Working at/from Home – Series 1

Unemployment rates are up in many states. This means there are more people looking and competing for the jobs that are out there. So resumes that are submitted for the limited number of jobs have to be top-notch. If the “searcher” even makes it to the interview process he should consider it as his time to shine. He must leave the interviewer suitably impressed. But things don’t always work out as we plan and hope they will. Therefore, more and more “searchers” are looking for other means of getting income. One option to consider is working from home. There are pros and cons to making this move. A few words to the wise: DO YOUR RESEARCH. KEEP DETAILED AND ACCURATE RECORDS. In this post and some to follow, we thought we would write about “working at/from home issues”, offering our suggestions and ideas. Keep in mind that there are two sides to working from home: working at home for yourself or working from home for another individual or company. 

In this post we will be discussing the first steps in working at home. We will be adding additional posts to this series.

The first, and some say the hardest, step is to determine what you want to do – what kind of business, working full or part-time, sales or service industry, working alone or hiring others? It might be helpful to make a list of any interests or hobbies you have. This might be easy for some and harder for others. If you are having troubles, browse the hobby section in the library or flip through some job search brochures or books to get ideas.

If you can find a real passion in a particular area, it reduces the feeling of drudgery and you find you are working hard but enjoying it. If you are still at a total loss for choosing a line of business, check your unemployment offices or your local colleges for tests that are offered. These tests have no right or wrong answers but are scored through your likes and dislikes. They are vocational inventory tests and will give you some idea of what type of field you should enter. For example: if you score more as a person who likes to read and work alone, the test would suggest working in perhaps the research field. It’s interesting to see what professions are out there that suit your personality in terms of interests, likes, and dislikes.

Another idea is to ask family and friends what they see as your strong and/or weak points. Possibly this will put a different slant on how you see yourself. Sometimes we are good at things we don’t even realize and this might just jar some thoughts and options available. Perhaps you are a good listener, problem solver, cook, or have a green thumb.

But remember, keep moving forward. Good luck in your search.