When people think of work at home, they are usually just limiting themselves to work at home jobs. That is a major no no and might be the reason you're reading this article and haven't started making money at home yet. Not many people realize that there are actually many types of work from home and knowing the differences will help you achieve greater success at working at home . School's in session kids, let's review the ABC's of work at home.
A. Work At Home Jobs:
I won't go into much detail here because all of you reading this probably salivate at the thought of landing one of these bad boys. But quite simply, a work at home job is like any conventional job but you're doing it from home. If you're lucky you get all the perks of a conventional job such as benefits, sick days, paid vacations, etc.
Negatives: Your boss determines what your salary will be, if you stay hired and worst of all, the competition for work at home jobs is like trying to win the lotto! Another thing that's always left a bad taste in my mouth is that your employer still determines your hours in most cases. Where's the flexibility in that? Furthermore you can't control or dictate your salary and pay increases. And finally there tends to be a lot more scams targeted at people looking for work at home jobs because they know how desperate job seekers are for them. So being hell bent on a work at home job will leave yourself more vulnerable to these scam artist.
B. Freelance Work At Home Jobs:
This is very similar to a work at home job except that you're an independent contractor and not a real employee of the company. Freelancers pretty much dictate how much they will earn. It's not an employer that tells them what they're worth! Freelancers also tend to have a lot more opportunities available to them because there are many freelance websites that have new freelance projects posted everyday. There are also a wider range of freelance opportunities available than there are regular work at home jobs. Freelancers can also write off many expenses that work at home employees can't so there is somewhat of a tax benefit there.
Negatives: You're resonsible for your own taxes. Since you're not an actual employee, you have to report your earnings at the end of the year to the government minus your expenses which can be a lot if you have a good accountant. Work may be inconsistent. Competition can be very fierce because other freelancers may take on work you wouldn't for a lower fee. Your work life is also always based on tight deadlines.
C. Work At Home Opportunities:
I saved the best for last. This is my personal favorite and where I have found my sweet spot. Work At Home opportunities aren't your conventional job. It's truly unlimited income as cliche as that may sound. This is probably the only real work at home option where you really choose your own hours and there are no deadlines. Work at home opportunities range from getting paid to click on ads, read emails, take surveys, try products, write articles or refering other people. As you can see there are a wide range of options and best of all you can do them all at once if you're dedicated and smart. This is one of the few work at home options that can be started right away without a special skill set, submitting a resume, competing against other freelancers/work at home seekers or hoping to be hired by an employer! In many cases work at home opportunities are usually free and by far the easiest to start out of all the 3 mentioned in this article.
Negatives: Again you're responsible for you own taxes. Depending on what type of work at home opportunity you choose it can also be very competitive. Some work at home opportunities are home based business where you have to pay a fee. Some elements of work at home opportunities require you to market which scares the bejesus out of people as it did for me before I wised up.
Conclusion
School's out! Hopefully you've learned something. My hope for all work at home seekers is that you'll be more open to all the options available to you. It really breaks my heart to hear the sad stories of job seekers who can't find traditional work at home jobs but now you know there are other options and hopefully you're smart enough to take them.
What do you think? Are you willing to explore all your options or are you hell bent on work at home jobs only?
You definitely have a unique view on working at home. I’ve never heard anyone complain about the exile away from commuting and dealing with other annoying co-workers or a supervisor. But to each their own. We appreciate your comments nonetheless.
I`ve found so many times confusing the adverts offering work at home. I couldn`t believe that there is no person who supervise you and you have the same responsibility. Learning from the advantages of this type of job above mentioned I can`t vote for it. Being a very busy Vancouver realtor I would find difficult to keep in touch with my clients by mails and messages. That`s so impersonal. Anyway you have to be stuck to one place because you have your responsibilities and sitting in front of the computer all the time seems to me as an exile from reality.