Working from home online is an enticing prospect that offers freedom, flexibility and the potential to earn a great income. Whether you take a remote position with a company or build your own online business, working remotely can be very rewarding. But it’s important to weigh the pros and cons before you dive in and get in the right mindset to make sure you keep a healthy balance between work and family time.
Many people successfully work from home, raise a family, and even have time for their personal pursuits! Your professional skills aren’t near as important as your life skills in the area of time management, self-discipline, and motivation. Learn how to find the right kind of work by exploring the possibilities and researching legitimate opportunities so you can start working from home and beautifully meshing your work and family life.
Does Working From Home Work for You?
While I believe everyone can establish a work from home career, there are some things about your home life that need to be in place to do your work efficiently and professionally.
The top factor is whether you have a quiet place to work on your computer in your home. It doesn’t need to be completely quiet all of your work time as long as you’re not being distracted by the noise and commotion. However, depending on your job or business, you may need quiet at specific times while you’re attending meetings and talking on the phone.
One notch down from the top is the self-discipline factor. Are you able to commit to your work time at the right time and then also give your home life the proper time by not allowing your work to invade your personal and family time? Organizing your time, setting some boundaries with family, and creating good work habits are all life skills that you need to work from home.
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What Skills Can You Leverage
You likely already have a few skills that you could put to use in virtual work. What you may lack in practical online skills, you can make up for in determination to learn new skills. You may think you need to get your skills built up first, but you really don’t. You can start with what you can do now and build on it. If you want to take a slower approach you can get online training for pretty much any work from home options. That’s certainly a way to go. But don’t let your lack of skills hold you back from seeking out viable opportunities. Experience is most important and you’re not going to get too much of that with training alone.
However, one great step, before you hit the virtual pavement establishing your home-based work, is to brainstorm your current skill set and determine some of your interests that could be applied to your work. Take the time to write down the skills and experience you have that you can leverage for a business or remote position with a company.
Do you have any specialized knowledge or qualifications that could make you a valuable asset to the company?
Do you have a business idea and the entrepreneurial spirit to build and grow a home-based business?
Do some research and create a list of the skills that you can develop for online work and make another list of interests and experience you have that you can build a business with. This will help you discover the direction to take in job searching and/or business building. If you are really not sure what type of work you want to do, then take my free online course, Uncover Your Vision and Purpose.
Research Your Options
One good place to get a feel for remote job openings is LinkedIn Jobs. You can scroll through the remote listings that apply to specific skills and get a feel for the demand and what businesses are looking for as requirements for those positions.
Before applying for a remote position, it’s important to thoroughly research the company or organization. Start by taking a look at the organization’s website and social media accounts and verifying they are reputable. Read reviews from past customers or team members so you can see what their experience was like. Ask around and get the opinion of people who have worked with the organization in the past. Finally, make sure you know what kind of skills and qualifications will be necessary for success before apply for any job with a company.
Make Sure All Requirements of a Job Are Clear
When choosing a work from home opportunity, make sure that you fully understand the job requirements. If the company has an online application form, be sure to read all of the information provided. It’s important to be aware of any technical skills or equipment needed for the job. You should also inquire about the expected hours and working days so that you can determine if it’s something that you can realistically commit to.
Home Based Business Building
For the most flexibility in your work life get clear on the business startup for you. There are many different ways you can make an income from your own business providing products and/or services.
If you want to explore some work-from-home ideas with me, book a free Discovery Coaching Call and I can give you some direction by brainstorming business ideas and helping you identify the business type for you.
Review this list of common and unique business ideas that you may want to look into for the perfect business venture.
- produce creative products (check out sites like Etsy where thousands or more business owners are selling their goods)
- provide creative services, like copy writing, web design, and graphic design to name three of the multitude of options (see this article that has compiled a list of freelance websites and details about each along with many different virtual service-based business ideas)
- blogging on one of your areas of interest and monetizing it (see this article to learn the concept of blogging as a business and how to make an income with it).
Working from home online is a serious business venture and needs the planning and strategizing to make it profitable and enjoyable. Even if you’re working virtually as an employee, you generally still have flexibility in your work time and work habits. Either venture offers you the opportunity to experience interest-led work and freedom to put your work around your personal and family life.
Tips for Your Work From Home Lifestyle
Written by Steph Morrison
Steph has been building businesses, mostly from home, for over 10 years, motivated by her strong determination that her two youngest boys would be educated at home. Pursuing her calling to help parents enjoy the responsibility of educating their children, she works in the marketing department of The Old Schoolhouse®, and coaches and trains entrepreneurs to start and grow their business from home. Her and her family are perfectly placed in the prairies of Saskatchewan, Canada. She loves being a homebody and building up her permaculture property. Learn more about Steph at the About Steph page.
