There are tonnes of reasons people are increasingly working from
home. For starters, with changes and advances in technology, it’s now
increasingly possible to work from home as efficiently and effectively
as in the office (and, if you’ve spent years crowded into cubicles,
sometimes more effectively than in the office). With technology came
opportunity for big sectors of society- people wanting to spend more
time with their kids, full-time carers, people with disabilities,
spouses who travel due to their partner’s career- to work from home. So
what kind of work is out there, and can you grab some and start making
your working-from-home dream a reality?
Freelance
Freelance work requires heaps of contacts and time in the industry,
doesn’t it? Not so in this new, great age of the Internet. Websites such
as freelancer.com and People Per Hour have developed an interesting
system for those of us looking for freelance work. Projects are outlined
on the website, and then freelancers ‘bid’ for the job. The bid
includes the rate of pay, expected timeframe, and approach to the work.
The projects are hugely varied, and can allow you an opportunity to work
in a field that interests you.
Translator
If you’ve got another language up your sleeve (and a pretty good
grasp of the ol’ English tongue), there is plenty of work for good
translation pieces. Even looking at government work alone, the sheer
bulk of translation that needs to occur in Australia is enormous and
demand steadily outstrips the amount of translators that are available. A
good translator requires the ability to communicate cultural nuance as
well as literal meaning. The great thing is that it’s not a job
restricted to any geographical location and you can put your extra
skills to great use. The same is true of writing and editing jobs,
especially for online publications.
Web Developer Or Graphic Designer
With enough skills in IT and a good grasp of design, you may never
have to see an office (other than your front sun room) for more than an
hour at a time. IT remains the industry most dependent on home-based
labour markets and it’s unlikely to be an industry that slumps any time
soon. Likewise with graphic design- a burgeoning industry that can
easily be accomplished, with an initial investment in some materials,
from home.
Teacher
Know your stuff inside out but can’t make it to the classroom on a
regular basis? Working as an online teacher or tutor opens up all your
skills to the public. Friends of mine are doing art classes, online
university subjects and learning languages, from professionals who are
using the internet as their medium.
Scam Wary
They’re amazing opportunities, but it pays to keep a wary eye on the
scams that can be out there. The most common is the inevitable ‘Earn $50
an hour’ customer service ad that gets placed in every weekly tabloid.
Before signing up to anything, do your due diligance on the company,
check whether they have a real-life office address, whether they request
examples of your writing and conduct some kind of interview and whether
there HR people to ask questions of.
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