Sometimes I wear knee pads when I ride my mountain bike.
Crashing is just part of riding a mountain bike.
So, I wear protection (sometimes).
This week I got an email asking about how to protect yourself with your sensitive information and your OFS:
“I’d like to hire a bookkeeper but am concerned about how to make sure I protect myself from providing too much financial information, but also making sure the VA is enabled to get the job done.”
When I started, this was how I felt too.
What if they steal my credit card info?
What if they steal my hosting account?
What if they steal my domain?
I got over it when I realized it was holding me back and making life harder by not giving them access.
Here’s my take:
1. How can they do this job without having sensitive information? They can’t.
2. If you hired someone locally, would you give them the information? You would.
3. If someone locally does something bad, you have to find them and go through the lawsuit process.
4. If someone in the Philippines does something bad, you have to find them and go through the lawsuit process.
Here’s the good and the bad.
THE BAD
There’s nothing I know of you can do to withhold required info from them and still let them get their job done. You really are at risk here.
But…that risk is no different than if you hire someone locally.
THE GOOD
Laws in the Philippines are stricter than laws in the USA.
Enforcement in the Philippines is stricter than in the USA.
The culture of the Philippines makes them LESS likely to steal your info than someone in the USA.
At some point, if you want to get the right help for your business, you have to trust someone.
You can trust someone locally.
You can trust someone in the Philippines.
You can trust someone somewhere else (Just probably not if they tell you they’re a Nigerian prince).
One of the reasons we hire from the Philippines is because we’ve seen over and over again that the trust factor is easier there than almost anywhere else in the world.
Ask anyone who has someone in the Philippines working for them:
“Do you trust your OFS?”
But you won’t know for yourself until you do it.
John
PS. In my www.OneVAAway.com framework I show you how to start building trust during the interview process. Trust is really important here (for both sides). It’s a lot easier if you start building it before you hire them.
