Work-at-Home Freelance Writing

If you’re one of those people who’ve always dreamed of being a writer, you may want to consider being a freelance writer. Here’s what you’ll need to know before starting a career in the freelance writing field.

  1. It’s hard work.
    You may actually have to spend more hours working at home than if you work in an office. You’ll have to hustle up your own clients, make sure they pay you and pay you on time, do your own taxes, and set your own rates. You are your own boss, true, but that means you’ll have to whip yourself into shape. Working at home requires an intense amount of self-discipline.
  2. You won’t always get to write about what you want.
    Especially when you’re just starting out, you’ll learn quickly to write what pays. This does NOT mean you should “sell out.” It means that you may have to write product descriptions of vacuum cleaners before you can write about interior decorating. We all have to start somewhere. Don’t snub your nose too much at these types of jobs: you’ll be thankful you did them when your paycheck comes in. Slowly, you’ll start to work your way into what you REALLY want to write about.
  3. You’ll get burned a couple times by clients over your career.
    The world of freelance writing is filled with serious clients who are upstanding and honest. Unfortunately, not every client meets these standards. There are times when you’ll do work for a client and you won’t get paid, or you won’t get paid as much as you previously agreed upon. You may even be in the middle of a project and you have a client seemingly fall off the face of the earth: they won’t return your phone calls, emails, etc. This happens to even the best of freelance writers. Just be prepared for it.
  4. You’ll face much more distractions at home than you would in an office.
    Being your own boss provides you a great deal of freedom. Unfortunately, it’s also a freedom to do housework or hobbies instead of writing.

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Stay Focused While Working at Home

Everyone has some preconceived notions about working at home that are probably incorrect. Do you picture yourself working in pajamas every day? Drinking fresh-brewed coffee and eating a homemade breakfast? Getting work done with positively no distractions whatsoever? Still having time to lounge about and get housework done? Working whenever you want to, however you want to? Well, all these things can be true for some people. None will be true for all. Working from home is often much, much harder than working in an office. While you may think your distractions will be eliminated because there aren’t any co-workers to pop their heads into your office with questions or gossip, your home contains many more distractions than your workplace. Think about that pile of laundry in the hall. Think about the stack of dishes in the sink. You’ll pass by that DVR filled with shows you’ve recorded. You may have other hobbies or interests that distract you. Face it: there are no knitting needles or woodworking tools at work. It’s a distraction-free space for you to get work done. Here are some tips to help your home life mimic the workplace.

  1. Set up your own workspace.
    You need some place free of distraction where you can go in and accomplish work. Your brain will associate that part of the house with work time. If you work in bed, on the couch, or at the kitchen table, your brain associates those parts of the house with other activities like sleeping, watching TV, or eating. NEVER work in bed, as you want your brain to associate your bed with a relaxed atmosphere. Work in bed and not only will you get tired, but you may find yourself lying awake at night worrying about your next deadline or project. Remove all distractions from that workspace.
  2. Make your family understand that they can’t bother you in your workspace.
    If you’re treating your home office like your workplace, a family member couldn’t walk in and ask if you’d seen the remote. When your home office door is closed, no contacting you except for emergencies.

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Operating Systems For The Stay At Home Job

Having good equipment can mean a world of different for the work at home mom or dad. Better yet, have a great running operating system can make your days work seem to be completed in a breeze. There are different operating systems that you can use for your home computer, and some that you want to stay away from, simply because they can not do the type of jobs you need. Some of the best include quick running word processing. The best version out right now is Windows 7. This has quickly replaced the Window issue riddled Vista, and the stay at home worker is grateful. Window 7 office package will help you to create fantastic presentations, and will be able to provide creative ideas through the help tools. The online clip art package makes creating presentations a snap, and before you know it, what should have taken a full day has only taken you a couple of hours. This processor is truly the best if you are looking to have a program that works for office type projects, writing, and presentation creation.

If you are working from home and your projects require you to have more media applications than word processing applications, for editing purposes, then the key is to have a solid media integration operating system. The best on the market is put together by MAC. While ACER, and even Blackberry are trying to compete with the media applications, there is still nothing that beats a MAC. This might be a hard change over, especially if you are used to a PC, but if you are working from home, and wanting to expedite the length of time you spend on projects, then this will be what you want to look into. It will help make the process a cleaner smoother and more efficient way to handle media.

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Networking While Working At Home

There are many things that you can do while working at home, and one of them is networking. It is important to see trends of the different types of work that become available, and how they play out regarding income, the type of employment, whether it is W-2 work, or 1099. This can help steer people into potential careers based on the type of income they can earn, and what is expected of them. This also is the equivalent of co-workers and with dealing with other that are doing the same thing as you, working from home. Networking also allows you to make connections so that if you need something, you have a guy for that, you have a problem, you will have a guy for that as well. Many contractors that work from home offer additional services that allow them to earn an income for providing assisting services. One the great ways to offer these skills up, is with online companies like Odesk.

Becoming familiar with sites such as DHWG, Digitial Home Working Group, can also make a big difference in your confidence as a stay at home worker. This sites offers suggestions, and can provide examples of issues that many people confront. if you are a stay at home mom, and working at the same time, sites like this can really help answer questions, or just give you suggestions so that the transition and the actual work do not consume your life. Along with this site are chat forums that you can join. These forums are just for the working at home person, and from here you can meet an amazing assortment of professionals, like yourself, that can provide great networking experiences. This way, the feeling of being alone in your job, or fretting over how this will continue, will be laid to rest. People have been working from home for years, and it is a growing trend.

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What Types Of Jobs Are Good For Work At Home Positions

If you are a parent, and have considered staying home with your children, but are hesitant because you do not know if you can afford it, maybe you should consider looking into opportunities that allow you to work from home, and still collect a decent wage. With you working from home, much of the overhead costs associated with travel, fuel costs, and even wardrobe are eliminated, therefore you could make a little less money, and still be contributing close to what you were prior to working from home. The beauty of this is that you able to call your own shots as well. If you find that you work best at night, then it is your choice to make your work schedule during those times. The accountability in working from home stems from production and meeting deadlines. Many times employers are not too specific on what hours you need to work, just as long as you are able to accomplish all of the tasks given to you. However, if you are with a company that is a strict 9-5 type, this might prove to be difficult, especially if you are to be in constant contact with certain members of your company.

Overall the ability to have a flexible schedule is a fantastic bonus for parents that choose to work from home. There was a story of a couple that were able to build a home, support their five children, and they did this from the comfort of their home office. The husband worked as a customer service supervisor, and the wife was online support. She never needed the phone, so she did not interrupt his job by making noise that did not sound like something you should hear. They have enjoyed this lifestyle for years, and even during economic hardships have found that their chosen careers remain stable.

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The Internet Has Changed Business Forever

The computer and Internet industries have boomed over recent decades from the expertise and ingenuity of many entrepreneurs and their inventions. In 1973, American scientist, Vinton Cerf invented the beginnings of Internet. Later in 1977, Dale Heatherington and Dennis Hayes invented a PC modem from which emerged the online internet industry of today. The creation of the World Wide Web in 1991 literally transformed the computer age and internet industry.

These landmark inventions have changed the face of modern business and personal networking by offering imperative tools for success. Businesses can better expand and improve by using these internet tools.

Among these are free online surveys which can be displayed on a majority of websites to glean customer feedback. Using free online survey software can significantly inform a business in which areas they need to improve and how to better meet specific needs of customers. Social networking can also boost the amount of viewers on a business’s website. Facebook and Twitter can help link businesses to other individuals and businesses. Also posting advertisements on websites and search engines is a relatively inexpensive way to get the word out about a business’s products and services. Websites that feature online stores allow businesses to keep costs low while also being a convenient means for customers to shop.

With computer and internet tools such as these, business and personal lives are being changed permanently. People don’t have to panic if local stores don’t have their ideal product in stock. They can turn to the Internet, locate the product online, and have it shipped conveniently to their home. All of this can be arranged without ever leaving the house. Also now, people don’t have to merely rely on word of mouth; rather, the internet can connect them and their business with customers worldwide. The Internet spans geographic boundaries like no other method of marketing has ever done.

The internet has changed life forever and will continue to do so.

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Stay Home Employee

There is the misconception that by working at home you must have a ton of free time. This could not be further from the truth. When you work at home you are consumed with work almost around the clock because it is so accessible. Your laptop is just in the other room, you have those reports to turn in, and there is nothing on television, so why not go work. This is a tough situation because it really is important that you have time for yourself, and that you create clear lines between work time and everything else time. For parents that work at home, this is absolutely necessary. If you find your self telling your children, “in a minute,” “almost done,” or the ever popular, “I will be there when I am done working,” and it happens to be on Sunday morning, then chances are you need to create a workable schedule so that you can have a life.

There are studies that show that a relationship, namely a marriage, needs to be nurtured and cared for or it can begin to whither and become strained. You are really no different. If you do not take care of yourself, and give yourself the rest that you need, you will become whithered and strained. As a result, your relationships suffer, because you have poorly prioritized your time. Try this, focus on a time limit of what work will be completed, and how long it will take to complete. If you are reasonable with these time allotments, you will find that you are much more satisfied in your productivity and in your efficiency, this will give you the relaxed mindset while you are not working, so that you can enjoy your time away from work. This is not something you will regret!

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Winding Down With Some Games

For the modern stay at home mom, there is always work to be done. Whether it is work around the house, freelancing work, yard work or something that the kids need, you could seriously spend all day, every day just working on this and that. And in the same vein, you could seriously drive yourself crazy if you just worked all of the time. Everybody needs to kick back, every now and again, and you are no different, no matter how much you feel like you should be wearing a cape. Come on, you deserve to play a few games. And what better kinds of games are there than online casino games, where you might actually win some extra money for what your family needs?

You can choose from all sorts of different games, just like you would play if you could find the time (and a sitter) to fly off to Vegas or Atlantic City. You can play video poker, hit the slot machines, and play roulette and blackjack, just as easily as you can download a little bit of software and sign up for the casino’s services. The entire process usually only takes a few minutes to do, and then you can be having a blast…and maybe even making a little bit of money, while you’re at it.

The entire process really is a very simple one. It all starts when you go to an online casino’s website. Once you’re there, you just download the software and install it. Then you sign up for an account of your own, and choose whether you want to play for money, or whether you just want to play for fun. While it’s always fun, it might be helpful for you to learn which games are your favorites before you start to make it “real.” After all, when you first start playing any kind of game, there is a learning curve. Try to learn to win.

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Working At Home

Many people are finding that with the competitive job market, there is still a lot of work to be had online. In fact, more and more people are bringing their work home with them because they are able to have the flexible schedule, and can spend more time with their families, while still making a living. This is important because in today’s society so many people lose out on the key moments in their families lives, due to working outside the home.

Some of the jobs that are appearing as work at home include blog writing, corporate training, and even work at home customer service agents. With the diversified work market, people are finding that they can easily maintain two or three separate jobs at one time, earning a full-time wage income, all from the comfort of their own home.

Why are companies hiring people from their homes to work for them? The answer is simple, money. It costs money to have a brick and mortar work site. This includes utilities, benefits programs, Workman’s compensation, and even OSHA regulations. With hiring, or contacting people to work out of their homes, this eliminates much of the overhead costs involved, companies are able to maintain their customer service, or quality standings, without sacrificing quality. This has helped families to also maintain their quality of life, if not improve it. In fact, many families are finding that they are able to spend more time together, because much of the work being done can be dictated by the individual, and with given due dates, people are allowed to be more flexible with their time. This means that if your daughter has a dance recital, or son a soccer game, your schedule can be built around events so that you can enjoy your family, but your work does not suffer.

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Thinking About Being a Stay At Home Mom

Stay at home moms might seem like a pretty straight forward job, but there is no denying that it’s always challenging. Many mothers who are looking into just staying at home with the kids might be thinking of the benefits only. There are an enormous amount of benefits to being at home and spending the formative years with your child. However, there are also disadvantages to it as well. If you are going to be the best mom you can be, and you think you are going to achieve that by staying at home, then you might want to think about the following before you go ahead and quit your job to take on the job of raising your kids.

Being a stay at home mom, just like being a regular mom, is often a thankless job. The hours are long and there isn’t a lot time for yourself. It’s easy to feel overwhelmed or stressed out by the sheer volume with which you have to work. While you love your kids and they love you, it’s a stress having to be with them all day everyday. Still, the benefits of being with your kids when they are young is great because it’s a time they can never get back.

Being a stay at home mom means being interactive. It’s never a babysitting job. A mother who works at home with her kids must be willing to engage the children just as much as she is willing to engage school children if she were an educator. Playing with children isn’t about letting them play. It’s about playing with them and hoping that they learn a little something along the way.

Don’t fear this job because the benefits of it outweigh the things that might be considered drawbacks. The chance to be with your child during their formative years is an amazing thing. Just know that it is much harder than it looks.

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