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What Every Work from Home "Want to Be" Should
Know Before Diving into Telecommuting
By: Tara Brewer
Thousands of employees are coveting the chance to clock
in from their home office. A fortunate few have earned this
position through their workplace, while their co-workers
are murmuring under their breath. Others are tired of waiting
for their employer to offer this opportunity, so they are
jumping ship and abandoning the job that once held the promise
of security, for instability-- and trading in the title
of payroll employee for independent contractor. But, before
you take that dive into the home employment waters. Have
you weighed out what it will take to make it to your destination?
You should have a tried and true plan to become a telecommuter,
or you will be like so many others who have taken the dive
and are now aimlessly flopping around.
First of all, let’s talk about your source of income,
in short-- if you do not have a spouse or significant other
that can carry your finances, you need to hold on to your
day job. I have seen to often people unable to make ends
meet because they were suddenly caught off guard when their
job search out lasted their savings. Second, how’s
your attitude? Do you have a strong tolerance for the tedious?
How well do you handle rejection? Can you work independently?
Are you open to stretching your skills?
Tolerance for The Tedious
Why do you need a strong tolerance for the tedious? Well
if you are not of that fortunate few whose current job lends
it’s self to telecommuting. You will need to consistently
search and purge job postings. In order to get a job, you
need to be doing this day & night, and then guess what!
You do the same thing again tomorrow. I’m not telling
you this, to discourage you-- it’s actually exciting
when you think about your ultimate goal, and the personal
reward, working from home is going to give to you.
Assuming that you are new to the idea of telecommuting,
I’ll briefly explain to you why you have to purge.
I refuse to go into all the different scam scenarios you
should look for because it has been done to death in almost
every telecommuting article you can think of. The word S
C A M has been thrown around so loosely by what I call “Scam
Phobics”, even the image of legitimate work at home
companies have been tarnished, just because the position
did not turn out to be the dream job they thought it would
be. So we want to focus on purging without being paranoid.
To start, you need to be clear on what you are searching
for. Your goal is to find a real job for a reputable company,
so you are going to have to purge the posting that does
not fit this profile. Some examples of this are; job listings
that post over and over again, jobs that ask for money and
what ever says start your own business… because you
do not want a “business opportunity” you want
a home based or telecommute job. For best results try key
words like-- telecommute, home based, virtual office, outsource,
independent contractor and freelance. For more information
on scams, just go to Google and search “work at home
scams” you’ll find endless information
Handling Rejection
It is important that you know, you are entering a job market
that is incredibly desirable to many. You may not get a
job from your first application-- second, third, fourth,
or fifth. The truth is, it’s not likely, that the
employer will ever get back to you to let you know they
received your application, not trying to intentionally offend
you, companies just do not have the time or man power to
call every potential candidate to let them know the position
has been filled. Nevertheless, you always approach the job
with the attitude that you will get it and eventually you
will. To cut down on the number of rejections you encounter.
Here are some rules to follow:
1. Always follow the instructions that the company have
set for applying for the job. If they say, do not send your
resume as an attachment, don’t do it anyway and think
they will accept it--they won’t!
2. Now that you are seeking a telecommuting position customize
your resume to meet telecommute qualifications, you can
do this without padding your resume with false information.
Pin point positions where you have worked independently,
owned your own business, show manger or leadership skills
etc...
3. Always have a cover letter ready, it’s fan mail
for your resume. The C L’s job is to convince the
employer to read your resume; Each C L should be tailored
to the company and position.
4. Make sure your contact information is accurate and once
an employer calls you, they do not reach a voice mail with
5 minutes of your favorite song before the beep to leave
a message, remember you always want to project a professional
image. If possible give the employer more than 1 way to
contact you.
5. Get prepared for a telephone interview. A telephone
Interview is the most common way to interview home based
or virtual candidates.
3 Quick Telephone Interview Techniques
1. Post your resume by the telephone. 2. Illustrate your
skills with actual on the job experiences. 3. Demonstrate
the ability to work independently.
Get more Tele-Interview Techniques (see resource box below)
Can You Work Independently
Working at home means working independently, no co-workers
to vent with or talk to about the latest gossip. The IT
guy is no longer a few cubicles away to trouble shoot your
system when it kicks you out. You can’t have some
one fax a document for you or take the call you have avoided
like the plague. You need to be able to manage your own
time. When you work from home you should work as if the
supervisor is watching over your shoulder. Log in on time,
take breaks when scheduled and don’t over do lunches.
Please do not be mislead into thinking the boss does not
know what you are doing, it’s true they may not know
what you are physically doing, but they definitely will
know what you are “not” doing by your work production--whether
it’s sales, customer service, or transcription. It’s
the “not doing” they care about. So, you need
to make sure that your family and friends understand that
when you are in your home office, you are working. You will
not be going on shopping sprees, golfing during work hours
or catching a movie, until you sign off for the day. Some
people have told me that they even put a sign on the door
that says, daddy’s at work or gone to work-- it helps
to communicate the message better.
Do You Know How to Stretch Your Skills
Consider the skills and experience you have, now think
about how you can stretch some of these skills to another
job. Leaving your options open to other jobs, will increase
your chances of finding a telecommuting job quicker. For
instance, if your outside job is data entry, you may consider
home based coding or transcription jobs. Here is another
example of stretching your skills. Veronica has been a family
child care provider for 10 years. Veronica is ready for
a career change, but she still wants to work from home.
Veronica sat down with her husband and created a list of
her skills. After this list was complete, she formed a second
list that shows how she can stretch her skills into other
work from home positions.
Veronica’s 10 Strongest Skills
• Strong verbal and written communication skills
• Excellent customer service
• Ability to set appointments
• Good Marketing Skills
• Ability to write lesson plans
• Knowledge of Microsoft windows, with the ability
to access and input data
• Experience in retaining clients
• Strong ability to close clients
• Self-Starter, works well independently
• Bilingual- Spanish, English
10 Telecommute Jobs That Match Veronica’s Skills
• Home Based Call Center Agent:
Answering inbound calls and processing orders for customers
or making reservations
• Telemarketer:
Making outbound calls in order to generate business or
make a sale
• Appointment Setter:
Calls made to companies only or residents to set up appointments
for memberships or sale of products.
• Free-lance Writer:
Use expert experience to write for columns, newsletters,
blogs, and magazines
• Telephone Interpreter:
Third party on telephone line helps communicate customers’
needs through bilingual or multilingual tongue
• On-line Concierge:
Ensure hospitality services for customers of hotels, restaurants,
car rental agencies etc…via email and phone
• Expert Child Care Advisor:
Advice line for new child care providers, Conduct teleseminars
for parents or providers
• Home Based Dispatcher:
Dispatch calls from home for trucking and delivery companies
• On-line Tutor:
Tutor children on- line in Math, Reading, English etc..
• Virtual Assistant:
Perform receptionist duties from home for CEO or small
business owner
I encourage you to do this exercise at home, try to see
how far you can stretch your skills-- your mind will begin
to see job opportunities that were hidden to your eyes.
Telecommuting offers the temptations of, never having to
see your child cry for you as you walk out of the door,
sitting at the dinner table as a family, home cooked meals
instead of fast food and no more sitting in 2 hour bumper
to bumper traffic while your $2-plus! a gallon gas--slowly
slips away. Yes, it is very tempting, but before you take
that dive into the work from home waters, use these strategies
to make sure you stay afloat.
Article by:
For more Telephone Interview Techniques see www.telerepsathome.com/telephoneinterviewtips-homebasedjobs.html
Tara Brewer, is the founder of TeleRepsathome. You can read
more articles by Tara on InnoVisions Canada and Yahoo!News
TeleRepsathome is your Inside Source for jobs in the hottest
telecommuting job market today, the Teleservices industry.
Telecommuters may also access a a wide variety of other
jobs, new jobs are posted daily Visit www.telerepsathome.com
Today.
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