[OT] Earning money online?

NakedPancakes · 05-17-2007, 05:51 PM

I have tried to find a job, but...no where near here is hiring. It's rediculous and I really need money soon, so...I've turned to the internets.

Anyone have any ideas?

Knitting_Guy · 05-18-2007, 02:43 AM

Be very very careful. There is a ton of scams out there.

Basic rule of thumb: if it sounds too good to be true, it is.

The best (and only) way to earn money via the internet is to start your own business or telecommute.

What are your skills? What kind of job are you looking for and what are you qualified to do?

Avoid anything that requires you to spend ANY money. Period. No legitimate company looking to hire someone will ask you for money.

NakedPancakes · 05-18-2007, 08:40 PM

Uhmm. I dunno. I'm a pretty good typer? I can do some html.

I'm really not too sure. xD

chiricahuagal · 05-19-2007, 12:40 AM

You need to check out Work Place Like Home - it's a great forum with lots of good info on working from home, the good, the bad and the ugly. I make about 90% of my income at home doing customer service by phone and email, and found everything I needed at the above forum.

They have forums for all kinds of income-producing things, including jobs as employees, jobs as independent contractors (which is what I do), home businesses, mystery shopping, paid-to-read or click.

Hope that helps you.

chiricahuagal · 05-19-2007, 12:44 AM

Quote:

Avoid anything that requires you to spend ANY money. Period. No legitimate company looking to hire someone will ask you for money.

Actually, that is not 100% true - many places that are completely legit will ask you to pay for background checks, or training, or other fees. I know this for a fact - I have done work-at-home for almost 2 years, and it is completely legit even though I have paid for these things. And it can be good money, made even better by the lack of expenses like commuting, work clothing and eating out for lunch.

Check out the above forum link - if it's a scam, those folks know about it.

Susan P. · 05-19-2007, 01:06 PM

A hiring company asks you to pay for a background check done on yourself???!!! Sorry, if that is correct I consider that *outrageous*! Businesses can claim these sort of expenses on their tax and I dispute any business requiring such payments from a potential employee...sheesh!

Gosh I sound tough but.. lordy.. To me once you provide a CV or Resume the job of checking on you rolls over to the potential employer period.

chiricahuagal · 05-19-2007, 10:55 PM

You won't be an employee of the company but an independent contractor. It will be YOUR own home-based business and you can deduct the expense from YOUR taxes.

It isn't for everyone. If it's too outrageous, don't follow up on it. However, it is my main source of income and suits me just fine. I have made back the money many, many, MANY times over. If someone is looking for a way to have a work-at-home job, check out the forum I mentioned and do the research for yourself.

edited to add: it's just a forum like this, I'm not mentioning the name of the company I contract with or any others, and I don't get any $$ from your looking at the forum. Just FYI.

Mommy22alyns · 05-19-2007, 11:02 PM

http://www.workathomeagent.com/

Someone here suggested it a while back, and a friend of mine has actually signed up with them. I just don't have the time to dedicate solely to being available on the phone right now, so I have stopped my training for now. It is legit though.

Best of luck to you, and do be super careful.

Phretys · 05-20-2007, 02:09 AM

I know some people may find it outrageous for a company to require a potential employee to pay for his/her own background check, but it's not all that unusual.

Take my local school district, for instance. Anyone who wants a job with the district must pay for their background check which includes two sets of fingerprint scans. They also need to pay for a TB test (if it's been at least two years since the last test) and I believe there may be one or two additional fees for other things that I can't remember off the top of my head at the moment.

Debi

Susan P. · 05-20-2007, 07:24 AM

I think this just comes down to differences in business culture between countries. Don't think I would condemn a scenario per se that any one of you find useful or workable for you but perhaps also know that when I come from a different business culture and value perspective on 'user pays' then I may have a different response :-) My son has worked in the US and I raised it with him and he explained to me how he viewed the differences.

Fair enough if in the end you can claim the expense but I am also critically analytical of what the mother companies are often making and what they are prepared to do in terms of expense themselves.

Personally I hate tiered companies also because of the pressure people within them wind up making on anyone they know and encounter. I recall teaching in a very small school years ago and one mother hounding every parent and every staff member to 'join'. She kept saying she was not selling 'product' but in the end to me that was rhetoric. However, she was making a very good income from selling that company.

I think phone sales are becoming very problematic and sometimes I am surprised at seeing advertised jobs for them here when even charities here are saying they are suffering a backlash of people being sick of being phoned. To me its a form of information spam and I always hang up on unsolicited calls. Yet, despite saying this I'm sure many people make great incomes from phone sales from home base.

I think stuffing envelopes and doing similar jobs from home useful and rewarding opportunities but again, just understand when I respond that I'm responding in part from being raised in a different cultural environment. Here all positions now re children oblige you to accept a criminal record check and so on but no-one would expect the applicant to pay for this. It would only be applied to people who've moved into a round after short-listing.