team got robbed. Half the time, we’re supposed to be focused, but a close game can quickly turn into everyone’s business. Should I Be Guilty Then? And I realize maybe we’re already making memories. Not the big, picture-perfect kind. Just the ordinary ones. The random conversations, the inside jokes, and the shared frustration over a blown call. Maybe this season of life isn’t about doing everything together. Maybe it’s about sharing life together. And maybe one day, when our son has a room of his own somewhere else, these ordinary afternoons are the ones I’ll think about the most. The ones that didn’t feel like much at the time… but were actually everything.

If social media is to be believed, I should probably be earning $10,000 a month by now. After all, becoming a virtual assistant is supposed to change your life overnight, right? At least that is what some influencers would have us believe. But after years of working as a virtual assistant, I average around $6 an hour. What a joke, right? Honestly, that is what I used to think. I would see people posting their five-figure months, six-figure businesses, and screenshots of income I could not even imagine earning. And while I was genuinely happy for them, I could not help but wonder if I was doing something wrong. Should not I be earning more by now?Should not I have figured everything out?Should not I be one of those success stories too? But over time, I realized something. This “joke” paid our bills.This “joke” put food on our table.This “joke” allowed me to work from home and spend more time with my family. And while I may not be one of those six-figure VAs traveling the world, I am grateful that this work carried us through seasons when we needed it the most. Do I want more? Absolutely. Do I dream of building digital assets and creating a life where I do not have to trade every hour for money? Of course. But being grateful does not mean I want to stay here forever. It just means I respect the season I am in. Because maybe one day, when life looks completely different, I will look back at this chapter and smile. Not because I was earning $6 an hour. But because it helped us survive while I slowly built the life I was praying for. The part nobody really talks about Social media makes it feel like becoming a VA automatically means financial freedom. Like once you learn the skills, clients will just show up and suddenly you are earning big money from anywhere in the world. But that is not how it looks for most people. At least not for me. And for a while, I genuinely thought something was wrong with me. Maybe I was falling behind.Maybe I was not trying hard enough.Maybe I just was not good at this. But over time, my perspective changed. What that $6 per hour actually looks like It does not sound impressive. I know that. But it paid for real things. Bills. Food. Daily expenses. The basics of life. It also gave me something harder to measure: time at home, flexibility, and the ability to slowly build something on the side. So no, it is not glamorous. But it is real. And I think people forget that not every stage of life has to look impressive to still matter. “Why do not you just find better clients?” People might ask, “Why do not you just look for premium clients?” Trust me, I already did. And I had them. And they left. And honestly, it sucked. Not because they were bad clients. Some of them were actually great. But freelancing is like that. Clients come and go. Businesses change. Priorities shift. Budgets get cut. That is the reality that does not always make it into social media posts. So these days, I do not assume that someone earning more than me is doing something I am not. I still want better opportunities. I still want to grow my income. But I have stopped believing that one “perfect client” will fix everything. Because clients are temporary. And that is exactly why I have been trying to build digital assets. Things I actually own. Something that does not disappear just because a project ends. So am I stuck? No. But I am also not pretending I am already “there.” I still want more.I still want better opportunities.I still want financial freedom.I still want to build things that are not tied to my hours. But I am also not ashamed of where I am right now. Because this “in between” stage is where a lot of the real work happens. The part people do not post about. The truth about six-figure VAs I am not saying they do not exist. They do. But they are not the standard. And they are definitely not the starting point for most people. What you usually do not see is: So when I say I am not a six-figure VA, it is not a confession. It is just honesty. Am I aiming to become one? Yes. There is a lot of fulfillment in knowing that your work is reflected not just in appreciation or kind words, but also in paychecks that match the effort you put in. Do not get me wrong. I love hearing praise. It feels good to know your work matters. But to be honest, I also know the real challenge is not just finding better-paying opportunities. It is learning how to value myself properly along the way. Gratitude Doesn’t Mean Settling I want to make one thing clear. Being thankful for where I am right now doesn’t mean I agree with being underpaid. And it definitely doesn’t mean clients should use gratitude as an excuse to undervalue virtual assistants. Yes, I am grateful that this career helped put food on our table and allowed me to be present with my family. But gratitude and self-worth are two different things. I can appreciate what my current work has done for me while still believing that I deserve better opportunities and better pay. Because let’s be honest, being thankful doesn’t pay the bills. Hard work, experience, reliability, and the value we bring to businesses deserve fair compensation too. So no, this is not me romanticizing low rates or encouraging clients to pay less. If anything, I am still learning how to value myself better. In fact, I think undervaluing myself is one of the biggest reasons why I haven’t reached the income goals I dream about yet. I’m grateful for this season, but I don’t

If you came across this blog because you’re thinking about becoming a virtual assistant, welcome. And honestly… good for you for actually reading instead of just watching short videos and expecting everything to make sense instantly. Because that already tells me something. You’re trying to understand the real picture. And I think that matters more than people realize. Social media makes this career look very simple. It usually sounds like: make a resume, learn a few skills, take a course, apply… and then clients will come. I wish it worked like that every time. Because the truth is, it doesn’t. Why most people get the VA journey wrong A lot of content online shows only the highlight reel. The “I landed 5 clients in a week” kind of stories. And don’t get me wrong. Those can be real. But what they don’t always show is the other side: Yeah. That part. The part nobody posts. What you actually need to start as a virtual assistant Before anything else, let’s get something clear. You don’t need to be perfect. But you do need to be prepared. It starts with mindset. Because if you don’t believe you can learn this, you’ll quit the moment it gets uncomfortable. And it will get uncomfortable. Of course, you’ll also need tools. A laptop or computer is so important. And no, I wouldn’t rely on just a cellphone. Can it work in rare cases? Maybe. But if you’re serious about this, treat it like a real job from day one. Same with the internet. Not “hoping mobile data is enough” internet. I mean a stable, reliable connection that won’t disappear in the middle of work. You don’t need expensive equipment. You just need things that actually work. Technically, where should you start? Personally, I got my first client from OnlineJobs.ph, and even now, this is still one of the platforms I use. Like any platform, it has good sides and not-so-good sides. From my experience, it’s one of the most common starting points for beginners in the Philippines. It’s simple, accessible, and has a lot of job posts you can explore when you’re starting from zero. But here’s something I noticed over time. A lot of entry-level roles tend to be on the lower-paying side. And I think part of that is because clients know they are hiring from countries where cost of living is different, so expectations around rates can sometimes be lower. Well, that’s just my personal observation. Of course, there are still high-paying opportunities there too especially if you have specialized skills or experience that makes you stand out. So I wouldn’t say avoid it. In fact, I still recommend it for beginners. Just don’t expect instant magic. You apply, you learn, you adjust. That’s usually how it goes. Choosing your niche This is actually one of the hardest parts when starting out. Because when I started, I remember scrolling through job posts and feeling completely overwhelmed. Everything looked unfamiliar. Everything sounded like I needed skills I didn’t even have. And the truth is… I didn’t. No admin experience. No degree. I used to work as a sales lady at SM Department Store. That was my background. All I had was basic knowledge of Chrome, Google, and Google Workspace. That’s it. But then I saw a job post that matched what I could actually do. Website management virtual assistant. I applied without overthinking my grammar or trying to sound perfect. I just told the client I was willing to learn. The next day, I got a response. Trial task. Then a job offer. The salary? $250 per month, 8 hours a day, Hubstaff time tracker. Yes. You read that right. And honestly, it wasn’t glamorous at all. But it was the beginning. And I think that’s something people miss, your first niche isn’t always something you “choose.” Sometimes, you just fall into it. And then you grow from there. Over time, you start noticing what you don’t hate doing… and what you’re actually getting better at. That’s usually where your niche forms. Sending applications Replying to a job post is your first impression. Think of it as your first chance to show how you think—not just what you say. The subject line matters more than people realize. Instead of:“Hire me!”“I’m your next VA!”“Ready to start!” Keep it simple and relevant. Because clients are not just looking for excitement—they’re scanning for clarity. And here’s something important. A lot of job posts include hidden instructions like:“Write bamboo in the subject line” or “Include our company name.” This is intentional. It’s their way of checking if you actually read the post or just applied randomly. And honestly, that alone already filters people out. For your message, keep it simple: That’s it. No need to overcomplicate it. And always follow instructions carefully. That alone already puts you ahead of a lot of applicants. Should you fake it till you make it? I think this is where people need to be careful. There’s a difference between confidence and pretending. Confidence is good. You need it. But pretending you can do something you’re not ready for yet can backfire quickly. Because you’re not just applying for a job, you’re handling someone else’s business. And from the client’s perspective, they’re trusting you with something they built. That’s not small. So if you’re not ready yet, it’s okay. Take time to learn the tools. Practice. Understand the work before applying. Or simply be honest with the client and with yourself. One thing I’ve learned is this: Don’t get carried away by the idea that being a virtual assistant is easy. It’s not about pretending you know everything. It’s about being willing to learn… and actually showing up when the opportunity comes. Final thoughts Starting as a virtual assistant in 2026 is not a “quick success” path. It takes time. It takes mistakes. It takes patience. But it also opens doors you might not expect if you stay consistent. And if