How to Use the Internet to Work From Home

How to Use the Internet to Work From Home

Time. What would you do with one extra hour a day? Two? Three? How about a whole day? What if you never had to go to the office again, but could more efficiently work from the comfort of home. This isn’t just a daydream. It is an achievable goal in today’s Internet-based economy. All you need is a plan, and the will to follow it.

Never in modern history have there been more opportunities to work from home. But are you taking advantage of them? You could be doing any number of things to increase the amount of free time and disposable income you have. It may be as simple as asking your boss if you can work from home on Wednesdays, or you may want to create a business plan for an Internet venture. The important thing is to look at the Internet as more than just email and instant weather reports- the Internet can give you that most important of life’s commodities: Time.

While not all of us can consider telecommuting as a viable option, many can cut down on how often they need to physically be at work. Take teachers as one example. With the use of on-line lesson plan sites such as Web English Teacher you can do almost all of your planning from the comfort of your own living room. Need to get grading done? A variety of on-line grading tools are available which allow you to grade right from your own living room. Some sites, like Blackboard.com, even give you the ability to interact with students as they are doing their homework with instant chat and help files. If you think creatively, you’ll find many ways to work productively from home, effectively giving you more time.

However, the Internet revolution can give you much more than just a few more hours at home. It can provide you with substantial supplemental income and even the possibility of not needing to go to that 9-5 job ever again. The trick is finding something you are good at and developing it into a revenue stream. One of the most popular on-line businesses is the eBay store. Here you can create your own virtual retail operation. Or maybe you want to provide a service instead of selling. Are you a decent writer? People will pay up to $100.00 for a well-written resume. I speak from experience, as I have been doing this for over 7 years, and it has allowed my wife the opportunity to stay home with our young children. Here are just a few of the literally hundreds of potential revenue builders you could create:

Bookkeeping

Business support

Consulting

Desktop publishing

Medical claims

Security specialist

Seminar production

Transcription service

Virtual assistant business

So, what do you need to get started? A computer with Internet access and some basic skills; nothing more complicated than what you could find in one of those ever popular Dummies, or Idiot’s Guide books. Then just decide what you would like to do. Take a look on-line at sites such as homebusinessmag.com, hbwm.com and home-based-business-world.com or any number of other quality sites to get ideas and start making plans for your own financially secure future.

It is as easy as that. Start small. As with any business venture you need to give it time to grow. Don’t quit that day job, yet. But remember, never before has there been such opportunity in the marketplace. Don’t let it pass you by. You have more than just financial security to gain; you can also have more time.

Steve is the owner/manager of Quality-Resumes.net, an resume writing service sopecializing in new graduates and entry level job seekers.