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The Truth About Working From Home

Guest post by: Colin Simmons

Article Overview: What is the truth about working from home? Can you really make serious money without leaving your home and family behind? What are the pitfalls and what can we do do to meet and overcome them. The following article examines the issues and shines a light on whether you really can make money working from home.

The Truth About Working From Home

Working From Home

For many working from home would be an idyllic life style. For starters - no more commuting! Feet up, drink in hand tapping away at a keyboard in-between sips. Maybe your favourite music playing in the background. Break time - gentle stroll through the park, maybe even a trip to the beach to get those creative juices flowing.

Dream Job

Sounds like a dream to me. Selling that dream maybe one of the few ways of actually achieving it. For most, the reality is very different. Working from home is hard work for relatively low pay.

What work can you do from home?

The most commonly held jobs undertaken from home include:

Secretarial Services

Writers

Editors

Journalists

Artists

Programmers

Researchers

Web designers

Webmasters

Network administrators

Telemarketers

Desktop publishers

Graphic Designers

Stockbrokers

Child/Day Care

Popular

If you're looking at the above and feeling disappointed because you can't see yourself on the list don't despair too much. The number of opportunities to work from home is increasing.

Reputable Employers

When reputable employers grant their employees the 'privilege' of working from home they often see an increase in output and efficiency due to the more flexible nature of the hours worked (e.g. answering phones / email outside of normal working hours) and the lack of interruptions / meetings / politics etc

Downside

The downside is a lack of supervision, planning and co-ordination of workflow and effort. If you are physically not 'around' it makes it a little harder for managers to ensure everybody is on the same page.

For the employee, there is a lack on immediate support, feedback and the potential for feeling isolated, excluded and out 'of-the-loop'.

Time Management

You also have to be careful in managing your work time as separate from your home and family life. If you can't separate the two you risk never having a reasonable break from your work. If your work time is not clearly defined and understood you may unintentionally put pressure on your closest relationships.

Manageable

Many of these issues are manageable e.g. regular meetings, days spent in the office. Much depends upon whether your employer has a policy on working from home (there are also a few technicalities to sort out such as insurance and work cover) and whether any of your colleagues are exercising the same option.

Responsibilities

If you are the only employee working from home you may need to take on some of the managerial responsibilities yourself to ensure good outcome for all concerned.

Manage Your Boss

Manage your boss, or if you are your own boss, get yourself organised. Make an effort to keep in touch. Make a point of ringing into the office regularly rather than wait for your boss and/or subordinates to ring you.

Going casual

What if you don't have permanent job or have an indifferent or unco-operative employer? We have all seen those ads that promise the earth "You to could earn $$$$ working from home! Is there anything to them? We will tackle this next issue in our forthcoming article ""Casual Work At Home"

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Article Tags: casual work, make money at home, making money online, selfemployment, stay at home, working for yourself, working from home



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Re: What is Your Favorite Thing About Owning A Business? - [quote="freddyb45":1t3lpfi8]For me it's the fact that all the time and effort you put in is worth a lot more, due to it making you "business" more profitable. Working for yourself is also a positive, although employing people you can trust is quite different.[/quote:1t3lpfi8] I like this idea. Working for yourself means you are investing in your own future, not someone else's, although there is value in working for someone else first to gain experience and confidence. Working for yourself does not automatically mean success, fame and fortune. For most entrepreneurs, it takes much work and dedication to get to the point of financial success and comfort - sometimes years. But the benefit is, again, you know you are investing in yourself and building equity for your own future. GT :-]
Re: Trade Shows - Are They Worth It? - HI, I have used trade shows (not participated) to collect potential clients. For example, the Home & Garden Industry is extremely behind the time in regards to their websites. I attended an Home & Garden Expo in Denver and collected all the companies contact information. I plan on cold calling & mailing information to each business. It also gave me time to research the industry more, talk directly to the owners in many cases, and learn more about what they need. Jeff
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Me Too - So.... - I write. Its a form of 'pull' marketing that suits me, though I'm quite an outgoing person. I know all the stuff about it not being me, 'they're just not ready yet'. Truth is I'm not good with rejection and will walk if I get too much of it - so I do it differently. Each to his own I guess. Still, I wish I had the guts to do those 500, just to say 'I did it'! Will read that article!
Re: What is Your Favorite Thing About Owning A Business? - For me it's the fact that all the time and effort you put in is worth a lot more, due to it making you "business" more profitable. Working for yourself is also a positive, although employing people you can trust is quite different.


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