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She Got Suspended From Upwork! Here’s What She Did to Succeed… - Interview with Quirie Lacambra

March 27, 2019
by Jason Dulay 
Jason is the founder and CEO of Work from Home Roadmap and VA Bootcamp. Aside from teaching Filipinos how to succeed working from home, he likes traveling, playing board games, and drinking coffee.
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She Got Suspended From Upwork! Here’s What She Did to Succeed… - Interview with Quirie Lacambra #JasSuccess

Are you ready to be inspired again with #JASSuccess LIVE interview with another VA Bootcamp team member? Quirie Lacambra shares her story that will truly relate to all freelancers especially the newbies.

Get to know how she learned about freelancing on her own. How frustrated she was when clients ignored her cover letters plus Upwork suspending her account.

Until she enrolled in the VA Bootcamp paid courses.

Hear how the VA Bootcamp changed her mindset - for her to reach her full potential and be the successful freelancer that she is right now.

Plus you’ll learn the following:

✅ How She Got Suspended at Upwork and How She Dealt With It

✅ The Benefits of Being Able to Work At Home in Terms of One’s Health

✅ How To Handle Multiple Clients

And a whole lot more…

Free VA Course for Newbies
FreeLancing In the Philippines (FLIP) FB Page
Subscribe to Jason Dulay's YouTube Channel

Find out why you should never give up and just continue reaching your goal even after rejections. Just like Quirie, she quit working as a call center because of health issue but now enjoying the fruit of her hard work as a freelancer.

Notable Quotes

  • Narealize ko, ang hinihintay ko nalang ay yung right timing. Kelangan talaga maghintay kasi iba-iba tayo ng timeline. Hindi mo pwede i-compare yung journey mo sa naging journey ng iba. If they got it fast, good for them. Pero hindi dapat i-base doon yung magiging fate mo o magiging destiny mo. Naprove ko yung sinasabi nilang "God's delay are not God's denial."
  • The only way that you'll see results is if you stay consistent.
  • Super grateful ako sa VA Bootcamp kasi eto talaga, dito ko natutunan lahat kung paano mag-umpisa. As in literal na step-by-step guide talaga yung content ng course. You won’t get lost. Kung susundan mo lang talaga from step 1 kasi naka sunod-sunod na yung lessons eh. Tapos magte-take action ka and magiging consistent ka pa, magkakaroon ka talaga ng place sa freelancing industry.
  • VA Bootcamp is a door sa malawak na mundo ng freelancing.
  • Grateful ako and privilege na maging part ng VA Bootcamp staff. Sobrang sayang experience makilala yung buong staff personally. Kasi iba yung magwowork ka na may kasamang ganitong community and yung mag-isa ka lang. Nagkaroon din ng growth.
  • Yung Upwork account ko, naging Top Rated na din ako. From suspension hindi ko akalain na magiging Top Rated pa ako. I didn’t even aim to be Top Rated, gusto ko lang talaga magkaroon ng client pero sobra-sobra pa yung nakuha ko.
  • Nung nag-enroll ako sa VA Bootcamp, yung goal ko lang was to get hired, to get a VA job. Pero ang nangyari, it changed me entirely. I'm not promoting it dahil staff ako pero it really happened sa buhay ko.
  • Yung freelancing journey ko, this changed me for the better. Kung makikilala mo ako before and now, the difference, a major part of who I am today is because of what I have been through then, yung mga hardships. Kaya nga sinasabi nila, "The journey is more important than the destination.” Kaya nga dapat i-enjoy mo yung journey. Tini-treasure ko din talaga yung mga napagdaanan ko, yung mga iniyak ko kasi yun yung nagmold sa akin para maging strong ako ngayon. So ngayong nachange na yung mindset, perspective tapos meron ng mga goals. Meron na akong concrete, specific goals, meron ding specific time frames kung kelan ko gustong ma-achieve yun. Nagkaroon na din ako ng tiwala sa sarili ko na kaya kong marating yung goals na yun.
  • Mas naalagaan ko na din yung sarili ko. Sabi nga, “Health is wealth.” Dahil may freedom na tayo, mas nakakatulog na tayo ng maayos, may time na din tayo mag-exercise, so we can set our own schedule na at hindi na according sa schedule ng office.
  • Yung relationship ko sa family ko, sa partner ko, mas nag grow din. Nag-grow na lahat sa akin.
  • Don't give up. Another thing na mahirap kapag nag give-up ka, mag start ka na naman from scratch. Malay mo one step closer ka na pala sa goal mo. Kasi minsan, "Success comes when we least expect it." So when you are about to give up, just remember why you even started at kung ano yung naghihintay sayo sa finish line.
  • Everything happens for a reason. Hindi mo man maintindihan ngayon, things might seem dark pero eventually - just like me, nung time na nasuspend yung Upwork account ko, yun din yung time na naglead sa akin sa VA Bootcamp na nag open pa sa mas malawak na opportunity sa freelancing. Doon mo maiintindihan kung bakit hinahayaan ni God na mangyari yung mga bagay na yun.
  • You just have to be resourceful. Especially sa industry na ito, hindi pwedeng aasa ka sa iba. Mag focus ka sa mga bagay na meron ka instead of looking at the things na wala ka and just start from there. Kung meron man mga bagay na wala ka pero kailangan mo, for example wala kang laptop or computer. Just find ways. Mag rent ka muna or manghiram ka kasi ikaw lang naman ang makakagawa ng paraan kung gusto mo talaga.
  • Think positive things to attract positivity in life.
  • For me personally, I still have goals. Hindi naman kasi natatapos sa ganito lang. One thing that I also learned regarding goals, it’s nice to have goals but you have to focus on creating habits that will help you reach your goals. Like yung habit na magbasa ng libro just to reach that goal then do that. For me yung habit ko, continuous growth and learning, invest in courses and continuous parin yung pag-aaral. Lahat ng yun ini-imagine ko palang but I know someday babalikan ko to and mararating ko din yung mga pinapangarap.
  • Hindi ko masasabi na perfect yung freelancing life ko, hindi naman yun ang pinapromise ng freelancing. Ang importante for me is yung improvement ko compared who I was and what I was before and continuously improving myself. Yung competition ko lang is with myself not with anybody else.

Quirie’s Freelancing Journey

  • A graduate of Accountancy and worked in an auditing firm after taking the board exam but she can't stand working in a corporate setting and chose to work as a call center agent for the following reasons: higher salary, simpler life, she doesn’t need to answer phone calls after shift and being asked about work-related matters, and influence of her two brothers who are working as call center agents as well.
  • She resigned as a call center agent for good because she had an ear problem that caused her vertigo last March 2017. Her ear problem was caused by stress, pressure and graveyard shift working in a call center. She was advised by her doctor to resign from the call center and find a new workplace environment - something healthy that will not trigger her ear infection that will lead to hearing loss. That’s the time she started working as an ESL tutor but the downside was low salary, requires a quiet environment and tiring especially when her student is a kid.
  • She learned about working from home from his brother so she began to look for virtual assistant jobs while still working as an ESL tutor.
  • She saw a video about freelancing last January 2018 and learned about the VA Bootcamp. She signed up for Free VA courses and eventually enrolled in the paid courses. But even before enrolling in the paid courses, her Upwork account got suspended. She was devastated and lose hope. She reverted to the VA Bootcamp courses and learned the workaround to get her Upwork account reinstated.
  • She joined Hustle Challenge last May 2018 and she became Jason Dulay’s Social Media VA intern.
  • She got her first Upwork client in May 2018 but the task is 1 hour per month only for $5. But it didn’t stop her from hustling.
  • She experienced a lot of rejections and came to the point that she already doubted herself and decided to return to call center agent but her partner told her to give it another week.
  • A new opportunity came in when VAB is looking for chat support. She applied and luckily got hired last June 2018 and became part of VA Bootcamp team.

Q & A Highlights

Where to apply to get a job?

Meron tayong blog kung paano maging freelancers. Step-by-step guide. Free lang yun. If you follow that malaki din yung chance na ma-hire ka. Meron na dun kung ano ang gagawin mo, mga freelancing sites na sasalihan at mga tips sa cover letters bootcamp blogs.

Ilang beses akong nag-apply pero walang tumatanggap, almost 6 months na. Any advice?

Just keep going. Sa akin, hindi nga lang 6 months yung hinintay ko to be in this position. Almost one year na wala talaga or more. Before ako nag-join ng VA Bootcamp, ilang months na akong nagta-try then kahit na nasa VA Bootcamp na ako, hindi parin ganun kadali. I still waited for the right time. Kung nakikita mo na kaya mo and meron kang resources, just keep going and don't give up. Isipin mo parati kung bakit mo 'to gagawin. Ano yung big WHYs mo, bakit mo 'to sisimulan or bakit gusto mong ma-achieve. Yan yung magiging motivation mo to really continue despite the hardships.

There are a lot of information available sa Google or sa Youtube. But the thing is hindi mo alam kung alin dun yung magiging helpful sa'yo. What Jason did, what Holly did is kinompile na nila lahat. It saves time. The time you save is equivalent to money.

How do you work around when you got suspended by Upwork?

Wag kang sumuko agad. Mag continue ka mag-appeal.

What are the premium skills one can gain as a freelancer?

Ang mako-consider kong premium skills, it is going to bring more money to the client. Like, for me, napili kong premium skill is Copy Writing. I am still learning. Bago palang din ako and wala pa akong client. Pina-practice ko palang sya. Alam ko na kapag ino-offer ko 'tong skills na 'to, no matter how much I asked for the payment, willing si client na bayaran ako kasi mabibigyan ko sya ng result. Marami pang premium skills like anything related sa writing, automations like Manychat and bookkeeping.

How many clients do you have now?

I have four now plus VA Bootcamp. Okay naman yung schedule kasi lahat sila flexible.

How much are you earning?

Sobrang layo na nung nasa corporate ako.

Natapos ko na lesson sa accelerated pero hindi ko talaga makaya gawin yung 30 day Hustle Challenge tapos hindi ko na alam kung anong gagawin kong sunod. Then sa fulltime job ko, nalipat ako ng division kaya kailangan kong aralin ang new job ko so less time na naman for me to focus on applying the freelancing skills I learned sa Bootcamp. Pareho ni Quirie, gusto ko pang matutunan ang Copy Writing or Social Media Marketing. Ano kayang maire-recommend na courses na leading to that? Newbie pa rin ako til now.

Pwede kang mag-upgrade to Complete or even Next Level Freelancing. Give it like 30 minutes to an hour a day para mag-aral ng lesson. Kasi kapag pinagsama-sama mo yung 30 minutes in a week, that's 3 hours. Marami ka na din mababawas sa lessons at madami ka na din matututunan. Just make sure na yung 30 minutes, is focus talaga. Wala kang ibang gagawin kundi yung lessons lang.

Hourly rate?

$15/hour

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by Jason Dulay 
Jason is the founder and CEO of Work from Home Roadmap and VA Bootcamp. Aside from teaching Filipinos how to succeed working from home, he likes traveling, playing board games, and drinking coffee.

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144 comments on “She Got Suspended From Upwork! Here’s What She Did to Succeed… - Interview with Quirie Lacambra”

  19. Mar. 30 - FLIP Baguio Meet Up at Wings & Butterflies Cafe/Resto, Baguio City

    Apr. 6 - FLIP Cebu Meet Up at Handuraw Pizza Mango Square, Cebu City

    Apr. 7 - FLIP Laguna Meet Up at Bilkish Cafe, Calamba Laguna

    Apr. 13 - FLIP Tarlac Meet Up at Diwa ng Tarlac Hub Area

    Apr. 13 - FLIP Cavite Meet Up at Incub8 Space at Kawit, Cavite

    Reply

  62. Gud day po! Personally I hv no personal experience on BPOindustry, I’m a nurse by profession thou willing to try new challenge in this industry, so do i hv a chance? Do u offer courses like related to health care, heard theres also realated toit under BPO, thank u po n more power ! U inspired many ppl who really wants to work at their own time frm d comfort of their home.

    Reply

  86. Just finished watching the replay. Sorry di ko napanood ng live I was stuck with errands kahapon. Sobrang nainspire ako sa full version ng story mo Quirie. Pacoach naman? 😂❤️

    Reply

  87. Just finished watching the replay. Sorry di ko napanood ng live I was stuck with errands kahapon. Sobrang nainspire ako sa full version ng story mo Quirie. Pacoach naman?

    Reply

  103. First support system mo talaga when you are freelancing is first yung family. Second yung relatives, but sometimes it can be superseded by friends na nakakaintindi sa iyo to guide you through the ups and downs of freelancing

    Reply

  104. If you're in Upwork, you need talaga to have multiple clients because in that platform, you're not necessarily servicing many clients at the SAME time, but you are just servicing them as they have tasks for you. That's the beauty of Upwork, you can have many assignments/clients, you just have to time manage your tasks to do them efficiently and consistently so that money will flow to your wallet consistently also. You may have long term clients, but there are also short term clients. Love all of them, serve them well, and God will do the rest. Just have faith and patience to slug it out with the best in Upwork.

    Reply

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