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Virtual Assistants work from home, providing
everything from administrative support to high-end consulting
via e-mail, phone, and fax. They don't commute, they set
their own hours, and they get to spend time with their kids.
Wouldn't you like to be a VA, too?
Chris Durst is credited with having founded
the Virtual Assistant industry in her home in rural Connecticut
in 1995, with the launch of the Internet-based My Staff,
LLC. In 1999, with Michael Haaren, she founded the International
Virtual Assistants Association -- the industry's nonprofit
parent organization -- and served as its first president.
As the co-founder and CEO of Staffcentrix,
LLC, Chris spearheaded the development of groundbreaking
virtual career training programs for such clients as the
Department of the Army and the Department of State. She
has appeared in numerous media outlets, including Forbes,
Business Week,
Fortune,
the Singapore Straits Times,
and the London Times,
as well as radio and TV, and her presentations on virtual
careers include several presidential committees and the
United Nations. She resides in Woodstock, Connecticut, with
her two children.
An ex-Wall Street attorney, Michael Haaren
was raised in a log cabin in the Shenandoah valley of Virginia,
and, as does Chris, remains a firm believer in the values
of small-town life. He is the cofounder and COO of Staffcentrix,
LLC, and cofounder of the International Virtual Assistants
Association, serving as its first vice president.
Mike is a recognized authority on virtual
careers and is the editor-in-chief of "The Rat Race
Rebellion," a widely-read weekly bulletin of screened
telework and freelance jobs. His articles have appeared
in such publications as Military
Spouse Magazine, Paraplegia
News, and the American
Foreign Service Association Journal,
and he is often quoted in the media, including The
Wall Street Journal, Fortune,
Inc.,
Business Week,
and many others. The great-grandson of the 15th Commandant
of the Marine Corps, Mike served in the Army from 1968 to
1970. He graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Georgetown University
and received his Juris Doctor from the University of Virginia.
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