purplejackmama Posted February 16, 2017 Share Posted February 16, 2017 Do these REALLY exist? After searching for a couple of months, I feel like they are as elusive as the purple unicorn. I *thought* I had average skills and a decent resume but I'm getting no where. I joined all the pay sites and I lost my resume all.the.time. I have only worked part time for the past few years, but I have a degree and I'm not on drugs. So I considered myself an above average candidate. Wrong! The only 2 offers I've had were for a social media position that paid $40 a MONTH!! And a market analyst that required 30 days volunteering before the job started. Hmm. Any advice? Suggestions? Commiseration? 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eternalsummer Posted February 16, 2017 Share Posted February 16, 2017 Do you have any marketable skills? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arcadia Posted February 16, 2017 Share Posted February 16, 2017 A former neighbor makes decent money working as a travel booking agent from home. It was by word of mouth that she got the job. It is not regular income because it is based on commissions but she can just take the calls on her cellphone and do her work anywhere there is wifi. It is not a sales job though because people would call about Alaska cruise for example and she would just quote the customer different itineraries and make a booking if they want. So more of a customer service job. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
emmaluv+2more Posted February 16, 2017 Share Posted February 16, 2017 I work from home, but it kind of just fell into my lap. I work for a software development company in another country. They recruited my mom years ago (they already knew her via work they had done together while she was working for someone else). I started working for them a couple of years ago as a "helper" for her and it has evolved into duties of my own more recently. Neither of us would be working from home for this company if we lived in their country of origin. The jobs are able to be done remotely and they really wanted my mother to work for them, so there you have it. All of that is to say, I think most (not all) legit work from home jobs are not initially advertised as such. People are typically working for someone and are then allowed to begin working from home. Or someone wants a certain person badly enough that working from home is given as a perk or is a necessity in order to get that person. Of course other kinds do exist, but as you said purple unicorns are hard to find. Contracted/commissioned/content writing, blogging and tutoring are the ones that immediately come to mind. Good luck in your search! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
purplejackmama Posted February 16, 2017 Author Share Posted February 16, 2017 Do you have any marketable skills? I'm now learning apparently not. :/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eternalsummer Posted February 16, 2017 Share Posted February 16, 2017 Well, what skills do you have? What skills would you be interested or willing to work for a year or so to pick up? I only know about my corner of the universe, which might be totally irrelevant to you if you have a different skillset or interests. I've worked from home grading tests for Pearson (the ACT, state standardized tests, etc.) and I run a small business on Etsy now making fabric labels. Pearson required some teaching experience (I had about 3 months' worth) and a BA; Etsy required a willingness to learn as I went and put in a lot of time at first not making much. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wheres Toto Posted February 16, 2017 Share Posted February 16, 2017 I worked for Time Etc for a little while as a virtual assistant. It was okay but I found it took a lot of time being almost on-call to catch the jobs before someone else grabbed them. I also didn't want jobs that required specific hours. But it could be worth checking into. Most of my at-home work now is through the company I worked full time for until early last year. They call me when they have a project that they don't have anyone with the proper skill set (usually crazy merges or excel spreadsheets) or the time to do it. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
purplejackmama Posted February 16, 2017 Author Share Posted February 16, 2017 Well, what skills do you have? What skills would you be interested or willing to work for a year or so to pick up? Hmm well my background is in business. I've worked in HR, doing hiring, background checks and employee performance training. I spent years as a Trust Officer managing trust accounts and soliciting new business. I was the office manger for our family construction company before I had kids and then most recently I was a wedding & event coordinator. So my skill set is varied. I have excellent communication and customer service. I excel at dealing with people. My BS is in business so I'm fairly versed in the running of day to day operations. I'm not sure if any of this equates to anything marketable from home? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MomatHWTK Posted February 16, 2017 Share Posted February 16, 2017 (edited) This document is a list of places online where you might be able to find copywriting jobs. https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1jNjfMeTkpvP5WzRmaFMLECEcLNajKknq6fHQumS9NwI/edit?usp=sharing (It's a Google Sheet that I compiled to share.) Virtual assistant and customer services jobs are available, too. But, many of the lower paying versions of those jobs are outsourced. On the major freelancing sites, those types of jobs seem to be the ones that scammers most often target. So, to do VA or CS, I would recommend trying to find a reputable agency to work through. Writing jobs allow more flexibility (IMO) because you aren't "on call." If you know about job training, etc. then you might be able to write for a site like this: https://www.workplacetesting.com/about/contributors To find similar opportunities, search using your skill term (i.e. "human resources") and "write for us." How are your proofreading skills? Also, video-based tutoring is very popular. http://www.tutor.com/apply Edited February 16, 2017 by MomatHWTK Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
school17777 Posted February 16, 2017 Share Posted February 16, 2017 Our local hospital posted customer service jobs that you were able to work from home, after training, if you didn't have a dog and had a computer. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MomatHWTK Posted February 16, 2017 Share Posted February 16, 2017 (edited) LOL Somebody's dog must have been barking too much during CS calls. I don't do well with work that requires phone calls. Either a child stands next to me demanding to know who I'm talking to or the rabbit bites me and I scream. Edited February 16, 2017 by MomatHWTK 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lanny Posted February 16, 2017 Share Posted February 16, 2017 We will (very soon?) have much better Internet service available, so early in December, I updated my resume again, hoping that I might be able to get a Remote (Telecommuting) position, part-time or full-time. My belief is that yes, there are *many* positions available, and there are *many* people working at home. However, I do not have any recent experience. I believe that whatever one does, Engineering, Customer Service, etc., they want RECENT experience. I don't have that. If you don't have that, you are probably going to have an uphill battle, as you will not be considered. If I had recent experience, I would probably pay to join this web site, https://www.flexjobs.com/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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