Karen Plane
Owner of Your Admin
Contact: Karen@youradmin.co.uk
Website: http://www.youradmin.co.uk
Tell us a bit about your business and the work you do:
We are a remote Secretarial, Administration and Personal Assistant service to companies and self employed nationwide.
We cover the full range of services and work on an ad-hoc hourly basis.
The services we offer are now commonly called VA services i.e. Virtual Assistant.
Why did you decide to set up your own business?
With hubbie in the RAF we never know where we going to get sent and if and when we expand our family, I can continue to work from the office at home. It also suits me more for having a balanced homelife.
Tell us about how you got started and where you got any advice and help from:
I got started with a small loan from the Princes Trust, my own income and my husbands support and took advise from as many self employed, business owners and websites as I could.
What has been the best bit so far?
The flexibility, being my own boss, taking on the clients I want, working my own hours, achieving my own goals….there are so many!
What has been the hardest bit so far?
Getting the brand and name out there, securing clients and contracts and my business plan!
What advice would you give anyone thinking of setting up their own business:
Research everything, Plan ahead, do a cash flow and Business plan, network and meet as many people as possible, join as many online networking sites as possible and interact with people.
Speak to your competitors and get an idea of where they are based, what they charge, the hours they work etc.
If you want to get in touch with Karen or see what she is doing, go to her website and have a look.
If you like the idea of working as a Virtual Assistant and would like some more information we have teamed up with Kate Bacon of Pier to Peer Coaching who offers virtual VA training. That means you can train to be a VA from any where in the world. Have a look at the information from 
