Work At Home Job Tips: Smaller Gigs Can Lead To Bigger Jobs

Some people think accepting smaller, low paying gigs aren’t worth their time and I agree and disagree. Here’s why…

Only you know what’s good for you and your financial situation. No one should say to another that accepting XYZ job is not worth the time. Of course, you’ll have to evaluate how long it will take for you to perform the job and it could be well worth your while.

There are smaller gigs that pay decent and are simple and offer a lot of flexibility. They don’t require a lot of experience and often if you stick with them, they open doors to other paying opportunities or jobs that offer higher paying wages.

It’s true what they say. Little things add up quickly and this also applies to smaller paying gigs.

~Sophia

Organizing Your Online Job Search

Being an active job seeker requires organization. People often don’t keep track and if they do, they don’t think of putting a lot of information of the companies they apply with.

When you work virtually, some companies take a long time to get back to you. It doesn’t mean you should forget about them because they may have open positions at a later date, but would you remember what position you applied for two months from now?

There are different ways you can keep track of your online job searches. Using a spreadsheet like Excel works beautifully. You can also use Word or resort to the old-fashioned way — pen and notebook which eventually your information will become stale and the bookkeeping becomes messy.

Keeping the information on your computer is convenient, but make sure you have hard copies and back ups.

JibberJobber.com is a free web database for job seekers to organize their job searches. It’s more functional than using Excel and since it’s not something you download to your computer, it won’t get accidentally deleted or lost.

You can do so much at JibberJobber.com and it’s not just keeping track of where you applied, but you can also keep track of the people you have networked with.

JibberJobber allows you to keep track of the information you collect during a job search. Track the companies that you apply to (Target Companies). Track each job that you apply for, and log the status of each application (date of first interview, date thank you letter sent, etc.). Want to know where you sent your different resumes? Use JibberJobber to keep track of it!

How you manage and organize your job search online is critical in finding a job. Don’t let jobs pass you by because you forgot to send a follow up or look silly for applying three times to the same company within the same month.

Stay organized and on top of your online job searches.

~Sophia

Vacation or Staycation When You Work At Home

People who don’t work at home think that people who do work from home are on a constant vacation. Hey, I can understand where they are coming from, but I know they are wrong.

Yes I work from home and I have complete control of what I do and when I do it with my business, but it doesn’t mean I don’t have a routine or schedule I follow on a daily basis. It’s kind of difficult to reach my target market if they are all sleeping, isn’t it?

With that being said, it equally important to take time off and unplug during the summer months or when you really need it. It’s called balance and we all need balance to function in a healthy way.

You can reduce your hours of work or you can re-arrange your schedule — work 4 hours in the morning and break in the early afternoon or use downtime as filler time to work on the non-computer aspects of your business. Figure out what works for you, but don’t miss out on the fun things life has to offer.

If you can’t take a vacation, then take a staycation and rediscover your hometown with your family and friends.

~Sophia

Job Searching – 8 Stress Fighting Tips

Searching for a work at home job isn’t going to get easier as it will always be challenging. The stress that comes with job searching can be overwhelming, but there are eight stress fighting tips you can use to keep stress at the minimum.

1. Get into the habit of planning out your day and make it a routine so you’re using your time wisely and effectively. You may be spending an hour job searching online, take a break and then network in the afternoons. Find a system that works for you.

2. Network offline too even though you’ll be working virtually. Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn are all top online networking sites, but there’s nothing like networking in person and making new connections. Many jobs are not advertised publicly and this gives you the chance to socialize and bring more awareness to employers who don’t offer telecommuting.

3. Setting goals in your daily life is something everyone should do and without it you don’t achieve much. They don’t have to be big goals, but enough to say you have accomplished what you needed to do today.

4. Have a support system that will encourage you when you don’t get that customer service job that you thought you were more than qualified for. Your support system is also there to motivate you, to keep you accountable and to offer advice.

5. Keep updated on the telecommuting news job front. You can find which companies are experiencing growth and have job openings, which companies are moving from Independent Contractor to employee status etc. You can do this via their RSS feed on their blogs, newsletters, on their social networking sites or through Google Alerts.

6. Stay productive by keeping yourself busy. When you’re not job searching, focus on projects you have at home by finishing these tasks as it gives you a sense of fulfillment. You can volunteer your time in the community; who knows this may lead to a work at home job. If you sit around the house and do nothing then it’s a waste of time and this can lead to unhealthy habits.

7. Learn to accept rejection and quickly get over it. Remember it’s not you personally, it’s just you’re not the right fit for what the employer is looking for. This is why you have a support system in place.

8. Give yourself a breather. There has to be a life balance. Do what makes you happy like spending time with family and friends, meditate, go running or whatever.

Naturally job searching is stressful, but using these eight tips it can alleviate some of the problems you may be experiencing. Having a positive attitude, self-confidence and keeping your stress levels down will make the job searching task more bearable.

S McIntyre is the founder of WorkAtHomeSpace.com, a free work at home resource focusing on providing work at home company listings, daily telecommute job leads, articles, ghostwriting services, business resources and other work at home related topics.

Work At Home Tip: Don’t Put All Your Eggs In One Basket

One thing I’ve learned about working from home is to never put your eggs into one basket and many people don’t. How do they manage all their jobs? Some people are great multi-taskers and even if you’re not, you adjust to your working schedule.

Depending on your work at home jobs they could be extremely flexible. Besides running my two websites and a couple of blogs, I also ghostwrite and have another smaller gig that doesn’t matter when I complete the job as long as it gets done and if I don’t complete it, I don’t get paid it’s very simple in that way.

Some supplement their primary income with affiliate marketing, a direct sales business or other freelancing jobs. Diversify your income stream as you never know what may happen, but don’t spread yourself out too thin either.

~Sophia

Work At Home Tips: Patience Is A Virtue

One thing I’ve noticed a lot when people apply for a telecommuting job is they expect instant replies. What they don’t realize is that the employer have thousands of resumes to go through and they won’t be able to email everyone with a response.

Not all employers use autoresponders for the canned reply, “Thank you, we’ve received your application…blah, blah, blah.”

It’s not unheard of to hear from an employer months from now for a job you applied for months ago. It could simply be a new position opening. Whatever the case may be don’t let it bother you. Be sure to keep track of how, where, when, why and who you applied for so if they do come knocking on your door, you’re not taken by surprise.

And if they aren’t looking for you, then keep looking for yourself. Be consistent and patient in your job hunt because something soon will come your way.

~Sophia

Illegal Interview Questions The Interviewer Can’t Ask You

Besides having to answer tough interview questions what may stump you even more is illegal interview questions. There are questions an job interviewer can’t ask, but they do and you have the right to refuse them.

Just like on a job application you don’t have to divulge your marital status, number of children, date of birth, nationality, religious background etc. While these are more straight to the point, some hiring Human Resources may try to go another route of asking these illegal questions. There are many more, but here are some variations:

1. How’s your health?
2. Do you plan to start a family soon?
3. Are you authorized to work in the US or Canada (or other country)?
4. Where were you born?
5. Do you attend church?
6. Do you observe (holiday)?
7. How many times have you missed work due to illness or family emergencies in the last year?
8. What social organizations do you belong to?
9. What was your first language spoken at home?
10. When do you plan to retire?

If you choose to answer any of the illegal questions, be careful in how you answer them. I often hear employers ask “Tell me about yourself.” Don’t go into the spiel of stating your age or emphasizing how young your children are etc.

On the other hand if you refuse, do it tactfully. Don’t flat out say, “I refuse to answer.” You can say something like, “That’s an unusual question. I’ve never been asked that before.”

There are ways around it by choosing your words carefully so you’re not directly answering or not answering their illegal questions. Keep in mind too; do you really want to work for a company who is discriminatory?

~Sophia

What Not To Do When You’re Job Hunting

It happens even in the virtual world. One day you find you have been laid off and you don’t have another telecommute job to fill the gap. It can be depressing and worrisome. The important thing is to keep the focus and start applying.

Here’s what not to do when you’re between jobs and job hunting.

1. Sleep in
Get up the same time when you had a job. When you sleep in you’re wasting precious time to network. Procrastination may also set in.

2. Watching daytime TV
Talk shows, soap operas, game shows…they all suck up time and they can be addictive.

3. Going to bed late
Which would result in doing #1. Just not a good idea.

4. Free for all
Try to maintain a work schedule even though you’re not working. Block times for writing cover letters, researching companies, applying, networking etc.

Also take the time to update your resume and get out there and market yourself!

~Sophia

Who’s Taking Care of Business If You Die?

Recently I went out and bought a new steno book because my old one had information all over the place. You couldn’t tell which one was my current password to my cPanel let alone to which website it belongs to.

If I should suddenly die, my husband would have no clue how to access any of my accounts or make any sense of the many passwords I have casually listed in my steno book. He didn’t even know the username and password to our online banking! It’s not a surprise because I take care of all our household bills and he really doesn’t have a reason to know, but that isn’t right. He should know regardless.

And if you have business partners or people you have appointed to take control, they should have the necessary information to access your business accounts.

It’s not something we often think about, but…

Who’s going to take care of your business if you die?
Will they continue to run your business for you?
Do they have access to your online accounts?

I wouldn’t want my husband to be burdened with all of this. I want to make it as accessible to him as possible. My new steno book will be filled with all the information he needs and in an orderly manner. It will be updated as necessary.

Maybe this should be called a “Will of your Business”. Are you prepared for the unexpected?

~Sophia

Work At Home Job Leads: Apr. 2

Customer Service – Researched – Must live in Oregon
Customer Service – Researched. Must live in these States Arizona, Delaware, Florida, Illinois ,Montana, New Hampshire New Mexico, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Texas, Oregon, and Virginia
Inside Sales – Must be able to attend training in Columbia, MD
Temp Data Entry – Pick up and return West Berkeley
Technical Recruiter/Sourcer
Business/Technology Freelance Writer
Customer Service Agents – Researched

Have a Happy Easter!

~Sophia

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