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

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

Defining Work At Home Job vs Work At Home Business

I think one of the hardest thing some people deal with is differentiating the terms work at home job and work at home business. These two terms are different and shouldn’t be use interchangeably. Even the words job and scam are often used broadly and are thrown around far too casually.

Work at home job refers to working for a virtual employer. Jobs include customer service, transcription, writing, IT support, virtual assistant, and so on.

Work at home business refers to MLM, direct sales, and other business or money making opportunities or programs.

Unfortunately, every day someone is misled. Terms for work at home jobs shouldn’t be used when one is promoting a business, yet many business people think it’s a smart tactic to use to build their team. Lying or providing misinformation doesn’t make you a smart business person; it makes you dishonest and that can’t be good for you or your business.

Far too often when people ask for a work at home job and specifically state no investment or upfront fees they mean they don’t want a work at home business opportunity. They want specific tasks, set hours and set pay.

The truth is work at home job and work at home business are not the same thing and they are treated and done differently.

~Sophia

Work At Home Job: The Employer Side

I had the pleasure of helping a friend spread the word on a couple of open work at home positions. Since these positions didn’t interest me, I wanted to pay it forward because I know there are so many people looking for a remote job.

I went to two of the most high trafficked work at home forums and posted the job ad. It didn’t take long for my private message box to be inundated with responses. I knew I would get a good response from these two particular forums.

I’m far from being an employer looking for the right candidate, but I had a slight taste of what it would be like if I was an employer or recruiter.

There were a few things that stuck out for me. The very importance of reading the job ad completely and I know I’ve blogged and said this many times. It was clear I was not the direct hiring party. I understand some things can be a simple misunderstanding of written words, but when there is a mention of two different names it’s a clear indication I’m not the hiring contact person.

Putting myself in the employer’s chair for the very brief time I found I didn’t have time to waste. I had my own work to do. Websites to maintain, blogging, writing, ghostwriting, anwering emails and private messages and the list goes on. This brings me to the second point.

When there are specific instructions on the job posting make sure you can be easily reached. For the two positions I posted, PM (private message) was the easiest route for me to pass out details. I didn’t have time to open my email because someone didn’t have their PM enabled. It’s frustrating because if you can PM me, I should be able to PM you back. It’s a lot easier to do everything in one place.

Some may not agree with me on this, but employers are very busy people and they aren’t there to hand-hold and guide you through some very simple steps like how to send a PM. There are other people to help you with that like the forum admin or moderators. I came across responses that sounded like these, “I don’t know how to send a PM. Can you send me a PM with the details?” or “I’m very interested. Please send me a PM with your details.”

As a work at home job seeker it’s your responsibility to follow instructions and apply accordingly. It’s not proper to ask the employer or recruiter to contact you. Most times, you will be ignored. And I did just that. I simply don’t have time and I highly doubt employers have that much time on their hands. I wasn’t impressed and how many employers do you think would feel the same way?

I now understand why employers or recruiters are reluctant to post jobs on a work at home forum for the reasons listed above. The other reason being that some people become snarky and it doesn’t matter who you’re dealing with an employer, a recruiter, a representative of the company or in my case, a helpful messenger there’s no need to give attitude. Period.

Keep in mind, you’re the one looking for a work at home job and the employer is the one holding the position/s. It can be a win-win situation, but not if you’re going to give an attitude or be snarky. Be professional and courteous at all times.

~Sophia

Just a side note: I dealt with a lot of wonderful people, but there was just the odd one or two that as Shania Twain would sing, “That don’t impress me much.”

Work At Home Job Scams: Look For The Red Flags

There are many different ways to figure out if a work at home job lead is a scam or not. Many of the tell tale signs come from the ad alone. For instance:

- You can make $300 in just two hours! No experience necessary.

- Part-time customer service, data entry job. Available for 2-3 hours per day. $30/hr. Minimum typing speed 25 wpm.

- Administrative Assistant, work part-time. Set your own schedule, earn from $15.32 – $19.22/hr.

You can see the scam pattern here because common sense says that’s too good to be true and it is.

Besides the obvious, I’ve come across a lot of legitimate sounding job leads. The rate per hour is decent, the required amount of hours expected is reasonable and the ad itself just sounds right. But it’s far from being reputable.

A blind ad is when the employer doesn’t mention the company name or any of its details. The email address where you apply is from the job posting board. So that makes it fairly difficult to do your research. Remember, once you send out your resume with your personal information, there’s no turning back. In this case, your name and email address is sufficient.

If you receive an email response be certain it is a legitimate job offer before you sign off on any documents or provide sensitive details. By now you should know the name of the company, the recruiter’s name and more of the job requirements. Common sense and intuition should always be your guide.

This is where your research may end because there’s just something not right in the job description or the recruiter’s name happens to be Casper Ghost and the CEO’s name is…Belcher Wack Wack. Okay, Belcher Wack Wack is way extreme and exaggerated, but this is what scammers come up with for names.

Location is a huge part too. Overseas locations are really iffy and I wouldn’t put a lot of trust in it.

Take your time to thoroughly research the company and its people. It will always pay off.

~Sophia

Work At Home Job Leads: Jan 12

I know it’s been a long time since I’ve posted work at home job leads. I also know the start of a new year there’s not a whole lot of exciting job leads to post. A lot of them look pretty crappy to me and I didn’t feel it was worth posting or let alone worth your time to fully research them.

I hope this year you will find the work at home job you’re looking for or at least have a few eggs in your basket.

Bookkeeper – McLean, VA
Graphic Designers
Writers For 2010 Olympics – Researched
Data Entry – Everett
Data Entry Specialist
Freelance Writers – Researched
Customer Service Reps – Researched – Denver, Houston, Nashville
General Virtual Administrative Assistant – Researched
Experienced Virtual Real Estate Administrative Assistant – Researched
Book Reviews
Article Writers
Author Interviews

~Sophia

How To Successfully Answer Tough Telecommute Job Interview Questions

A job interview is a natural process in a telecommute job search. It doesn’t matter how many job interviews you’ve done it doesn’t get easier because every company have different questions to ask.

I’m assuming you have practiced for your most commonly asked questions like, “Why do you want to work from home?” I’m sure you have the answer down pat, but don’t get caught in complete silence when it comes to responding to other tough job interview questions that may arise.

What motivates you at a job?
Give an example that relates to a previous job. Is customer service your top priority? Was it to help solve a problem or overcome a challenge? Maybe it’s the job stability or the personal growth the company offers its independent contractors.

How do you deal with gossip at a workplace?
Even though you work in a virtual environment there is still workplace gossip. You will eventually hear it through the grapevine or it’s talked about on a work at home forum. Explain how you feel about gossip, how you would handle it and what you would do.

What can you bring to our company?
If the company is focused on team work and creativity then let the interviewer know you possess those skills and you have the personality traits to complement the company.

Why do you want to work for us?
Of course you can’t say because they pay more than ABC Company. Make sure you have researched the company thoroughly. Was there something the company did or accomplished that made an impression on you? Or did you find you liked where the growth of the company was headed?

Why should we hire you?
It may seem obvious to reiterate your strengths, skills and experience, but it’s not necessary. Tell them what they don’t know about you.

Are you a leader or a follower?
You don’t want to imply negatives in either role so be aware of what you’re saying. The best is to give examples of when you were in a leadership role and explain how you work well in a team environment.

If I called your previous employer, what three things would he say about you?
Tell your interviewer about an accomplishment or idea you came up with and they used.

Explain what this job entails.
Keep it brief and list the responsibilities and tasks of the position.

What goals have you set and accomplished?
If you don’t have a professional accomplishment, then think of a personal achievement that relates to your skills or experience. It may be something you taught yourself how to do or you had a successful fundraising event.

Why did you choose to work in this industry?
Tell them how you became interested and how your skills, your commitment and professional goals match what they are looking for.

Preparation and knowledge is the key. These can be some of the tough job interview questions you’re faced with. If you really know yourself, these questions should be easy to answer. Take the time to review them and expect other similar difficult questions that may pop up on your next job interview.

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

Work At Home Job Seekers: Reading Is Important

It never ceases to amaze me why people refuse to completely read and comprehend a job listing.

I’ve said it so many times finding a telecommute job is so hard and I know people realize it, but they don’t really get it and they wonder why they don’t get a response or offered an interview.

“You never know until you try” isn’t applicable to everything. If you’re applying for a job, it’s so important to read the job listing from top to bottom. If you don’t qualify in any given requirement, do not apply! The qualifications are there for a reason. Don’t waste your time or the employer’s time. Not only would you be wasting their time, you would like an incompetent job seeker who can’t follow instructions.

Take the time to read the job listing and not skim through it. If you want to work from home, then you have to take finding a job seriously.

“Oops, I didn’t know I had to live in the North Pole or have a bachelor’s degree. Darn, I just applied!”

It really doesn’t work too well when the employer reads you live in Timbuktu…that is if it doesn’t hit the trash first.

Ways To Get Work At Home Job Experience

I think it’s one of the most frustrating things a person can go through. How are you suppose to get job experience if no one will give you a chance?

What I have found when you are looking for a telecommute job, you really do need some skills and or experience. Even if the ad says, “No experience necessary.” you still have to have something.

If working from home is really what you’re looking for, here are some suggestions on how you can gain more experience if you have little or none.

1. Get more education. You have to invest in your learning if you want to get ahead and get good paying work at home jobs. It’s more competitive when you’re looking for a telecommute job because there are not enough jobs and they are many people who are more qualified than you.

Look to your community colleges, community centers or search online. Be careful with the online schools if you’re looking out of your home town.

2. If it’s possible work outside the home for a year. You can count volunteer work as job experience. Keep in mind the job position so you can use this experience for when you start searching for a work at home job.

3. Writing jobs are really out there and you can start in the lower paying companies. I understand that getting paid $5 for an article is very cheap, but you may want to rethink this if you’ve never had anything published before and you’re brand new to writing. Writing is a good way to get experience in something.

4. People hear transcription and they start to freak out. General or legal transcription is your aim and you don’t need any specialized training. You need to have a good ear, fast typing speed and accuracy. It’s something to look into and I recommend having at look at AccuTran Global.com.

5. You can also apply for jobs that don’t require a lot of skill or experience. Granted you won’t be paid big bucks, but you will get experience. Use your own judgement as you don’t want to be working 40+ hours for less than minimum wage.

I always say keep an open mind. There are a variety of ways to work in the comfort of your own home. The question is how open are you to other ideas? Some people are adamant that they don’t want a home business. A home business doesn’t mean you have to sell someone else’s products or services. What are your passions or interests?

Take the time and think about it.

~Sophia

Work At Home Job Leads: Nov 24

When it comes to looking for a telecommuting job, the key is to not get discouraged. It requires a lot of patience and perserverance. Some times a bad interview or reject email can be a downer, but pick yourself up and keep forging ahead. It’s tiring and demanding, but if you want to work from home, then there’s a position out there for you. You just have to keep looking and keep being positive.

Internet Researcher – Researched
Data Entry – San Antonio
Radiology Coder – Telecommute for Missouri residents
Scanner – Upper East Side, NY
Online Content Editor/Writer/Blogger – Homebased Palo Alto, San Francisco, or Burlingame
Website Designer
Writers For Online Magazine – Researched
Customer Service – Researched Norcross, GA
Bilingual Online Support Agents – Researched
Contract Telephone Interviewer – Researched
Telephone Sourcers – Researched
F/T or P/T Virtual Recruiters – Researched

Good luck in your job search!

~Sophia