Anyone work at home?

spectorkitty · 02-04-2008, 11:41 AM

There are a few legitimate businesses that offer work at home opportunities. I've been thinking of applying for a couple of them. I have the computer, dedicated phone line, and a quiet space. Any else do it and how do you like it?

Carrie218 · 02-04-2008, 08:24 PM

I do - but I started my own business (computer Internet Service Provider) versus one of those turn-key operations. I love it as I definitely make my own hours; I napped from 11:00 p.m. until 2:00 a.m. last night, had a bit of insomnia and worked from 2:00 a.m. until 4:30-ish, slept until 8:30 a.m. and after another two hours of e-mails, am taking off the rest of the day for golf.

Sometimes I will pull a 16-hour day and take off the rest of the entire week.

Been doing it for two years now and I don't think I could ever work for anybody else ever again.

spectorkitty · 02-04-2008, 08:30 PM

What exactly does that entail? What are the start up fees? Is it something anyone can do?

I'm asking because I really need to work, but could get by without a 40 hour a week job. My boyfriend and I live together and while it would be tight it's doable.

iza · 02-04-2008, 08:52 PM

I work at home too. I'm a consultant and have a contract with a big company. I work at home 4 days a week, and at the company one day a week. I love being in complete control of my schedule - this is by far the best part. It requires some discipline, but if it's not a problem for you, it's great!

Since I'm a subcontractor, I have no benefits (insurance, etc.) - however I charge more per hour to compensate for that. The company can stop giving me work too, so it's not necessarily stable. But for now it works well, and I do appreciate the independence!

There are many ways to work at home, and make sure to get all the information before accepting a job. What are the ties between you and them (regular employee or contractor?), are you paid by the job or by the hour, do you have to pay for all your supplies, etc. It can be a great opportunity - but there are also horror stories of people paid by the job having to work 12-15 hours a day 7 days a week to meet their deadlines because the expectations are completely unrealistic. You have to think of what it means in terms of income taxes (and possibly sales taxes if you have your own business), and notify your home insurance company too. Good luck!

Carrie218 · 02-05-2008, 03:00 AM

Spector - what I do is a bit of a specialty market and is something I stumbled into to. The start-up fees are fairly high ($5k a month) but the income is exponential ($60k to $80k a month).

The gist of it is contacts and knowledge of routers, servers, bandwidth, and the infrastructure of the internet. It is very technical and something I taught myself. But I also now get to travel extensively and often only work 10 or 20 hours a month.

cftwo · 02-05-2008, 03:08 PM

A co-worker of mine recently quit her job to do medical transcription (I'm pretty sure that's what it's called) from her home around her kids' schedules.

spectorkitty · 02-05-2008, 03:32 PM

I'm going to keep looking into all my options.

I'm just tired of going to work every day to someone else's schedule. Plus I've been having problems with a protruding disc and it makes it uncomfortable to sit for long periods.

Today was a perfect example. School was closed due to snow, so the kids got to stay home, the boyfriend got to stay home, and I'm trudging out through the snow and icy roads to go to a job that really doesn't satisfy me in the least.

I'm just really feeling too old to have to deal with this unhappiness and need to make a change.

robynbird · 02-05-2008, 06:24 PM

I work from home. I work for a radio network answering correspondence. I do work 40 hour weeks but my days are my own schedule. I work around my kids so I get up early and most days am done before they get home from school.

My niece works from home doing medical transcription. She makes good money too.

Darcia · 02-05-2008, 06:46 PM

I am a stay at home mom and I have the best job in the world!!!

We survive off of one income of less than 30,000 but the benefits are priceless. Some days it would be nice to have another income, but with costs of daycare and the stress, it is just not worth it in my opinion.

NC Girl · 02-05-2008, 07:49 PM

I work from home doing medical transcription. I am an IC, so I set my hours and times to fit my schedule. This is a job that I don't dread doing.

CBH