• Quit your job cold, and work full-time in your practice.
  
  Unless you have fabulous financial reserves, or a partner/spouse/family to support you, this would never be a smart way to transition. Having said that, I've seen people do it, and do it very successfully.

• Keep your current job, change your lifestyle, put away the money you save till you have some reserves.
  
  Usually this involves making hard decisions about your lifestyle and your spending habits. One woman I was coaching wanted to be a VA so badly she could taste it, yet she was living beyond her means, and running hard on the gerbil-wheel of life to pay for it. She decided it was worth it to her to sell her house, move to another that she could easily afford, cut way back on her expenses (to the point of cutting out almost everything that she didn't need), live on a tight budget, and save every penny possible. In a few months, she had what she needed to feel comfortable about leaving her job and working, full-time, as a VA. She's never looked back!

• Keep your current lifestyle, get a better paying job, put away the extra money till you have some reserves.
  
  If you can't part with your lifestyle, then you need to make more money in order to save. It's that simple.

• Keep your current job, keep your lifestyle, get another job, and put all that income away till you have some reserves.
  
  If you have the energy to do a full and part time job, this may be a quicker way to build some reserves; if you have skills that are appropriately freelanced on a project basis, you could offer them to the world on the many freelancing sites and make more, while working less. The potential downside is that freelancing isn't predictable -- sometimes there's lots of work, and sometimes none. At least a regular part-time job would provide steady, if not high, extra income.
  
  Lastly -- and the one that may make the most sense, depending on how much income you need:

• Quit your job. Temp three days per week so that you have some steady income, and work in your VA practice two full days per week.
  
  In this way, you have income, and you have specific, defined time to work on building your practice. This time could make it far easier and quicker for you to build it. You may be able to turn your current employer into your first client, if the relationship is a good one (and I'm not sure it is based on your question!). Many VAs start that way, building their practices from that point.

It's important to note that some people think they'll work full-time and build a practice in the evening, transitioning from their job when their practice brings in enough money to replace what they were making.

That's incredibly difficult to do. Here's why:

To make enough to replace your current income, dollar for dollar, you'd have two full time jobs -- your employed position, and your VA practice. No one can sustain 80 hours/week for very long. And no one can sustain it even short-term and have a life. It's probably more important for you to have a balanced life and transition more slowly, than to be off-balance; if you don't take great care of yourself, your business won't thrive.

Sit down with your family (if you have one), and let them know what your dream is and how they can support you in having it. You'll need their support, and especially at this juncture if you're going to be asking them to make changes and perhaps some sacrifices so that you can follow this path. Chances are they'll want to support you -- a happier and more fulfilled you will make them happier as well. Together you can look at the options and decide which one makes the most sense for you, and for them. If you want it badly enough, you'll find a way to transition that will work for you. Know that it's ok to stretch a bit, financially, but it's not ok for you to really struggle!

Stacy Brice is a professional business coach, and Chief Visionary Officer of AssistU -- the premier organization and leader in training, coaching, certifying and supporting Virtual Assistants, and providing referrals to those business owners, entrepreneurs, solo-workers, and busy people who want to work with them.

Having formalized the Virtual Assistance profession more than four years ago, Stacy loves her role as advocate, and works tirelessly to blaze a trail for all those interested in this new way of working. An authority about virtual work and virtual relationships, Stacy is Virtual Office columnist and coach for Office Pro magazine, is widely quoted nationally in magazines and newspapers, and is a frequent guest on talk radio shows. Her passion, which comes across clearly when she talks and writes, is supporting women in the building of financially sound and sustainable businesses that positively contribute to their living high quality lives.                                       work at home get paid to shop write articles for traffic                                             free content