The nature of work is changing. No longer is work restricted to sitting in a set location for set hours every day. Instead, the internet has made it possible to work from anywhere with an internet connection.
Millions of people are opting (or pressurising their employers to allow them) to work remotely from home, from cafes or from the local library, and gain the benefits of the remote worker lifestyle:
· You save hours every week on the daily commute, struggling through traffic jammed streets and highways
· You can fit work around your life, rather than the other way around
· Work is based on output, rather than sitting in an office watching the clock
Whilst being able to set your own hours and be able to work in your pyjamas sounds like a pipe dream, it is possible to achieve. But as with anything in life, it takes hard work and dedication to make it a success, because finding a steady stream of clients and earning enough to support yourself can be a challenge to start with.
However, if you're ready to give it a go, here are some jobs which allow you to work from home:
Virtual personal assistant
There's an abundance of small businesses that need help with all manner of tasks, such as answering the phone, assisting with paperwork and resolving queries for clients. Consequently, a market has sprung up for virtual private assistants that can provide these services remotely.
Qualities you'll need include a professional telephone manner, good organisational skills (as you may be working for more than one client at once) and experience with a variety of software applications (or be prepared to learn). It's wise to create a basic website you can show to clients which tells them about you, your experience and services. You can then start looking for clients on freelance work websites, like Elance.com, for businesses looking for VPA services.
Data entry
Data entry jobs themselves are far from glamorous, and take the claims made on certain websites about earning $100s per day doing data entry for medical firms and lawyers. There are a lot of scam artists on the web looking to exploit people eager to work from home on the internet, and you should never have to pay upfront for training materials, software or anything else to get started.
However, you can find data entry jobs on freelance bidding websites where ethical employers are looking for remote employees to do work on the net. The pay can be low, but a good strategy is to approach data entry as a way of 'getting your foot in the door' with businesses and then trying to develop a relationship by offering additional services, such as help managing social media campaigns, updating their website or improving their SEO strategy. These are all skills you can teach yourself and will make you more valuable to clients. You can then being to increase your wages as a result.
Freelance writing
It's a competitive market, but if you can write clearly and concisely then there is plenty of work available writing blogs, articles for SEO and press releases for businesses.
It's a good idea to read a few books on copywriting, practicing and getting a portfolio together before you look for clients on freelance bidding websites. Initially, you might struggle to earn much until you've built up some testimonials, a decent portfolio of samples and a base of repeat customers. However, no matter how bad the economy is doing, businesses always need to be marketing themselves. And freelance writing is an ideal job is you want to work from home on the internet.
So as you might have guessed, the simple answer to this article's headline is that to create a profitable business doing remote work on the net takes a lot of hard work. However, working from home is now a reality for millions of people, and is a pervasive shift in the way we work. Working from home offers many benefits, both for workers and employers. So if you're prepared for the initial struggle, there are rich rewards (both monetary and lifestyle) you can look forward to.