Finding Legitimate Work-at-Home Opportunities
Do you dream about working from home? No commute, no dress code, no boss telling you what to do? Self-employment in some type of home-based business can be a good fit for certain people. Are you one of them? The following are two important steps to take before you launch a new business.
1. "Research" yourself to decide if self-employment is a good fit for you. Before you quit your job or invest money in a new business venture, it pays to do some research to know if self-employment will be a good fit for you. Did God design you for being self-employed? While there are, of course, outside factors that affect business success or failure, you are one of the most important factors to look at prior to starting a business. Your design-your skills, personality traits, interests, people skills, experience, willingness to learn, ability to risk, etc. -will determine, to a large degree, whether your business will succeed or fail. (See our article Keys to Successful Self-Employment for more specifics to consider.)
2. Research thoroughly any business you are seriously considering. First, beware of the types of work-at-home "opportunities" that are scams. (See Work-at-Home Schemes and Scams for more information.) Unscrupulous people prey on the vulnerable and susceptible: senior citizens, mothers who want to stay at home with their children, those out of work, people with low income and few job skills, and people who are enticed by the idea of getting lots of money for little effort.
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Second, if you determine that a business is legitimate, research it thoroughly so that you have a clear picture of what you will need to invest in terms of time and money to be successful. You will need to be able to answer questions for yourself such as:
Do I have the necessary capital to get the business going?
Do I have enough money to support myself until the business starts generating sufficient revenue?
How much money do I need the business to produce?
How probable is it that I can make this amount of money from it?
If it is probable, how long will it take to generate this amount of income?
What skills and knowledge will I need to be successful?
How many of these skills do I already have?
What will I need to learn?
Who can I talk to who has already been successful with this business?
What resources will be available to me to help me be successful?
The following are some resources for researching businesses. Many of them have great free articles and some will also have resources that can be purchased. Please note: We have not done background checks on these sites, and are not endorsing them. We offer the list as a service; do your own research related to using any of their resources or opportunities.
For moms who want to work from home:
http://www.mompreneursonline.com/
http://www.bizymoms.com/
http://www.jobsandmoms.com/
http://www.homebasedworkingmoms.com/
The Independent Homeworkers Alliance:
http://www.homeworkers.org/
http://jobs.homeworkers.org/index.cgi?login_button=true
Small Business Administration:
http://www.sba.gov/
www.sba.gov/starting_business/index.html
Working Solo:
http://www.workingsolo.com/
www.workingsolo.com/resources/resources.html
Work-At-Home Success University :
http://www.WorkAtHomeSuccess.com
You Have a Divine Design
As you consider how you would like to earn a living in this world, remember that God has designed you for a one-of-a-kind purpose. If you would like assistance in determining whether or not self-employment fits you, we invite you to take a look at our career coaching services. We would look forward to helping you discover and live your calling!
