When I first started as a virtual assistant, I knew next to nothing about how it would work. I did not realize how flexible this job title and VA jobs really are. I thought I would probably sit at the phone for a couple hours a day, working on the computer - possibly on a novel I was writing - and basically answering the phone whenever it rang. I was newly married and had a good degree from a good school and was basically just looking for some work from home so that I would have time to "nest" a little in our new home while making some money and working on my "real" work, my creative writing.

You can see I had no idea what I was signing up for, and that led to trouble fast. I landed a job with a company that taught seminars on making money from home. My job was to answer emails, handle and direct basic customer service inquiries and mail out teaching materials whenever the product was ordered. I thought it sounded pretty easy - and I really wanted the job - so I said that I would work for 10 dollars an hour. Sounded great to me at the time - I would do a few odd jobs and hit the post office once a week, and in return I would haul in 200 extra dollars a week for the budget.  I had no idea.

Turns out, they really got their money's worth. The phone rang constantly, and every morning when I sat down at the computer there were at least 10 messages on the voicemail and 20 emails in the inbox waiting. Soon, I began to realize that I was in for more than a bargained for. Now, if I had negotiated a better hourly rate, I probably would have been fine. However, at 10 dollars an hour I started to get resentful fast. I forgot I was the one who offered to work so cheap, and basically spent my time shuffling as much of the customer service off to other people in the chain as quickly as possible so that I could get done with my work and back to my novel that I was being so "rudely" dragged away from by my "low-paying" job. I'll admit it: I was a crud employee.

About the time I convinced myself that I was within my rights as an underpaid servant to let the answering machine get all of the messages - even when I was theoretically in the office - they let me go. And I deserved it. I didn't hold up my end of the bargain. But fortunately, I learned my lesson and was able to land another job a few weeks later. This time, I was clear that those people were paying me for my time, and that it was my responsibility to make sure that I gave it to them. We worked out a rate that worked for both of us, and I worked for them for nearly 4 years before I hung it up to have kids. Now I still do their books each month, but the phones are someone else's problem.