Working from Home
Tips for working at homeMany people dream of the freedom of working at home, especially during the summer when it can be difficult to work inside an office on a beautiful day. Tag and Catherine Goulet |
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 [ 2007-05-01 ] |
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FabJob.com
The benefits of working from home shouldn't be rocket science, but it took a NASA spacecraft designer named Jack Nilles to start convincing employers of the benefits of hiring "teleworkers." His books include 1994's Making Telecommuting Happen.
Despite the efforts of Nilles and others to show employers that telecommuting (having employees work from a remote location such as home) is good for productivity as well as the environment, companies have not embraced telecommuting as enthusiastically as workers have.
A 2005 study for the International Telework Association found that out of 135.4 million American workers, 45.1 million had worked from home. However, that doesn’t mean 33% of jobs are home-based. It simply means lots of people have occasionally taken work home. (The same study found more than 20 million people claimed to have worked from their cars!)
In fact, there are many more people looking for work at home positions than there are positions available. But that's true of virtually every dream career. So while you should use traditional job search methods to look for work you can do from home, you might also consider creating a job or starting your own home-based business.
We recently received an email from a woman named Cindy who wrote: "I need to be at home with our children yet I need to earn an income. I know there are other women in the same situation as myself. Do you have any suggestions on how we can find legitimate work at home employment that doesn't require paying a fee?"
As Cindy had discovered, there are some "work at home opportunities" you should watch out for. The Federal Trade Commission warns that work-at-home schemes that are unlikely to deliver on their promises include medical billing, envelope stuffing, assembly, or craft work.
If a company is offering something that sounds "too good to be true," ask yourself why. For example, why would a business owner pay anyone a dollar for each envelope stuffed when they could hire someone to stuff dozens of envelopes an hour for close to minimum wage?
The Federal Trade Commission suggests a series of questions you should ask if you have doubts about whether or not an opportunity is legitimate:
Of course if you're applying for a job with a well-known company, it's fine to ask questions during an interview, but replying to an ad for a legitimate job with a list of questions will not help you land an interview.
Another option may be to "create" a work at home job by contacting your previous employers with a proposal to work for them from your home. Or you may be able to create a new position with a new employer.
Lisa Jelinek, who worked from home for FabJob, says "Your at-home job opportunity may be right under your nose. One excellent example of this is my friend Nan who absolutely loves going to karate class with her son.
Nan was inadvertently attracting more and more business to the karate studio from her large circle of friends. She realized she was bringing in a fair amount of income for the owner and approached him for a sales position.
She now works part-time out of her home for the karate studio. She is able to contribute to her family financially and she and her son both enjoy the benefit of free karate tuition."
Finally, consider starting your own home-based business. Among the popular choices for moms visiting FabJob.com are: Bed and Breakfast Owner, Caterer, Children's Book Author, Children's Party Planner, Daycare Owner, Doula, Etiquette Consultant, Fashion Designer, Florist, Image Consultant, Jewelry Designer, Life Coach, Makeup Artist, Travel Consultant, and Wedding Planner.
Some businesses may allow you to do virtually all your work at home, having clients come to you. Other businesses could allow you to do much of your work at home while earning enough to afford child care for those times when you're away from home doing work that you love.
Tag and Catherine Goulet are founders of FabJob.com. This article is an excerpt from their book Dream Careers. Visit www.FabJob.com to discover your dream career.
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