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So you think you want to work from home huh?
Let’s talk about a few things before you make that leap. My intent would never, ever be to talk you out of it because I personally love it and will work by rear end off to never go back to a cubicle, but there are so many things you may not have thought about. And, this is a super long post so please hang with me to the end because making the decision to work from home will be life altering! (I know that sounds dramatic and cliche but it’s true)
When I first dipped my toes into working from home, I was immediately smitten.
I worked for a company that allowed certain staff to telecommute one day per pay period. The super smart I.T. folks installed all the necessary software and got my computer all ready to make it seamless for me to roll out of bed, grab my morning Mountain Dew (my “coffee”) and sit down to start working in my yoga pants (which, as you can imagine, were so much more comfy than the skirts and heels I wore to the office every day!).
First, decide if you want to work for a company that hires at home workers or you want to start your own home-based business.
I’ve done both and it’s really a matter of personal preference and how hard you’re willing to hustle to get work and clients. There are pros and cons to both.
If you work for a company many times there will be pretty strict hours and work-from-home guidelines that you have to follow. The biggest thing that struck me when I started working from home full-time as an employee was that the company I worked for billed by the project or task in 15 minute intervals. What that means is that if you can’t “bill” your time to a specific project or task then you aren’t getting paid. So all those walks to the bathroom when you stop and chat with coworkers on the way to and fro and you still are getting paid, yeah… That doesn’t happen with most work-from-home companies. Don’t get me wrong – it’s still a super, duper great gig because you’re still in your yoga pants, you didn’t have to get in a freezing cold car in winter or sit in traffic to commute to work, etc. And the work just comes to you. You don’t have to be out hustling for customers. You simply roll out of bed, plunk down in front of your computer, get your work done and collect your paycheck.
On the other hand, if you chose to go the other route and start your own home-based business, you will likely have more freedom but probably also a bit more stress. Unless you can land yourself some solid, reliable, consistent clients, you’ll constantly be hustling for new clients which is a ton of work on top of getting the work done for your existing clients.
So which route you take is really a matter of personal preference. What your skill set is and what you chose to do from your home office will also be a deciding factor in which route you take.
A few other things to consider when deciding if working from home is the right decision for you are:
IT Support: How tech savvy are you? If you work for a company, they likely have an IT department that you can call if you have issues, need software updates, etc. If you are self-employed, you are also going to have to be your own tech support or know someone who will be able to help you out when needed and pay for your own equipment and software.
Office equipment: I can tell you from experience that having a desktop computer when you work from home is so much more convenient. Yes, it would be nice to sit in the back yard under a tree on a nice summer day with your laptop but that’s really not too realistic in most cases. Desktop computers are just so much easier to be more efficient on. I have both and I know I work much faster on my desktop, in my office than I do on my laptop anyplace else. Having multiple monitors is also super helpful and makes you more efficient. You won’t realize how nice it is to have multiple screens until you have more than one then have to go back to one (again, experience talking). I’ve had up to three monitors and it was super efficient (user guide on one, spreadsheet on another and Quickbooks on another). Another piece of equipment many companies require (if you chose the employee route) is an actual land line phone. It had been so many years since we’d had a land line that I actually had to go out and purchase a phone when I started working for the company that required that.
People: Obviously there won’t be many, if any, other people around for you to talk to during the day when you work from home. Personally, I love this because I can be so much more productive without the disruptions. However, some people just aren’t cut out for the solitude of being without other people day in and day out. Just thinking about it in your head doesn’t seem like a big deal but that human interaction piece was even an adjustment for me at first and I like to be alone.
Discipline: Yes you hear this all the time, “You have to be incredibly disciplined and driven and motivated to work from home.” And it’s true! Whether you are self-employed or an employee working from home, there will be days when you have to give yourself mental pep talks to push through and keep working. Sure, you can hop up and switch the laundry here and there but what about that 2 p.m. mid-day drowsy time? If you were in an office you wouldn’t be able to go lay down and rest and you shouldn’t if you want to be productive working from home either. That’s where the mental pep talk comes in and you have to remind yourself that to be successful you’ll have to just push through.
Now that you know working from home is exactly what you want to do, then the very first thing you need to do is get yourself a resume online.
Resumes are not at all what they used to be!
I’m not talking about on a job board or even LinkedIn although the latter is very important as well. I’m talking firstnamelastname.com or some version thereof. It’s not nearly as hard or expensive as you might be thinking. As a matter of fact, it’s pretty cheap, fairly easy and you might learn some new skills to add to your resume along the way!
First thing’s first, get my free 2017 Resume Writing Guide to learn the latest trends and tips and techniques to make sure your resume stands out in the crowd.
Even if you aren’t applying for a traditional office job, people will want to look at your resume – whether it’s prospective clients or the hiring manager for the work-at-home job you’re applying for – and you want yours to be top-notch. Let’s face it, in today’s world, people are going to Google your name and if you can have a resume at firstnamelastname.com they are going to find it. So check out my guide to make sure you get the job you want! You can also check out my personal resume at MyleePuetz.com.
Second, get your domain name registered at HostGator.com.
Create A Website For Just One Cent For Your First Month! Use Coupon: 1CENT. Then, annually it’s only around $12 a year but if you sign up for several years at a time it’s even cheaper per year. If you can’t get firstnamelastname.com, maybe throw your middle initial in there or do first initial and last name. Whatever you do, keep it related to your name and try with all your might to keep it a .com.
Edited – Second point five – I forgot one super important thing about working from home so I added a What No One Tells You About Working From Home – Part 2. You can read it by clicking here or you can skip on to the third step below. Your choice. If you read Part 2. The link for the Third step is also at the end of that post so you won’t get lost along the way.
Third, click here to read my next blog post on how to build your resume on WordPress.
Don’t freak out! I’ll give you step-by-step instructions and it’s not that hard at all. AND then you can add WordPress to your resume! Ta-da – easy peasy!
Until next time…
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