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November 2011 Moms
kurokai
member
work from home jobs?
kurokai
member
What fields offer jobs like this? What sort of training is required? I'm looking into career options for my future.
I'm almost finished with my 2-year General Science degree and am thinking about going back for a 2-year Business Administration degree. I've also been seriously thinking about military, i.e. the Coast Guard, because I'm just so used to that way of life, it offers great benefits, and it's something that has always interested me.
I'm just curious as to what you ladies that work from home actually do, simply because I haven't been exposed to such.
ETA: wording
This discussion has been closed.
Re: work from home jobs?
I am extremely lucky to have stumbled upon my job... I work in Marketing and Public Relations. I basically do everything I went to college for (studied Journalism and Advertising), in that I get to write, do graphic design, manage email campaigns, etc. I randomly applied to my job after finding a posting on a job board, and thought I'd never hear back. I literally just fell into it.
Some other fields that I imagine would have some WFH opportunities would be medical transcription, customer service, telemarketing...
To be honest, working from home sounds like it would be wonderful from the outside, but it does have its downfalls. Like:
- It is lonely, so if you like to interact with people it can get to be depressing.
- You need to maintain an office space in your home, which can be a huge pain. Also, I am required to purchase all of my own office supplies and do not get reimbursed (including internet).
- If you get easily distracted, it's safe to say the it's not for you because there are about a million distractions in my day.
- If you have pets, they can be very distracting - especially dogs barking while you're on the phone.
- Miscommunications happen frequently when you work mostly through email...I get easily irritated with my boss and coworkers in ways I would not if we were in an office.
- Unless you are very structured, it is easily to sleep in or not shower for 2 days. There is nothing motivating you to get up and get dressed, since you have no office to go to.
- You get screwed on some benefits, like FMLA. And, some people think there is a great tax benefit, but there is not.
There are a lot more that I can't even think of. However, I don't think I would ever go back to working in an office. Despite all the downsides, I LOVE working from home. But, like I said in the other post today, it's not for everyone and you have to be the right personality to do it for sure.
Sorry for the long response. You get a cookie for reading this far!
I telecommuted for 2.5 years; it was an agreement with my old company. I think most legit work-from-home jobs or telecommuting jobs will depend on the employers flexibility and where they want their employees based.
Also, it was in my contract that I had to have daycare while working from home.
Yeah I know. I'm just trying to say that I'm looking into other options as well. Suppose I should reword.
This too! People say to me all the time "Oh, you are so lucky - you have the perfect job to raise kids!" Umm, yeah no. How could I get any work done and have a small child at home? My infant will have to go to daycare after 8 weeks, just like everyone else!
I'm a software engineer.
~Working Mom~Breastfeeding Mom~Cloth Diapering Mom~BLW Mom~
Blog - No Longer on the DL ~ The Man Cave
Shawn and Larissa
LO #1 - Took 2 years and 2 IVFs ~ DX - severe MFI mild PCOS homozygous MTHFR (a1298c)
LO #2 - TTC 7 months, surprise spontaneous BFP!
You could check this site out too. I've never used it myself, but I've scanned it a few times and it seems legit: https://www.wahm.com/
If nothing else, it might give you some ideas for job opportunities.
I work in healthcare marketing and have the ability to work from home, however, for a lot of the reasons outlined above by PPs, I choose to go into the office instead.
I have the flexibility work form home when needed. It is so much harder to work at home then in the office. IMO.
My job is National Sale Support for a Sale team at a marketing company.
I have worked from home for about 4.5 years now, but prior to that, I was working in our main office, so I guess I can say I've experienced the best of both worlds, so to speak (I'm a non-profit grant writer). While working from home certainly has it's perks, I really do miss the daily interaction with co-workers, getting dressed in professional clothes, and some of the employee benefits (work parties and lunches, etc). I actually fell into working from home because my husband is in the military, and we were being relocated out of state. A word of caution though: one of the biggest obstacles in working from home is getting people to understand that while I might be at home all day, I am not free to accept visitors, I can't dash out in the middle of the day to run errands, and I'm not a "lazy housewife"...grrr, but all in all, I love what I do regardless of the location!
My best friends mom works from home- she is a website designer.
My SO's parents originally started their buisness from home but had to move to an office when they got bigger. His dad is a computer programmer. He works from home sometimes though.
You could run a day-care from your home.
My step-dad is a set dresser and does about 50/50 from home and at the studios.
I'd check your local board too and see if there are any women working from home. I know that sounds counter-intuitive, but there are a lot of business that will want to meet you or see you once in awhile so actually being local would be a plus.
I've worked from home for close to 6 years for two different companies. It really isn't for everyone, most people I know would go crazy. It is isolating, you can fall into the trap of never doing anything to yourself which can make your self esteem plummet, and it takes a lot of discipline and prioritization because you typically don't have anyone breathing down your neck to get things accomplished - not like you would in an office. You just have to figure out what type of work environment works best with your personality.
I'm the director of ops for a finance company, previously I did operations and event management for a consulting company.
I went to school for Social Work.. however, during my schooling my Fi was injured very badly in an auto accident. For the last 5 years i've worked from home doing home care for him. So my at-home-job is a little different then the other ladies.
There are definitely pro's and con's. To me- i can pretty much plan anything during a "work" day such as dr appointments, family events, vacation, etc. However, i work 12 hour/day, 7 days/week. So regardless of what my day entails, my FI is almost ALWAYS with me. In the event that there is family emergency, etc i can take "time off" from my paper work, errands to focus on my family. -however, i'm not sure if this is true for all at-home-workers.
i agree definitely with the PP's cons: it's very easy to get side tracked and "forget" to do a project, paperwork, faxes, etc. family life can be a HUGE distraction (as i mentioned above in my pros). and in my situation, my Fi is disabled and unable to work. therefore, we are ALWAYS together. and i love him to death, however, it's very difficult to be with someone 24/7. It's also very easy to get into a slump. I have been very depressed on numerous occasions through the years. It's easy to wake up, not shower until bedtime and hang in PJs all day. yes, that sounds awesome (and admittedly some days it is)... but it really takes a hit to your self esteem. Why wake up, put clothes on, make up, etc to just sit home? i'd much rather be comfy... but then you get in a funk. So it's definitely a downfall to the job.
Unlike some of the other ladies, my job requirements are obviously different. I will be able to care for LO while caring for my Fi. i have been taking care of my step kids for 5 years, while juggling the two. Most of my days are not filled with being at the computer all day... many days we are at Dr's appointments, attending surgeries, etc.
It's definitely that sounds so appealing. and i love working from home... but miss social interaction. if i had to choose, i'd pick my home job, as it gives me the flexibility i like. but i think for my mental state it'd be nice to be away from home a couple days a week. plus it's very stressful on your relationship (well, in my case in particular since we are always together).