Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Steph Orosco. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Steph, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today What was it like going from idea to execution? Can you share some of the backstory and some of the major steps or milestones?

Four years after getting my Healthcare Administration degree, which I pursued because I knew I wanted to help people but had no idea HOW that looked, I got a job as an Office Assistant in the mental health field that paid $30k/year ($6k more than I was making at the time).

I felt like I hit the jackpot.

It also had fully covered healthcare, offered more paid time off than I’d ever had before, AND it was at a hospital – which, even with a degree, had been nearly impossible for me to get into without actually having healthcare experience first.

I loved working with the patients there, and for a while, I had BIG plans and dreams to stay there forever, take over my Director’s role once she retired, work from home part time, and triple my income in the process.

As an introvert who values quiet time with my pup over almost everything, I felt depleted and exhausted every day in a role that required endless human interaction and communication, and I dreaded the horrendous commute, but I assumed that was just the way it was going to be.

I had to have a job, right? So I figured I may as well climb the ladder and make more while doing it.

I worked hard to make that happen and was so sure I’d get the promotion when the time came.

But then a funny thing happened – the plan didn’t work out the way I wanted it to.

My Director didn’t think I had enough experience at the hospital and decided not to recommend me for the promotion.

And that turned out to be the best thing that could’ve EVER happened to me.

At first, I felt stuck, scared, and unsure of what to do next, but then I took to Google and started looking into ways I could help people from home. I knew two things: I wanted to make an impact, and I wanted to work from home so that I could homeschool our future kids one day.

I tried nearly every work-from-home job you can imagine: bought the domain to start a blog, became a pet sitter, took on a freelance social media evaluator role that required me to wake up at 3am each day, drove for Postmates and DoorDash, and dabbled in the MLM world. None of them felt like the right fit, so I kept searching.

At the time, I brought home $2k each month, so my goal was to replace that *exact* amount of income. And honestly, figuring out how to make that much from home felt next to impossible.

One day, I found Virtual Assisting work (which entails providing administrative services to business owners virtually and running your own business from home), and something clicked. It was completely aligned with my experience, skillset, goals, and desires. It felt like a perfect match, so I jumped in and learned everything I could.

I started my VA business that very month without knowing where to get paying clients, how to run a business, or what services I should even offer.

I became a student of YouTube and Google and researched everything I could about how to become the CEO of my business. I looked into what was required legally, what services I could offer, how I could price my offers, and how to find clients. I woke up early each day so I could build my business before I went to work, and I got right back to it each evening.

I came up with a business name, announced my business to friends and family, and started applying for freelance VA jobs. Within two months of starting the business and going through the trial and error of searching for clients and figuring out what worked best for me, I signed my first paying client.

I often found myself stuck in perfectionism, and that was something I had to work through. I felt like I had to get every detail right, pick the right business name, offer the right services, and say the exact right thing on discovery calls. Brené Brown says that perfectionism is a 20-ton shield, and that’s exactly what it was for me. It was a way of keeping myself protected from the new, seemingly scary things that happen almost daily when you’re a new business owner.

While I was still taking small actions to build my business and find clients, and I actually ended up signing multiple clients, there was so much pressure every single day to not mess up or not be found out as an imposter that it made it super challenging to grow. I was constantly second-guessing myself, and I wasn’t trusting myself to connect with potential clients or support the clients I did have.

Knowing what I know now, I think the most important thing to shift and launch so you can get paid when starting a new business is your mindset, and I wish I had looked at the thoughts and fears that were holding me back sooner so I could have noticed what stories are coming up for me and started to move through those patterns.

I did take very fast action despite the perfectionism that was popping up, and I implemented everything I was learning. I felt a fire under me to leave my job and work for myself, and that determination enabled me to take massive leaps of faith and trust myself to figure it out as I went. I leaned into my self-trust and decided that I was going to make this happen no matter what.
My next two clients came soon after the first. Five months after starting my business, I had more than replaced my 9-5 income, and I was able to quit my hospital job. I knew I had *actually* hit the jackpot this time.

I was able to make more while working less and take time off whenever I wanted, my income potential became limitless, I spent most days working from bed with my pup, and I was able to support businesses that were making an impact in the world. It felt like a dream.

One year later, I brought my husband into the business with me full-time, and we grew and scaled our VA business to a six-figure online business management company with a team of eight.

From there, I looked up the ladder of what was next and realized that what I truly wanted was to help others give themselves the freedom, flexibility, and fulfillment I had created for myself, so I came up with a plan to take my experience and success and start my next business.

There was no roadmap to follow when I first started, and rather than piecemealing my VA business together through random articles and free trainings, I know I could’ve created success so much faster if I had a coach or mentor in my corner when I was starting.

There are so many aspects of business that we often don’t realize we need support around, like having someone who can offer a different perspective, gets it and has been there, notices your blind spots, helps you stay out of your own way, and can guide you to find the shortcuts as you build your business.

I now spend my days helping incredible humans build and grow virtual support businesses that support their lives (not the other way around) and create true sustainability for themselves. I’m endlessly lit up and inspired by the work we do together, and coaching others to start and grow their own VA businesses is my life’s passion (that I never would’ve found if I hadn’t pushed past my fears and doubts, dove head-first into starting my own VA business, and jumped in before I felt ready!).

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers

As a Virtual Assistant Coach & Mentor, I help my clients take their VA business from idea or stuck point to booked out business. I value meeting my clients where they’re at, whether they’re just getting started or they’re ready to scale. I support them to not only bring in recurring, predictable income and get paid well, but also to give themselves a healthy work/life balance so they can truly live more while making more.

I teach them how to skip the trial and error I experienced and go straight to signing paying clients and making consistent $5k+ months.

Multiple clients have shared that investing in themselves through my coaching is a no-brainer, they wish they had hired me sooner, and I’m the absolute best investment they’ve made in their business to date.

I adore them, and nothing makes me happier than hearing that their investment in me (and themselves) has changed their lives + businesses in the best way.

Every single client who’s worked with me in my 6-month coaching partnership has signed at least one paying client (if not multiple), and my clients have seen 300% – 700% ROIs from our work together.

Numerous clients have booked out their businesses, celebrated their highest cash months ever, surpassed their income goals, more than replaced their day job income, and started to scale their businesses.

But that’s not even what I’m most proud of or why I’m so sure I’m the best place you could invest your dollars if you desire to build a profitable VA business.

The work my clients and I do together is not just business-changing, but LIFE-changing.

We uncover and look at the very normal patterns and fears that are really holding them back from creating the lives and businesses they want, like a lack of self-trust, perfectionism, people-pleasing, imposter syndrome, and so much more so that they can gain tons of confidence and massive clarity, grow their businesses quickly and from a place of alignment, and blow their own minds.

I care deeply about my clients, love being a true partner in their businesses, and I’m so passionate about helping them create the freedom, lives, and businesses they’ve been dreaming of.

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

When I first started my business, I thought I had to work hard and around the clock in order to achieve my goals. Even after I moved past the launch phase of business, I carried that energy with me and overbooked myself with clients.

By the time my husband, Sam, and I started bringing in $10k months from our VA business, we were supporting 10 clients and living at our desks.

We had unintentionally created the corporate environment for ourselves, and it was exactly the opposite of the lifestyle we desired.

We woke up way earlier than we wanted to and did 14-16 hours of solid work, often rushing to order takeout for dinner or skipping meals altogether because we were so exhausted.

We usually worked right through the weekend, too, which meant missing out on the family time that’s so important to us.

Phew, I’m exhausted just thinking about it. This scenario is super common for new business owners, and what I wish I knew then is that the hustle was never required.

You can live more while making more (especially as a VA), and you don’t have to do ALL the things or work yourself to the bone to do so. You get to have both: the money and the freedom. The business and the life you love. The flexibility and the fulfillment.

And once I figured this out, we were able to bring in $20k months while working less than we ever had before.

Have you ever had to pivot?

I pivoted my VA + OBM business (and released the $20k months we had created temporarily) to pursue what felt more true and aligned for me – coaching. I could’ve easily stayed unfulfilled and kept the business running the way it was forever because I loved my clients and the money was great, but I knew I could make more doing what I loved if I trusted myself to make the leap.

When I decided to pivot, it felt like I was starting over completely. I knew it was the right decision for me and what I ultimately wanted, but it felt very nerve-racking to embark upon.

The perfectionism I felt in the early days of my VA business crept back in. I was scared of people not liking me for sharing reflections with them (which is an important part of the coaching process), and I didn’t want to get anything wrong.

But once again, all that perfectionism did was hold me back from showing up fully for my clients and myself, and in turn, it prevented me from helping clients grow their businesses in the way that I knew I could.

As I started to release that and allow myself to be an imperfect human and coach, my clients started seeing incredible results, and my confidence started growing.

1.5 years later, I’ve nearly replaced the income from my VA + OBM business, and I’m so passionate about the work I do each day. I’m super thankful to my past self for not only starting the business initially, but also recognizing when it was time to pivot and making another scary move.

Contact Info:

• Website: scalingwithheart.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scalingwithheart/?hl=en
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/makemorewithstephorosco
• Other: If you’re thinking about starting your own VA business, this livestream with one of my amazing clients will answer many of the questions you may have about getting started, gaining confidence + clarity, and getting paid well as a VA: https://scalingwithheart.com/replay-confidence-clarity-and-consistent-5k-cash-months-as-a-va-with-sarah-morris/.

Image Credits
Alicia Leigh https://alicialeighphoto.com/