We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Martha Paschall-Boykin. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Martha below.
Alright, so we’re so thrilled to have Martha with us today – welcome and maybe we can jump right into it with a question about one of your qualities that we most admire. How did you develop your work ethic? Where do you think you get it from?
My father guided me and my twin sister to have a strong work ethic from a young age. He worked two jobs to see us obtain secondary educations. He was an amazing role model teaching us commitment to hard work, and always encouraging us to strive for our successes and to seek further education throughout our adult lives.
Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?
I started my career as a middle school World Geography Instructor, but after developing some long-life health challenges after 11 years of public school teaching, I desired to reach for a more balanced home/work life and needed to decrease my 80-hours-a-week position as an educator to a more manageable work week. After moving away from the public education arena, I transitioned into an supportive administrative position working for a non-profit communications department. This is where my journey began into the world of communications admin work and returning to school to further my education in photography certification. I have always had a creative side, one I was able to materialize in the classroom and later in my admin roles.
Once I obtained a photography certification in 2014 in Fort Worth, TX, I opened a private photography business offering photography services to customers such as business professionals’ headshots, pets, product photography, and seniors in their sunset years.
In 2019, I moved into a virtual assistant benefits coordinator position during the COVID-19 epidemic, later opening my own VA business in 2022 under the name Outdesk Solutions. I offer a wide range of skill sets developed through my experience with working graphic designers and communications directors over a period of 15 years.
As a VA, I am committed to providing the highest level of service and the best possible outcomes for my clients. I take the time to develop relationships and understand each client’s unique VA needs. I pride myself on prompt, clear, and efficient communication and am always striving to deliver excellent work and solutions to my clients.
As a self-published author, I hold a Bachelor’s in Education, Master’s in Counseling Education, and Photography Certification from accredited universities. I have 17+ years of admin experience and 10+ years of middle school instruction experience with curriculum development. I provide exceptional VA services to individuals and small businesses, offering a range of services from basic admin tasks to graphic design (Adobe Photoshop, Indesign, & Canva) to social media and website management (WordPress & Squarespace). I consider myself well-versed in both Google Suite and Microsoft Office. Through my work experience, I have gained an arrange of skills and do a little of everything!
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
My desire and willingness to continue to further my education and skills and take on challenges throughout my 51 years of life have been a great asset to me in developing opportunities to be self-employed. Technologies and the way we do business are always evolving and learning new skills along the way can be highly beneficial. If you are just beginning in your journey, my advice is to gain experience and continue to self-educate or complete continuing education courses to strengthen and develop various skillsets. Once you have a strong skill set to offer, begin offering your side-job services to clients to gain experience in working on a contractual basis. Eventually, you can consider reaching for full-time status as a contractor. When you find yourself in a good position, just jump in with both feet! Yes, it will be scary, but if you don’t try, you may never know what you are capable of accomplishing.
Alright, so before we go we want to ask you to take a moment to reflect and share what you think you would do if you somehow knew you only had a decade of life left?
If I had one decade of life left, I wouldn’t change a thing! One of life’s challenges I face is a life-long health condition. Although not life-threatening, it affects my daily life. Living with the condition has not only driven me to create opportunities for private business ownership but has also encouraged me to challenge myself beyond my comfort zone to experiences I would have never thought possible. Running my private photography and VA businesses has provided the flexibility needed as well as allowed me to offer creative services to the small business community. “When life gives you challenges, you have two choices: to quit or to keep on moving.” I have made the intentional choice to move through it doing what I love to do!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://outdesk.solutions/ (Va Business) https://www.marthaboykinphotography.com/ (photography business)
- Other: I have provided both websites for my VA and photography businesses above.
Image Credits
Martha Paschall Boykin Photography, Outdesk Solutions All photography including are credited to Martha Boykin Photography including the self-portrait Any other pieces outside of photography credited to Outdesk Solutions
