Personal Tips/Suggestions for someone who wants to do VA/Remote work

Hello everyone and hope this gets approved!

Silent reader po ako sa sub na 'to. I have been planning to get into the VA field ever since nagpandemic but really never made concrete efforts to make it a reality. So reading successful stories gave me hope that I, too, could do the same.

I've been working sa BPO industry for almost 8 years. I greatly enjoyed my time being a technical support for an accounting software. My current work which focuses on real estate but still revolves around tinkering data. Unfortunately, this job I have is still considered a rank-and-file position and will never give me any significant increase on my salary regardless of how productive I can be unless I will aim for managerial roles. Sadly, I don't enjoy interacting with a lot of people. But I do like working with solving problems and data. So I really don't want to let this kind of job go.

That's why I thought becoming VA is my option to still choose this kind of job and would also give me a chance get paid more. I've read a lot of stories on how difficult it is to land a client so what I'm actually needing help are the following:

- How do I get started in this kind of field?
- Is there some sort of training I can attend/pay for certificates and are certificates a requirement when applying?
- Are there websites or agencies I can just send my resume? Would you also recommend doing that?

My technical skills are mostly accounting, data entry, and customer service. I've been told to apply as a bookkeeper but I never had the confidence doing it because I don't have an accounting degree. I just know how to work with QuickBooks. I also don't think they would even consider my resume for that kind of job without the degree. So now, I'm kind of lost whether to study, get a certificate or what.

I really appreciate your time reading this. Any suggestions is greatly appreciated. Wishing everyone good health and a prosperous 2025!