Today we have a guest on Life Change For you. Please welcome Karen McGreevey!

Before I tell you how I got here from there, I want to take a line or two to thank Steve for the opportunity to share a bit of my journey to a successful online business entrepreneurship! So, thank you, Steve!

Shortly after I turned 20, two or three (or was it four?) pimples suddenly appeared on my face! I had managed to get through my teen years without any so this was a new experience for me. In fact, I was somewhat “disturbed” by it (as superficial as it may seem), enough so that when I went to the doctor, I asked (okay, I probably “whined”) about it. His robot-like comment to me was, “You.have.acne! Acne is…” and then he went on to sing-songily (yeah, it’s a word) give the definition, the treatment, etc.

I was as devastated as any 20 year old might be in those days! More, I think, because of the doctor’s attitude than anything else.

So three-and-a-half years ago when I got the news that my employer would no longer be in need of my services, the result of new directorship and a new company direction, shades of “20 year old acne notice” came creeping back.

So, what to do, what to do?

For various reasons:

• Like having a love for “sitting for hours on my end at the computer,” and
• A diverse knowledge of the various available office support services,
• Coupled with the knowledge that I didn’t want to sit at home or to make the daily rounds of the Senior Citizen’s Centers (I wasn’t even one of those “old people”),
• A love for proofreading and editing, and
• An even greater desire to eat,

I began to explore options for starting an online business. I knew I had the office support experience, the drive, the stick-to-it-iveness, the ability to work well by myself, and I knew I could make an e-business work.

And so, Konceptuality was born!

But not without some trial and error! For instance, like many online searchers I found numerous sites on “how to make money at home,” or “give us your $2,000 and we’ll teach you how to …. (you fill in the blank); none of which seemed to quite fit the criteria I wanted to invest my time and “maybe money” in.

I did, however, also find some links that talked about the Virtual Assistant (VA) industry, which really caught my eye. So I searched for, studied, and finally joined a couple of the VA forums that appealed to me. I read the members’ posts daily, and contributed to the various ongoing “discussions.” When the forums offered classes/seminars, I devoured those, as well. I volunteered for a committee or two at the forums and also volunteered my services to get experience. Thus, I quickly became known in the VA Industry.

During that time, I also wrote an ebook, as well as numerous articles, which I submitted to online article directories. Further, I started and now have three blogs, in addition to Konceptuality, my business Web site.

Then, about a year ago, I decided to do a little more than “just offer services” to earn my money so I again researched. After which I then chose to enter the Internet Marketing/Affiliate arena and joined Lynn Terry’s Self-starters Weekly Tips forum. There, I’ve also used some of the same get-acquainted strategies I used when I first began my walk as a VA.

Steve sums this all up quite well in his October 21^st blog post– “Self help: who is in charge?” It seems we’ve both come to our place in time at the Selfstarters Weekly Tips Forum because we managed to turn “our bumps in the road” into profitable experiences just by digging in and digging down inside us by using our own “self help” and a little help from our online friends.

Yours in making it work,

Karen

P.S. With that said, click on over to Konceptuality to get a complimentary copy of our hot, new, teeny, tiny primer, “Whut’s Rong with this Sendtuntcs?” full of grammar and proofreading and editing tips and tricks. You’ll also receive a subscription to “On the Bright Side,” our weekly ezine.

Karen McGreevey, Expert Author, and owner of Konceptuality, specializes in ebook production support and publishing services, which include proofreading, editing and general admin support, for coaches, speakers and small business owners. Get a complimentary copy of “Whut’s Rong with this Sendtuntcs: Tips and Tricks to Grammar and Proofreading,” and receive a complimentary subscription to Karen’s weekly ezine, “On the Bright Side.”

Thanks Karen!

Here’s to You!