The Day I Was Fired as a Virtual Assistant: 3 Hard Lessons Learned

About 9 years ago, I was fired by a client. I was not made redundant. My client was not downsizing. I was fired for performing poorly in my role at the time as a Virtual Assistant.

Here’s what happened…

I had just started getting the hang of networking and was working with a client who used to tell anyone and everyone just how much value she was getting from working with me. Consequently, I started getting a couple of referrals and leads quickly turned into clients. One of the people I met at a networking event I was organising for my advocating client referred me to a wonderful, energetic gentleman who was working on a new project. I was pretty excited about the possibility of working with him and when I signed him up I hit the ground running.

Things started well (or so I thought). Let’s call our client, Mr. Wonderful (Seriously, he was genuinely a lovely person regardless of how things ended + I’m also a Shark Tank fan). Mr. Wonderful was clear about the outcomes he wanted from me. Unfortunately, once I started doing the work, imposter syndrome crept in and I started doubting whether I was cut out to do what he wanted me to do. I quickly became overwhelmed as Mr. Wonderful was not playing with the task assignments, was strict on timesheets and asked for updates on a regular. And because at the time, my communication and organisation skills were still trying to make their way through the refinery, I didn’t do a good job letting him know how the workload and expectations were not aligned with my own capacity.

It wasn’t long before Mr. Wonderful’s frustrations started to build up. In the middle of all of that fiasco, I decided I needed to travel out of the country because I still had the mentality of “I entered remote work for the freedom and flexibility.” However, at this point, things were not exactly stable for me on the client front and, in all honestly, I seriously needed to chill and focus on this client’s work without the distractions presented by travel. But I felt entitled to it and went anyway.

The result?

Mr. Wonderful couldn’t reach me for hours for something that was so crucial because I was mid-air and even after he did then reach me, he found out I had not done the work up to the standard he wanted and he got incredibly upset. I wish I still had the email to show here but unfortunately it was on another hosting. Have you ever been shouted at in an email and felt it? I have.

Reading through that email was devastating. Mr. Wonderful called out my incompetence. Some of his text in that email was in red and he did not hold back on the exclamation marks. I could tell he was fuming and did not even know how to salvage the situation. I tried to deliver an apology with a dash of defensiveness but the milk was already spilt – it was a mess! And so, I was fired that day.

I will never forget it because I don’t ever want to go through such an experience with a client again. I also don’t ever want a client to experience that with me. It was embarrassing to say the least and I think the worst part of it all was that this was a client who had been referred to me by someone I was also in the process of building a relationship with. What was she going to say?

I held this experience over my head for a few years following the incident. I was struggling to forgive myself and the shame of losing a client in such a manner was haunting me. But through coaching, mentoring and actively working on improving how I engaged with clients in my online business, I started getting over it. In fact, I can say that with each client who then came after that I always tried to not just communicate as much as possible, but in cases where things were not working out as expected, end things amicably because, sometimes clients are not a good fit for us, vice versa or both. We are not always going to fit into each other perfectly.

I haven’t talked to Mr. Wonderful since this incident but I sincerely wish him well. The lessons he taught me were not small and they have shaped my client engagement in a huge way.

Here are the lessons that stick out for me.

1. Clarity in Communication Is Non-Negotiable
Early in the project with Mr. Wonderful, I should have communicated openly about my capacity, challenges, and timelines. Overpromising or staying silent in the face of mounting pressure only made things worse. Clear, honest, and proactive communication ensures clients are aware of your limits and progress.It’s always better to over-communicate.

2. Understand That Freedom Comes With Responsibility
The flexibility of remote work is a privilege that requires balance. Prioritising my own freedom over delivering on client expectations was a poor and irresponsible choice. I have since learned to create boundaries and manage my time responsibly to maintain both freedom and professionalism.

3. Failure Is a Stepping Stone, Not a Life Sentence
Losing this client was a painful but necessary wake-up call for me. It pushed me to confront my shortcomings, take accountability of the impact of my actions, invest in self-improvement, and develop a more client-centric approach. Failure doesn’t define you but how you respond to it does.

Have you ever been fired for incompetency? How did you take it? Let me know in the comments.

P.S. If you are a newbie remote worker struggling to get and keep clients, I would like to help you. I have opened up just 5 one-on-one coaching slots (4 sessions over 4 weeks) in the month of January into February where I can hold your hand as you navigate building and nurturing sustainable client relationships and working on remote work opportunities you will love in 2025. Book a FREE 20-minute Introduction Call with me here and let’s see if this coaching would be a good fit for you. If there is anything you may want to ask or get clarity on, send me an email on hello@tariro.co and I will get back to you.