Transition from the Corporate Office to Your Office

Aspiring entrepreneurs dream of the time when they can tell the boss “See Ya!” and start working in their PJs. Working from home is definitely a relief from the commute, stress and politics of the office. You have your freedom to call the shots and do things your own way.    

But there are some important points to consider. As an entrepreneur you are also 100% responsible for everything that happens in your business. You can no longer “pass the buck” to your co-workers or inept boss as the reason a project didn’t go as scheduled. If you don’t see the work gets done, it won’t. Also, you are responsible for every “department” in your company. Especially at first you are the Accounting Department, IT Department, Marketing Department, etc. At times, you may feel overwhelmed by wearing all the hats in your business. With thoughtful preparation, however, you can make you transition from employee to virtual assistant/owner smoother and avoid common pitfalls.

One way that you can prepare yourself for the transition from “being bossed” to becoming “The Boss” is to use your time wisely while you are still working for someone else. Do some undercover work on the best ways to set up some of your own home office systems.

Even if you hate you current job, your company is still in business because they have guidelines and procedures around getting things done. Take the time to create a list of office procedures that you would want to institute in your own home office. Start observing how managers and supervisors get things accomplished (or not). Take note of the best practices that you’d like to continue as well as the bad ones you wish to avoid.

For example, most offices make use of a computer filing system for their documents and clients records. This system allows their employees to quickly and easily retrieve information. This is one of those necessities having an organized business. If you think that they have an efficient setup, use that as your blueprint for your own file management system. And if their file management protocols are not very efficient or user friendly, make note of the problems and avoid them while you create your own.

While you are still drawing a salary take a few business classes that discuss basic bookkeeping or strengthen some of your skill sets. Becoming more involved with the local business communities such as the Chamber of Commerce, will help you develop a realistic view of what you’ll need in your own business. You can join online communities such as my LinkedIn group to speak directly with established virtual assistants who will be more than happy to share their “business birthing pains” and how they got through them.

By planning ahead and setting firm goals, you can make a smoother transition. On a personal note, when I started out as a virtual assistant I learned this lesson through lots of trial and error and frustration.