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Category: Archived Articles (2009-2013)
Our library of articles from the early days of the work at home mom center.
PayPal Alternatives For Work at Home Jobs For Moms
In any discussion about work at home jobs for moms, it’s necessary to also discuss payments. In particular, this conversation revolves around the best way to receive payments. In some cases you won’t have much of a say in the matter, especially if you are looking specifically for work at home jobs for moms. Most likely, your employer will already have a system in place and all employees will be paid in the same way (many employers also use PayPal, but many do not). If you are a freelancer, a consultant or operate any number of other online businesses, however, it will be up to you to choose how you will receive payments. In most cases, PayPal is the go-to payment processor. Most of your clients will also already have PayPal accounts, thus making it that much easier to embrace the behemoth as your default payment processor.
Upon recently learning of yet another PayPal horror story, though, I thought that it’s high time to offer a few alternatives. Now, don’t get me wrong, PayPal has millions of satisfied customers and I’m not advocating in favor of or against them…I use them myself, in fact. It is not unusual, however, to hear of PayPal restricting or freezing accounts while wreaking havoc on a customer’s business and professional life.
I’m also going to be upfront about the fact that I’ve never used any of the companies I’m about to share with you. Most of my customers pay via check or PayPal. Since hearing about so many people suffering under PayPal’s policies, however, I have bookmarked a few companies and am seriously contemplating a switch sometime in the near future. Without further ado and in no particular order, the following is a brief list of some of the companies that I’ve found and which look like they may be good PayPal alternatives:
While we’re always here to offer information on work at home jobs for moms (and home business ideas), we’re leaving it up to you to determine which payment processor is right for you. PayPal has plenty of satisfied customers who’ve never experienced a glitch in their system and have never been placed in a bad position as a result of their policies. Still, a lot of people live in fear of the seemingly endless supply of PayPal horror stories out there, which is completely understandable. If you are one of those people, I hope that these PayPal alternatives offer you an idea of what else is available. As with all of the info that we offer on work at home jobs for moms, it is always up to YOU to do your homework and determine which one is right for you.
Those of you who’ve already found work at home jobs for moms, how are you paid? Are any of you using a PayPal alternative? Would love to hear your comments, ideas and recommendations below.
Self-Publishing For Profit
You may have only come here to view our expanding directory of work at home jobs for moms, but if you’ve got writing talent you’re on the brink of discovering an entirely new career: self-publishing. As the popularity of ebook readers like Amazon’s Kindle or Barnes & Noble’s Nook continues to rise, so does the popularity of ebooks. With growing consumer demand for content, writers with an interest in self-publishing are finding this to be a lucrative avenue, indeed.
Did you know that in less than a week’s time you can publish your own ebook and begin earning a profit from online sales? With quality writing and strong marketing, some authors are making thousands of extra dollars each month from ebook sales. Of course, not everyone is finding the same success, as results on these things always vary. But then, on the other hand, some authors aren’t just making thousands per month, they’re actually making several thousand dollars per day!
While you may think that self-publishing is a difficult task too far beyond your reach, our research tells us just the opposite. According to those who have been there and done that, the actual process of self-publishing on Kindle or other ebook outlets isn’t too difficult at all. Furthermore, a lot of authors who’ve had previous book deals with established publishing houses are finding that, in a lot of ways, they actually prefer self-publishing.
And, no, you do not have to be a well-known author in order to find success on one of these venues. And, no, you don’t have to set your books at a high price in order to earn a profit. In fact, some of the authors that are finding the most success with online publishing were previously unknown and– get this, they are making a killing selling .99 cent books!
If you don’t believe me, take a look at some of the authors who’ve found notable success via online publishing:
And, folks, this is just a tiny sampling of the authors who’ve carved lucrative careers for themselves in online publishing.
If you’ve ever thought about writing a book (fiction or non-fiction), you owe it to yourself to look closely into the possibilities of self-publishing. While at one time doing so held a certain stigma, those who understand how digital technology is rapidly changing the publishing landscape also understand that, while print will (hopefully) never be obsolete, consumers have spoken and guess what they said? Ebooks rock!
One final thought before we send you away with a few links for further exploration; you do not have to own a Kindle, a Nook, an iPad or any other type of reading device to begin a self-publishing career. You don’t even necessarily have to read other people’s books on these devices if you’re curious to check a few out before you take the plunge (you can actually download a Kindle app right to your computer and read from there, and there are lots of other places that sell ebooks that can be read on your computer). So, if you’ve ever toyed with the idea of self-publishing before, we want you to know that this is an excellent work at home career choice.
To learn more, thumb through a few of these links:
Who Said It’s Hard To Sell Fiction On Kindle?
A Newbie’s Guide to Publishing
Kindle Primer (A virtual how-to post to help you get started right away)
The Rise of the .99 Cent Kindle e-book
Aaron Shepard’s Publishing Page
So what else do you need? Absolutely nothing! The world of self-publishing awaits…so get to writing, ladies!
Guest Post: Try Etsy For Work At Home Jobs For Moms by Lisa Shoreland
Why search for work at home jobs for moms when you can create your own? Today’s guest post, brought to us by Lisa Shoreland, is one that you don’t want to miss if you’re into crafting or if you know someone who is.
Work at Home with Etsy
When it comes to working, the enlightened advice always seems to be, “Do what you love.” Unfortunately, people believe that they don’t have the luxury to do so (many of them are right), and opportunities for moms to work at home seem lacking. If you love to craft, however, Etsy may be able to help turn you from a crafty mom to a work-at-home mom.
For those of you who have yet to discover Etsy, my advice is to go there now and see the wonder for yourself. It’s a charming website that gives anyone who tries an equal opportunity to work from home and sell their wares to people across the world. Your wares—be they clothing, candles, accessories, or even baked goods—sell based on who wants them. This means you’ll have to do your part in advertising to improve your chances of sales, too.
Do you knit or crochet? Do you make jewelry? Do you sew? Can you make soap or lotion? Are you well-versed in web or graphic design? Are you a photographer? Do you want to work from home? Consider selling your products or services on Etsy.
If you’re met with a positive response, you might even go through your neighborhood and inquire local boutiques if they’d like to sell your wares. Having a successful Etsy store may give you increased credibility.
Preparing For Business
Becoming a work-at-home mom via Etsy isn’t just about crafting, though. You’ll need the following materials to successfully advertise, present, and send off your wares to buyers.
- A computer to access Etsy and communicate with buyers
- A camera to take well-lit, clear, and high-quality photographs of your wares, which you will upload via computer onto your Etsy store
- An inventory of products already made to present to potential buyers
- A business plan to keep you on track with your goals. How much money do you hope to make? What is your spending budget? Who are you selling to? How will you advertise your business?
- Enough funds for the monthly membership fee for owning a store on Etsy (generally under $20 a month). The site has a built-in shopping cart system and payment/fulfillment structure.
- Access to transportation to the post office, as you will be shipping your products out to people across the country yourself.
Marketing Your Business
- Evaluate other Etsy stores. Which ones are popular and what do they sell? What are other stores selling similar items to yours? What’s working and what’s not?
- Choose a niche. As with blogs, it’s easier to market your business if you do or sell something specific, like painting or photography (but likely not both).
- Make a memorable logo and store name. If you’re having trouble with these, you can browse Etsy for people who will do this for you. Some will even design and print your business cards. Luckily, most reputable Etsy storeowners are prompt on shipping (something for you to heavily consider when opening your business).
- Advertise on other forms of social media, like your Facebook page or Twitter feed. If you have a blog, be sure to add a link to your Etsy store. Hand out your business card to friends and family like candy on Halloween.
- Don’t expect to make it big at once. As with any work-at-home opportunity, success will likely be slow and gradual. The harder you work and the more avenues you push, however, the sooner and bigger success will arrive.
Bio: Lisa Shoreland is currently a resident blogger at Go College, where recently she’s been researching physicians assistant scholarships as well as occupational therapy scholarships. In her spare time, she enjoys creative writing, practicing martial arts, and taking weekend trips.
Be sure to also check out our growing directory of companies that offer work at home jobs for moms. ~Work at Home Mom Center
Announcing Our Directory of Work at Home Jobs For Moms
We’re in the process of building a directory of companies, leads and websites offering work at home jobs for moms. Please visit the directory here and feel free to contact us if you know of other places where telecommuting jobs are offered. Our work at home jobs for moms directory is a work in progress, so remember to bookmark and check it frequently.
So far, we’re offering places to find call center and customer service jobs from home. As well, we offer leads on where you can make a few dollars as an online juror and find other assorted work at home jobs for moms. Moving forward, we hope to also share where you can find work at home attorney jobs, at home pharmacy jobs and more. Telecommuting jobs are gaining in popularity and, as we learn of new opportunities, we have every intention of sharing them with you.
If you’re new to the site or if you’re looking for specific information on work at home jobs for moms, be sure to visit our article archives for a vast selection of topics covering the world of telecommuting. We know that it’s easy to get discouraged when looking for work from home opportunities, but we want to encourage you that real work at home jobs for moms do exist and we’re here to help you find the one that’s perfect for you. If you ever have questions or comments, please contact us on our contact form.
So, what are you waiting for? There are legitimate work at home jobs for moms out there and the perfect position is waiting for you. Take a deep breath, focus and visit our growing list of possible work at home employers, now!
Procrastination: The Enemy of All Work at Home Jobs for Moms
Most work at home jobs for moms allow you the freedom of creating your own schedule. For many, this is the primary draw in working from home to begin with. While this is a rewarding luxury, the fact of the matter is that most of us with work at home jobs for moms fall victim to frequent procrastination.
The following tips are ones that I’ve used at various times to beat the procrastination monster:
1. Work with a timer. I’m a fan of dividing my work time into smaller portions. In fact, I also use this method to get chores done around the house. For instance, I’ll set my timer for 20 minutes and tell myself that I only have to do a task for this long. Whether it’s vacuuming floors or writing an article, when my timer goes off, I move on to something else. Since most work at home jobs for moms are performed online, I highly recommend this timer, as it’s the one I’ve used for years. It sits right on your desktop and it gets the job done.
2. Take it one step at a time. Sometimes just getting started is the real barrier in completing work at home jobs for moms. We begin to think about all that we have to do, we become overwhelmed and we convince ourselves that it’s easier to hang out on Twitter a little while longer or play a computer game instead of working. My suggestion, however, is to take baby steps. When you’re not in the mood to work instead of gallivanting off to your favorite work at home jobs for moms forum, set yourself up to work first. For instance, when I’m in procrastination mode, I tell myself that I don’t have to work, but I’m just going to open a new document and type a single sentence before I go play. Sometimes, that’s all it takes to push myself toward typing more, but if it isn’t, I set my timer for a few minutes and tell myself I’ll return to my work when my timer goes off (and I go play somewhere in the meantime). Often, I’ll even set my timer for a few minutes and tell myself that it’s okay if I write something completely crappy and unusable, as long as I don’t stop writing for those few minutes. Believe it or not, these baby steps (and my handy dandy timer) are all it takes to get my juices flowing and help me enter a full-on work mode.
3. Stage a friendly competition. Work at home jobs for moms can be lonely, since you don’t technically have co-workers. This loneliness, however, often leads us to find online networks with other home workers or self-employed individuals. When you’re in a work slump these relationships can really come in handy. For one thing, engaging in a competition for who will complete the most work-related activities over a set period of time can really boost your energy. All work at home jobs for moms are not the same, however, so it really helps to find a forum of others working in your field when you select a competition. If you haven’t done so already, visit the WAHM.com forums to find a forum that’s perfect for you. WAHM.com is also a good place for information on various work at home jobs for moms.
4. Step away from the computer…or telephone…or whatever. Get away from your desk for a while by taking a walk, engaging in a little exercise, spending time with the kids or working on a hobby. Sometimes your procrastination isn’t due to laziness…you might just be overworked. Burnout is common in work at home jobs for moms and it’s important to know your limits. When you just can’t push yourself any further, place yourself in time out and DO NOT return until you feel rejuvenated and ready to move on.
5. Find your golden time of day. For me, I find that I’m at my personal best at 5:30a or 6a. Even though I’m not a morning person in real life, I find that training myself to arise early helps me hit my “productive spot”. I can get more done before 10a than I can get done all day when I arise later. I also know that I’m no good working in the afternoons, so I’m almost certain to miss my goals if I sleep in and start working late. I often take afternoon breaks and hit another “productive spot” later in the evening, which helps me prepare for the next day. When I work with my natural rhythm, I don’t burn out as often and procrastination is kept at a minimum because I’m more focused than ever. While most work at home jobs allow you to design your own work schedule, some do not. So, while this tip may not work for everyone, if you’re able to do it, by all means, work to find your optimal work hours and schedule yourself accordingly.
Just like other jobs in the workforce, work at home jobs for moms can often be draining and it’s easy to lose focus when you become overworked or when there are too many distractions in your immediate area. Learn to work around interruptions (and train your family to respect your work hours, if possible) in order to maximize your productivity. Work at home jobs for moms are usually not as stressful as other jobs, but they can easily become so when procrastination persists and you miss your work goals. Use these tips to kick yourself in gear and be sure to share any tips for tackling procrastination in work at home jobs for moms in the comments section below.
Work at Home Mom Time Management Skills During the Holidays ~ Guest Post by Maria Rainier
Time Management Skills During the Holidays
If you work from home, you know how challenging it can be to manage your time effectively. With so many work deliverables looming over your head, as well as the distractions of running a household, getting it all done can seem overwhelming. And now with the holidays quickly approaching, it probably seems more challenging than ever before. Fortunately, by putting tried and true time management skills to work, you can get it all done and still have time for that much needed glass of egg nog at the end of the night.
Designate office hours. The best way to make sure you stay focused on your work is to determine set hours for getting everything done. Therefore, if you plan to work from 9:00 to 5:00 make sure you have no other distractions during that time. This will give you a clear distinction between work and home life – and keep you focused and productive.
Tackle your biggest tasks in the morning. If you have a project that will require lots of research and focus, make sure you schedule it first thing in the morning when your mind is fresher. It will give you satisfaction to cross it off your list – and will leave the less brain-taxing tasks for that low-blood sugar time in the afternoon.
Give yourself a break. Whether you like to take an hour for lunch or prefer a late afternoon break, make sure you give yourself time to relax and recharge. Maybe it’s time to eat a sandwich and catch up with friends online, or a chance to fit in your workouts, stepping away from the office is essential too.
Set aside time for household chores. One good way to get things done around the house is to designate a few minutes to throw a load of laundry in or take out the trash. These may be good ways to catch a short break and can help you stay productive around the house too. Be warned that these should not cut into your work time so anything more than 5-10 minutes should be saved for the evening or weekends.
Schedule your holiday shopping. If you’re a working mom, you know it’s vital to get your holiday purchases made while the kids are at school. Therefore, plan to go out once or twice a week during your lunch hour to get your shopping done. If you put it on your calendar for the weeks leading up to the holidays, you won’t feel burdened and will be able to power shop when you know your time is limited.
Plan ahead. Whether you prefer to use a daily planner or you like to keep everything in your Smart Phone, the best way to make sure tasks get accomplished is by scheduling your priorities. At the end of each week, take some time to prepare your “to-dos” for the week ahead. That way when you sit down on Monday morning, you’ll have a plan in place for the entire week.
By creating a clear distinction between your work and home responsibilities, you’ll be better able to concentrate on the job at hand – which will free up time to get ready for the holiday festivities ahead!
Maria Rainier is a freelance writer and blog junkie. She is currently a resident blogger at First in Education, where recently she’s been researching kinesiology degrees and programs and blogging about student life. In her spare time, she enjoys square-foot gardening, swimming, and avoiding her laptop.
Tips for Keeping Business Records ~ A Guest Post By Maria Rainier
The IRS doesn’t care that you’ve got kids to feed or that you’re new to being a work-at-home mom. They will tax you where they can and you will hurt. This isn’t a threat, only a truth.
So, what to do about it? You’ll find that keeping proper business records for your home-based business is often inconvenient, usually confusing, and always a learning process. These tips—and a few tricks you’ll doubtlessly come up with yourself as time goes by—will ease the learning curb and make tax time significantly less painful.
1. Home office deduction. Read up on the IRS’s rules about the home office deduction (http://www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/0,,id=108138,00.html) to see if you qualify. Don’t be scared to do it if you do qualify because you’ll be able to deduct a portion of your rent or mortgage and utilities bills as business expenses. Save all of your monthly payment bills if this is the case. Remember to not allow the kids into this room since it is your home office. A large amount of evidence—should the IRS come poking—that you’ve been mixing business with pleasure might void your deduction.
2. Keep receipts. If your printer runs out of paper while printing out documents for your business, keep the OfficeMax receipt. If your lamp loses a bulb, keep the receipt. Keep any and all receipts made for purchases for your home office and business, including office supplies and equipment (from sticky notes to your new Mac, as long as you use that computer primarily for business). Keep the receipts for Internet provider fees, phone bills, membership fees, and any other costs to keep your business running. Deduct these from your taxes as business expenses.
3. Advertising and professionals. If you advertise for your business or have hired a professional to help you (such as an accountant or printer), save the receipts.
4. Employee records. If you’re not working alone, keep an accurate record of your employees’ hours to make the W-9 forms easier to fill out during tax season as well as calculate salaries. If you’ve hired more than 10 people for your business, you’ll need to get an idea of what records OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) requires you to keep, including accident reports.
5. Accounting. If you ever make any kind of transaction for your business, you’re better off with evidence of it than without. Keep copies of them to back up your income and spending in case anyone comes inquiring. It’s best to accumulate all of your receipts and evidence of transactions in one place, like one notebook or filing cabinet, so you don’t lose things along the way.
Maria Rainier is a freelance writer and blog junkie. She is currently a resident blogger at First in Education, where recently she’s been researching different bsw degree programs and blogging about student life. In her spare time, she enjoys square-foot gardening, swimming, and avoiding her laptop.
The 411 on the InfoBarrel Income Opportunity ~ A Guest Post by Chris Hinton
The Problem
Over the decade I’ve worked with dozens of friends and family in an attempt to help them build a passive income stream using the Internet. Throughout these attempts I’ve noticed two common problems.
Problem #1
People are very optimistic with the idea of making money online, however when they don’t see instant gratification and coupled with the monetary and time investments required in maintaining and promoting a web site, most people tend to quit before they ever start seeing any income.
Problem #2
Because it is human nature to get instant gratification, people tend to spend less time on the things they don’t know much about and wind up producing something that provides no end value to their users. The web site winds up being covered in ads essentially dragging down the overall quality of the Internet instead of making it better.
By not creating value for end users, regardless of how much time you spend marketing, it will be nearly impossible to create return visitors and even harder to get people talking about your web site or business.
The Solution
Create a space where users would not have to be burdened with the financial costs of owning, maintaining and marketing a website and could simply focus on producing quality content to share with the world while still earning a substantial passive income. By removing these problems we hope to increase the quality of content found on the internet and making it once again a safe place to find information.
In July 2008, with these ideals in mind InfoBarrel was born.
How it Works
InfoBarrel is a shared revenue crowd sourced community. Essentially what that means, is the content of the site is entirely created by the users who frequent the site. To compensate writers, we provide them with a minimum of 75% of the advertising impressions from Google Adsense, Chitika and Amazon. We also have an escalating revenue share percentage that allows writers to earn up to 90% revenue share if they hit certain criteria.
There is no cost to the writer, and the site has had extensive marketing time invested into it resulting in great organic search engine results. To date we have many writers making over $100 a month and a few making over $1000. InfoBarrel has become one of the top destinations to earn money writing on the Internet. Because of our passionate users and extensive marketing plan InfoBarrel has grown from a small site consisting of a few users to a thriving community with 31,000+ members that is growing on a daily basis. We are also very dedicated to supporting our writer community by allowing them to personally email us with any issues that they may have encountered while at the site. With one of our goals being to improve the quality of material found on the internet InfoBarrel also manually approves all new article submissions checking them for article quality and duplicate content among many other factors. The site been touted as the next best revenue sharing site by popular web entrepreneur Pat Flynn.
Why it’s Great for Work at Home Moms
Because of the opportunity to generate money while working from home, we have had an enormous surge of WAHMs publishing on InfoBarrel. Since InfoBarrel requires much less of a commitment than running your own website, mothers are able to sit down and write an article when they have a free moment before returning to their busy lives. We have a number of successful WAHMs most notably MommyMommyMommy.
Community
One of the things that I am most proud of in terms on InfoBarrel is how supportive our community has become. The InfoBarrel Writers’ Community is one of the most tight knit, friendly groups of people online. If you need advice on how to do something, even extremely simple, the community is there to help and there is never a stupid question.
Success Stories
InfoBarrel has been around for just over two years now and has already garnered several success stories, with at least two members making over $1000 a month, and a number of users making over $100.
The following are just a few success stories of members:
JCMayer ($1000+ /moth now)
Travis_Aitch ($1000+ /month now)
ChezFat ($500+ /month now)
A forum post talking about earnings
And the Winner Is…
As you all know by now, we sponsored a contest during the Month of October giving each of you an opportunity to win a $25 giftcard. Well, Random.org has selected a winner for us and we are pleased to announce that Shannon will be receiving her giftcard from Amazon today!!!
Thank you all for your participation and a great big congratulations to Shannon!!!
