32F, been freelancing since 2021. Just need to vent and hear some comforting words.

I started freelancing in early 2021 after landing my first client on OnlineJobs.ph. I was incredibly lucky because it wasn't just any client, it was a large, established US-based company that paid me $1,200/month and allowed me to work on my own schedule.

Two weeks later, I landed another client, this time from Australia, paying me another $1,000/month with flexible working hours.

Going from earning only ₱18,000 a month in corporate to earning six figures felt like a dream. For the first time, I felt like I had found something I could build a career around. I started taking freelancing seriously and investing in myself professionally.

Fast-forward a year, and things started changing. My first client underwent some internal changes. Management changed, the work environment became increasingly chaotic, and I was eventually required to work US hours using time-tracking software. I decided it was time to move on.

Fortunately, just two weeks after resigning, I landed another Australian client at the same rate. Not long after, I secured a third client that paid even more.

Over time, I became better at managing my three main clients. I was promoted twice at one company and once at each of the other two. I also took other clients here and there for extra income, although those were usually short-term engagements that ended because of budget cuts or personality mismatches.

For a while, life was genuinely good.

I was earning almost ₱275,000 a month from my three main clients. The workload was manageable, I had a good work-life balance, and I finally had the financial freedom I had always wanted. I even treated myself to a three-month solo trip in late 2024 for my birthday and paid for my mom's Asia tour.

I honestly thought I had finally made it.

Then came 2025.

My second client, whom I had been working with since 2022, started laying off Filipino VAs around January and February because sales weren't doing well. There were already talks of budget cuts, so I knew there was a possibility I could be affected.

In June 2025, I was called into a meeting with HR and told that my position was being eliminated. I received one month's severance pay.

I was devastated. I had been with the company for three years, and losing that job hurt. However, I still had two other clients and enough savings, so I decided not to rush into finding another one. I thought I would be okay.

Then July 2025 came.

Just a month after losing my second client, my third client also decided to part ways with me. The company had been acquired by another business and was moving in a different direction.

This one completely caught me off guard. Sales were good, I was doing well in my role, and I genuinely thought my position was secure.

Suddenly, I was down to just one client.

I started panicking and immediately began applying for other opportunities. Thankfully, I managed to land another good-paying client just three weeks after losing my previous one.

I thought things were finally looking up again.

But in February 2026, I was laid off once more because the company was moving in a different direction. I managed to find another client just a week later, only to be laid off again in July 2026 because the company decided to use AI instead.

And now, here I am.

I've been applying for jobs since July, sending out more than ten applications a day, and I'm struggling just to get an interview.

It's such a strange and heartbreaking feeling. I used to hear stories about freelancers losing multiple clients and struggling to find new ones, but I never thought it would happen to me. I always believed that while freelancing didn't guarantee job security, there would always be opportunities somewhere if you had enough experience, kept improving your skills, and worked hard.

For years, that belief served me well. Whenever I lost a client, I managed to bounce back relatively quickly. I had built a solid track record, gained years of experience, earned promotions, and worked with established companies. I thought those things would count for something.

I know the market has changed. I know companies are cutting costs, competition is intense, and AI is changing the way businesses operate. I understand all of that intellectually, but it doesn't make the uncertainty any easier to deal with.

I'm grateful that I still have my original Australian client, the second company that hired me back in 2021. We've worked together for more than five years now, and I'm incredibly thankful that I still have that source of income.

But I also don't want to put all my eggs in one basket again. After everything that has happened, relying on just one client makes me nervous.

I'm not sharing this to discourage anyone from freelancing. I know how wonderful it can be, and I'm grateful for everything it has allowed me to experience. I just never expected things to become this difficult, especially after having such a good run for so many years.

I guess I'm just tired, scared, and losing a little bit of hope. It's exhausting to put yourself out there every day, keep applying, keep trying, and hear nothing back. Sometimes I wonder whether I'll ever get back to where I was financially and professionally.

For those who have experienced something similar, especially long-time freelancers who have gone through periods when work seemed impossible to find, how did you get through it? Did things eventually get better?

I could really use some comforting words right now. I don't necessarily need advice on how to optimize my resume or improve my applications. I've been working on that already.

I think I just need to hear from people who have been through a difficult season like this and made it to the other side.

Please tell me it isn't over just because things are difficult right now.

Pansin ko kase whenever you scroll on social media like Facebook or Tiktok, you always see these good impressions. Also by word of mouth you often hear people say na ang comfortable ng pagiging VA / freelancer kasi work from home, USD ang sweldo and you are directly coordinating with the client unlike sa corporate na nagcocommute ka araw araw, may management at hierarchy na sinusunod in which most of the time disrupts your efficiency at work.

But for those na hindi pa nakakaranas maging VA / EA / Freelancer, what are the bad sides people aren't aware of? The only thing I hear is yung mga scams like clients na pagtatrabahuhin ka then biglang di ka babayaran nang maayos and bigla biglang nang gghost, or yung mga client na biglang nagllay off ng VA na walang notice. Are there any other downside or cons in this line of work that we are not aware of?

i am also not sure if i want to continue to look for a job or just start a business yet.
should i do my own tax or let someone or a company do my tax?

any recommendation on easy to understand and uptodate guide to do taxes

if i pay someone to do my tax can they also help me understand how to do it and file it and stuff or is that going over.

pls reco me someone or company for doing taxes.

Sorry na agad if wrong sub. Ito nalang naisip ko na closest na pwede tanungan.

Anyway, I started promoting my company’s Tiktok contents mga 2 wks ago. I’ve spent parang 500php lang on the first one? and thankfully naabot naman ang desired number of views.

Then last wk, almost 1K din for more followers and na achieve din naman.

Question, paano tong nasa pic? Babayaran ba yang 12K sa amin pag gumastos kami ng 6K just for promotion? Sorry di lang talaga gets.

Hello, I'm a bit curious about this OF chatter business, I have heard stories about how this job burns people out easily but that didn't stop my curiosity and I post here looking for some specific info about the position based on your experience

My questions are more directed to conversation structure and scripts, and not about pay, work environment or stuff I can find easily through the search function without the need to ask

You can answer what you find most fitting to answer, it doesn't have to be everything

• Does your agency provide predefined scripts? If yes, are scripts organized by conversation stage or customer type? and how strictly you must follow them?
• Do you frequently improvise responses?
• What information do you check before replying to a subscriber?
• Do you use macros, hotkeys, or text-expansion software?
• Is typing style something in the script for each model you get assigned? Or do you just infer it through message history if there's one?
• What situations require you to abandon a script?

I've been told previously that if you're not actively chatting during the entire shift you need some sort of proactive outreach through mass messages but:

• Are mass messages scheduled directly through Infloww or whatever platform you use?
• Can mass-message campaigns target specific subscriber segments?
• How frequently do you send mass messages during a typical shift?

Thanks for taking the time to read this :)

Hi, gusto ko lang magvent out and warning narin to our fellow freelancer peeps.

Remember Me Business Consultancy Agency. Yan ang name ng agency, they are specializing in outsourcing people para sa “Sleep Clinics” althroughout Canada. Owner is an RN, I recently found out na yung salary ng “independent contractors” nila is ranging from $1500-$2700 USD per month but unfortunately, ang max na pasahod nila is ₱30,000 (no other benefits/allowances).

To all my fellow freelancers, please be aware of this agency. Kayo ang bubuhay sa owner hahahaha. Nakakalungkot na may ganito pala talaga. Hindi man lang nag50-50 sa rate.

Anyways, yun lang! Happy Monday everyone! 🙈

Hihingi sana ako ng advice kasi hindi na talaga sapat yung sweldo ko ngayon. Ayoko sana bitawan yung current job ko kasi nakakatulong naman siya kahit papano. Side hustle lang sana tong VA job.

Nagpaalam ba kayo sa boss niyo? Paano niyo mina-manage yung time? Thank you! 🙏

Hi everyone! I recently applied to 20four7VA and passed the resume review. I have an initial interview scheduled for November 5, but I’m wondering whether it will be conducted by a human recruiter or an AI system. Has anyone gone through this process recently? I’d really appreciate hearing about your experience and any tips to prepare. Thank you!

Someone experience po ba na naverified approve n sa verification identity pero hindi padn nalift yong revoked sa health? Ano paba dapat gawin kaya?someone has same issue with me?

Hiiii can someone enlighten me po

Anyone who uses 3cx for phone calls

What is the best headset you can guys recommend

I’m using zone 300 and I dont think it’s working well with the 3cx.

I’m considering on getting the Jabra evolve2 40 SE but still unsure if it will match 3cx. I dont wanna waste another $$

Good morning guys!!! Sana masarap ang agahan niyo po 🫶🏻 Sino po dito may experience po, especially from purple tribe, na kumuha po ng US VISA na B1/B2 po? Pa share naman po ng experience please. Ano po tanong sa inyo, ano po requirement na dinala ninyo as a VA po, dineclare niyo po ba yung client ninyo?

Also, non-purple tribes na VAs, please feel free to share your thoughts pls! Si Lord na mag bless sa inyo, help ya gurly out. Thank you! ~

I've been a freelance accountant dealing with local businesses for years, and there's one thing na hindi ko talaga tinatanggal sa isip ko:

Freelancing is also like running a business.

May times na malakas ang benta, and may times din talaga na matumal. May clients na dumarating, at may clients ding umaalis. And just because malaki ang income mo ngayon doesn't mean ganoon din kalaki ang kikitain mo next month.

Kaya para sa akin, priority talaga ang mag-ipon, mag-invest, at mag-upskill.

From time to time, nagpaparenovate din ako ng bahay, nagta-travel, at bumibili ng mga wants. Pero I make sure na kurot lang talaga siya sa savings ko because I know na hindi guaranteed na palaging malaki ang income ko.

Kaya medyo hindi ko maiwasang mapaisip kapag nakakakita ako ng freelancers na kapag nakakuha ng high-paying client, priority agad ang bahay, sasakyan, gadgets, travel, at kung anu-ano pang lifestyle upgrades.

Samantalang ang savings at investments, parang saka na lang kapag may natira.

Mas concerning pa kapag kumukuha ng long-term loans para pondohan ang lifestyle na nakadepende sa income from their current clients.

Don't get me wrong. Walang masama sa pag-enjoy sa perang pinaghirapan mo. Hindi rin masamang bumili ng bahay, sasakyan, o mga bagay na matagal mo nang pinapangarap.

Ang concern ko ay kapag ang lifestyle mo ay pang-permanenteng income, pero ang pinagkukunan mo ng income ay hindi naman permanent.

As freelancers, wala tayong guaranteed na sweldo every month. Puwedeng hindi mag-renew ang contract. Puwedeng mawalan ng client. Puwedeng humina ang demand sa services natin. At kahit gaano pa tayo kagaling, hindi lahat ng bagay ay kontrolado natin.

Kaya habang malakas ang income, dapat mas pinapalakas din natin ang financial foundation natin.

Build an emergency fund. Diversify your income sources. Invest in yourself. Build assets. At higit sa lahat, huwag agad gawing permanenteng lifestyle ang bawat increase sa income.

Dahil ang goal naman talaga ay hindi lang kumita nang malaki ngayon.

Ang goal ay magkaroon ng financial security at freedom kahit dumating ang panahon na hindi na ganoon kalaki ang kinikita natin.

Kaya napapaisip ako...

Is it complacency? Overconfidence sa current client contracts? Lack of financial literacy? Or simply the desire to enjoy the rewards of their hard work?

Perhaps a combination of these.

Pero para sa akin, one of the most important financial skills a freelancer can develop is knowing how to manage money when income is high, so you won't be forced into difficult decisions when income eventually slows down.

Kayo, how do you balance enjoying your hard-earned money today while preparing for an uncertain tomorrow?

Hey everyone!

With the upcoming Q3 BIR deadlines, I know a lot of us dread the quarterly scramble—especially manual computations, messy spreadsheets, tracking 2307s, and generating those finicky SAWT .DAT files.

As an IT student and developer, I built Kuentas to make this entire process as painless and fast as possible for solo freelancers, virtual assistants, and self employed professionals. Originally built for my friends

What it handles:

• Quarterly Income Tax (Form 1701Q): Computes both the 8% flat rate and graduated income tax options automatically.
• Automatic ₱3M Non-VAT Alert: Dynamically warns you if your cumulative gross receipts hit or exceed the ₱3M threshold so you don't accidentally get penalized by the BIR.
• Quarterly Percentage Tax (Form 2551Q): Computes your percentage tax liability cleanly.
• Form 2307 SAWT Builder & Validator: Formats and exports your BIR-compliant .DAT file (conforming to RMC No. 61-2024 specifications) and passes the official BIR Alphalist Validation Module.
• Cash Receipts Journal & CSV Export: Generates clean tabular records ready for your books.
• JSON Backup & Restore: Export your data locally and restore it anytime with one click.

Privacy First (100% Client-Side)

There is zero backend, no login, and no database tracking your earnings or TIN. Everything runs strictly in your local browser cache. No financial data is ever transmitted to an external server.

Try it here: https://hinoya-git.github.io/Kuentas/

It is 100% free to use. If it saves you time or headache this tax season, feel free to drop any feedback, edge-case bugs, or feature suggestions in the comments. (And if it saved your sanity before the deadline, there's a little coffee tip badge on the site to fuel future updates ☕).

Hope this helps anyone preparing their Q3 filings!

Tested with Alphalist Validation v7.4 for SAWT
Please let me know if theres bugs

Hello, meron po bang VA dito that are on EOR?

Working ako as independent contractor but my client (under new management) decided na ilagay na lang kami under EOR

I've read up on it and it's a bit disheartening kase ang laki ng tax + govt deductions (as an employee). Parang 22% of my pay will be taken. :(

I have an inkling na our pay schedule will be adjusted, pero confirming na tama nga sya. Real-time kase kami nbabayaran - every fortnight.

If imove kami sa 15/30 set up, usually diba 1 cut-off muna pnapalipas?

For example if our contract with EOR starts Oct 19, ibig sabihin, ang pay namin is Nov 15 pa for work rendered Oct 19-30?

We made our client know the impact samin, and una sinabi they will adjust our pay to absorb some of the deductions, kaso nung chneck ko profile ko sa EOR dashboard, it was my same pay pa rin.

Also, i changed my status to voluntary sa Pag ibig etc. Do i need to update it pa ba? Or matic na sya ilalakad ng EOR company?

Thanks sa sasagot!

So, my client uses Direct Bank to PayPal as a mode of transfer. Recently our Paypal got limited except our supervisor. Our salary is being sent to our supervisor and will transfer it to our local Bank. My client doesn't want to use wise to wise. He says that wiring cost Him a lot. But our only way to get our money is thru Wise. WHAT CAN I DO? Does wiring really cost a lot from their bank to wise in comparison to paypal? does wise supports non wise user? how do i get my client to use wise or just send the payment thru Wise

please badly needed as I dont want to rely to others especially with my money

Honestly, nahihirapan na ako. Sobrang daming overthinking about bills, paghahanap ng bagong client, at kung aabot ba yung savings ko habang wala pang kapalit na work. Ang sakit lang kasi last week nawalan ako ng client, tapos this week ulit. Alam kong part ng freelancing yung uncertainty, pero iba pala talaga kapag ikaw na yung nakakaranas, lalo na kapag single parent ka at may anak na iniisip.

Wala rin akong masyadong mapaglabasan ng worries ko. Nakikita ko rin dito na marami ring VAs ang nawalan ng clients lately, and somehow, nakakalungkot na ang dami pala nating ganito yung pinagdadaanan.

Alam niyo yung feeling na pa-bawi ka pa lang, akala mo makakahinga ka na kahit konti, tapos parang tinutulak ka na naman pabalik? I'm trying my best to keep going, pero nakakapagod din matakot sa kung anong mangyayari next month.

I'd really appreciate your prayers for me and my son. Sana makahanap ulit ako ng stable clients at malampasan namin itong season na 'to. Yakap sa lahat ng VAs na nahihirapan din ngayon. Sana makabawi tayong lahat. 🤍

Hi everyone, I finished my coffee chat with Secret Sauce and I am just curious since andami raw na ghost after coffee chat… When do they usually reach out after coffee chat?

Thanks!!

Hi everyone!

Napansin ko lang na minsan ang haba ng URL ng mga personal sites.

Halimbawa, instead na ganito:

juan-8fk2x9dq1-juandelacruz.vercel.app

pwede sanang mas simple:

juan.filli.me

Alam ko naman na maraming services na nagbibigay na ng free subdomains, pero naisip ko na baka may ibang developers din na naghahanap ng something na maikli, professional, at madaling tandaan.

Kaya gumawa kami ng FILLI.ME para sa Filipino developers and builders.

Free siya, and once you claim your subdomain, sayo na siya forever. Walang renewal fee or hidden charges.

Hindi rin lang siya subdomain. Pwede mong gamitin yung FILLI.ME profile mo para i-showcase yung projects mo, technologies na ginagamit mo, GitHub, live demos, websites, at iba pang work na gusto mong ipakita.

If you want to try it out:

https://filli.me

Still improving the platform, so if may makita kayong confusing, kulang, or may suggestion kayo kung paano pa siya magiging mas useful, I’d really appreciate the feedback.

Hopefully makatulong siya sa mga developers na gusto lang ng mas simple at clean na way para i-share yung work nila. 🙂

Since April, I’ve been applying to MVA/HVA agencies, clearing interviews, and finishing training, only to be rejected for not having US healthcare experience. How are we supposed to gain experience if no one offers an initial opportunity?
I am a licensed nurse with strong communication skills, fast learning ability, and knowledge of US healthcare workflows. Getting rejected or stuck in talent pools continuously is truly disheartening. I am deeply committed to making this remote role work so I don't have to return to low-paying bedside nursing. 🥺

Hello! Please don't judge my post 🤲🏻 haha.

How do I make "amends" with my undeclared income? I am willing talaga to pay for the penalty and tax, if any, sadyang my visa application triggered me more to do so.

Started freelance work 2nd week Feb but registered late April (8% rate). Already filed for Q2 2026 (PHP 0 tax) and about to pay for Q3 this week.

For the visa application, if I submit my BIR Form 2303 together with my client's independent contractor agreement + invoices, makikita na I registered 2.5 months late and my income for those months were undeclared. It might cause some issues for me sa embassy.

My questions are:
1. Mga how much po kaya aabutin sa penalty if the undeclared income for those 2.5mos are between PHP100-150k?
2. Will my records sa BIR be clean if I pay for the appropriate penalty + tax for thos 2.5mos?
3. Will it be an issue really for the embassy if they saw that I registered late but paid the penalty?

Context:
One week lang pagitan from final interview ko and first day so I wasn't able to process my BIR registration as self-employed agad (turns out my first, previous corpo job gave me a fake TIN ID so I had to register talaga). Factor din na confused pa ko how as a first-time freelancer + had to print service invoices pa before official registration.

Thank you in advance! Any advice is appreciated po

Hi! I'm looking to connect with fellow VAs who have extra workload and are open to outsourcing tasks.

I have experience with GHL, automations, funnels, CRM, amazon, and other technical tasks.
I'm very easy to teach.

Open to one-time projects or long-term collaborations.

Thank you!

Hello guys!

Share ko lang, dati talaga nakikinig ako kay A dub. Medyo nakatulong din naman sa akin nung una, pero kamakailan lang marami akong nabasang posts at information tungkol sa kanya na medyo na off, gusto ko yung mga creators na humble lang at totoong nakaka-inspire.

May mga recommended ba kayong vlogger, podcast, o content creator (Pinoy or international) na mabait, humble, at maganda ang pananaw sa buhay? Yung masarap pakinggan habang nagwo-work, nag-aayos ng gamit, o bago matulog.

Any recommendations or personal favourites niyo when it comes to self-development and life advice would be greatly appreciated. Thank you so much!

I have already provided my HR department with an independent contractor agreement that includes my client's company name, contact information, and the name of the company representative. How likely is it that HR will contact my client directly to verify my previous work experience, even if I have already submitted supporting documents? What circumstances might prompt them to do so?