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If you have wanted to be hired to work from home, the options for you are endless. Today nearly 23% of the workforce works from home at least part time. However, there are characteristics and work habits that you must have if you are going to be successful. Before you quit your regular job to take a work-at-home job, make sure you have what it takes to telecommute:

1)     Do you have a skill or talent? Companies that use telecommuters are not looking home workers per se. Employers are more concerned with finding someone who has the skills and experience to do the job that needs to be done. So, how fast can you type? Are you accurate? Can you write? Do you have phone skills? Are you experienced using bookkeeping software? In essence, what skills do you have to give to a company?

2)     Do you have the resources? While some companies will provide you with equipment and services, many won’t. Do you have a computer with high-speed Internet access? Do you have landline phone service with flat-rate long distance? Do you have basic word processing and spreadsheet programs? Do you have the equipment, services and resources to do the job you want to?

3)     Are you reliable? Are you able to deliver the work at the quality expected in the time frame needed? This means if your child is sick, you can’t just slack off and work whenever. Instead you need to stay up late or get up early to meet the deadline. Work-at-home employees need to operate with the same professionalism as any other employees.

4)     Are you self-motivated and able to work independently? There are hundreds of distractions when working at home. The laundry, Oprah, kids, neighbors, the couch for a nice nap, etc. There is no boss standing behind you to make sure you are getting the work done. Its up to you schedule time to work and to get it done in a timely manner.

5)     Would you hire you? Before you answer that question, really think about it. If you were the owner of a business that needed to hire help, would you hire someone who had your work ethic or skills? If you are someone who chats a lot by the water cooler or does just enough to get by, you probably wouldn’t want to hire someone like you. If that is the case, you need to change your ways. Working at home gives you a great deal of flexibility and freedom, but its still a job in which someone is paying you to provide quality work to your best ability.

Telecommuting has been the perfect solution to balancing work and family for me; however, it does have its challenges. Not everyone is suited to dealing with the lack of structure and routine that comes with working at home. Before you take the leap into telecommuting, make sure you have what it takes to succeed.

April 7th, 2009 | telecommute, work at home job | Comments (0)

As the owner of several work-at-home related websites, I receive email daily asking about working at home. Most writers of these emails indicate they are hard working, can type, have a computer and are desperate to work-at-home. But in most cases, they will never work at home. That may seem like a harsh thing to say but in all the years I have working at home and studying working at home, the above characteristics or skills are not what determines someone’s success at working at home. Yes, everyone who works at home has the above characteristics and tools but they are not the indicators of success.

Through my own experience and in talking with others, I have determined what I believe are the characteristics that determine who will succeed at working at home and who won’t. Before I go into the different characteristics, let me first state that I’m not saying that the people who fit the “unlikely to work-at-home” scenario are less smart or capable. Instead, as you will see, they are usually just uninformed about or fearful of what it take to work at home. But, if they are willing to learn and do the work, they too can find success working at home.

People who are less likely to work-at-home:

1. Focus only on data-entry and typing jobs in their search for work.
2. Have paid hundreds or more to off-line and online companies suggesting one can send or place ads, mail brochures, assemble earrings etc and get paid.
3. Spend only left-over time in their search for work or a home business as opposed to committing regular effort.
4. Sign up for free, spillover programs hoping to earn $1000’s off of someone else’s efforts.
5. Have a fear of doing something different or stepping out the comfort zone, which limits their choices.

Do you see yourself in any of the above characteristics? I was that person when I first started to look for work-at-home opportunities. I’m not quite sure from where the idea that working at home and getting-rich on menial work originated. It probably came from scammers who saw money in people’s dreams. What I learned the hard way was that “work” is the key word in “work at home”. I haven’t met anyone who works at home who hasn’t worked very hard either in a telecommuting position or in a home business. Here are the characteristics I have found in people who have found success working at home.

People who successfully work from home:

1. Recognize that “job” that ask for money are scams and that free work-at-home programs while they may be viable, don’t work by themselves.
2. Are proactive in their search for telecommuting jobs or researching a home business. They don’t expect the ideal situation to show up in their email. Instead, they send resumes regularly and follow-up…even to companies that might not be advertising a job but could use a contract or telecommuting worker. Neither do they expect any home business to be successful with haphazard efforts such as a single email or ad.
3. Spend time regularly, usually everyday in their search for work or a home business. This time is scheduled into their life just like all other activities because they know that life has a way of taking over unless you control your time.
4. Understand that there is no job or home business that doesn’t require work. While there may be good free programs, to earn money requires consistent work to earn a regular income.
5. Have a desire to work at home that is bigger than their fear. They are willing to step out of their comfort zone in effort to succeed at working at home.

As you can see, the only real difference between those who succeed at working at home and those who don’t is knowledge, consistent effort and a compelling desire. I know that is what made the difference for me. The question now is what are you willing to do? How big is your dream? Is it big enough to really learn the truth about working at home and stop wasting your time looking for the job or program that doesn’t exist? Is it big enough to commit time every day to achieving it even if its just 15 minutes? Is it big enough to step out of your comfort zone to do something different to reach your goal? Is it big enough to commit to for the long haul particularly when your dream seems out of reach? If it is, then you have what it takes to work at home and the answer is, “Yes, you will work at home.”

April 7th, 2009 | work at home job | Comments (0)