The Secret to Finding a Legit Work at Home Job

Living on one income isn’t easy.  Most stays at home moms know that at-home jobs are hard to come by! Well, I have some good news and some bad news!

The Good News

Nearly 4 million people work at home at least part-time as an employee.  Even Better: Nearly 40 million people are sustaining their families on blogging alone. 40 Million folks.

Statistics* show that 60% of companies plan to increase their blog advertising in the upcoming years. The Bottom Line: There is money to be made.

The Bad News

Finding legitimate opportunities sometimes feels completely impossible.  It seems like every link that you click on leads you to another spam site that wants you to give them your credit card info!

  I’ve spent so many hours, days, weeks, and months searching through these sites and I’ve realized that everything legitimate out there can be placed in 3 basic categories.

Freelance and MicroJobs

Both freelance and micro-jobs are a way of earning money for short term jobs.  I’m sure you’ve heard of freelance writing, but there are really a ton of positions open for freelance jobs.

After all, there are 40 million bloggers out there who are hiring people to help them write, edit, design, and even run their social media. You could literally get paid for pinteresting all day!

Micro Jobs are slightly different in that they are usually EXTREMELY short term and pay small amounts.  For example, my husband signed up with a Playtestcloud where he tests games on his iPhone and leaves his review.

Each review pays between $3- $30.  He’s not getting rich doing this but he enjoys it! You absolutely could work at home full time with micro-jobs but you will need to sign up with many different companies.

A quick word of caution: this is the category where you will find the most spammers- tread lightly and always read multiple blog reviews before giving your info out!

Bottom Line:  If you’re looking for something to sustain you that you can count on to be stable, you may want to steer clear of micro-jobs.. but looking into freelancing as an entrepreneur could be!

HOURLY JOBS

Most positions in this category are in the telecommunications field. Unfortunately, these are also the types of jobs that are most sought after. People tend to prefer the stability of this type of work at home job, you may find it difficult to nail down a position. 

Typically, you must submit a resume or application to get the job and you may have to enter 100 resumes before getting one response. Also to note, Hourly work at home positions tend to pay smaller amounts than you would find in the “real world.”  Although, with the right education it is possible to find decent hourly pay.

Less traditional hourly jobs can blur the lines between hourly and entrepreneur. For example, If you’re a stay-at-home mom with a bachelor’s degree in ANY field, you may want to pursue an hourly position with VIPKID.

You will be paid by the hour, but work is on a 1099 basis, putting you in control of your own hours and wages. Also, don’t overlook the typical options like babysitting or doing laundry for neighbors.    

If you are looking for guaranteed income and you are not interested in “get rich quick” schemes.  You may like this category!

Just remember that in most cases you will be required to work set hours with no loud noises or distractions, so if you have toddlers, this wouldn’t be a fit unless you can make arrangements for childcare.

BECOME AN ENTREPRENEUR

If you are interested in replacing a full-time income or you just don’t like the amount of money you can make through other online options, becoming an online entrepreneur may be right for you!

There are SOOOOOO many ways to do this that I couldn’t possibly list them all in one post. Stay at home moms are not strangers to this concept at all!  For years, stay at home moms have started their own direct sales businesses, sometimes earning a full-time income.

I’m happy to say that now there are many options for women who just don’t like direct sales! For example, If you decide to start a blog and are willing to put in time, effort, and some small investments, you can absolutely grow a blog into a 6 figure salary!

If you’re not interested in the time and effort it takes to start up a blog, but you are willing to invest a little money into a business, then consider checking out e-commerce or dropshipping.

You can earn well over 100,000/year in either market.  In all honestly, IF YOU HAVE MONEY TO INVEST, this is one of the most easily profitable industries out there!   I could probably list 100 more online start-up ideas but for now, I digress.

Bottom Line: Being an entrepreneur offers unlimited earning potential but it isn’t for everyone.  You have to have a glass half full mindset and be willing to work for little to nothing for a while!