Be honest. How is your search for the perfect telecommuting job coming? Even though there are jobs out there, it’s sometimes hard to sort through all the scams to find the real gems. It can feel like searching for a needle in a haystack, can’t it?

What would you say if you discovered a way to stop your endless searching for that hard-to-find needle and could assure yourself of a genuine job working from home? Here’s the catch-22, if you want to work from home, you first need to head out into the world to work in an office. If you’re confused, read on.

Let me share how I turned myself into a telecommuter. I was searching for a job just like the rest of you. I wanted to work from home, but employers had no reason to just hire me from home without meeting me and getting to know what I could do. So, I put together my resume, and I spent three days getting it out to every temporary help service in town.

I never said a word about wanting to do it from home. I simply offered myself for part-time/full-time work in offices. I started getting placed into people’s offices. I always used the same 3-step process whenever I was working in any office.

1. Assess what the business did and what my job requirements were.
2. At the end of each day, I would take home some of the work to complete on my computer.
3. The next day I would bring in the completed work and drop it off directly to my supervisor. I always said the same thing…”I knew this project was a rush, so rather than wait, I finished it at home. It is much easier to get it done there because there are no distractions in my home office. I’m confident I can do most of the required tasks at home faster and cheaper for you, so if it would be ok with you, can we discuss me working from my home office 2 days a week or more?”

This process almost always resulted in my working from home full-time. See, I had already proven that I could do the job, and that I was more efficient at home. The boss had every good reason to let me do it my way.

If, after the first two weeks, the boss was still unwilling, I politely explained my position and that I would need to look elsewhere for a job that better suited my needs, where I could be more efficient. I didn’t argue, I didn’t fuss, I just left them wondering what they had missed out on by letting me go.

See, there’s no point in trying to force a traditional employer to bend to your needs. There are some who will not see the benefits of telecommuting, no matter how much information you give them. It isn’t about you.

It’s simply that they are the kind of managers that need to watch their employees working to believe they are working. You can’t change their minds, so don’t waste your time trying after your initial proposals. Just find an employer that is ready for the idea.

As you can see, if you really want to work from home, you’re going to have to get creative. But, with a little ingenuity, a lot of hard work, and the confidence to ask for what you want in life, you’ll soon have more work than you know what to do with.

This article is excerpted from “You Can Work in Your PJs”, a real world guide to telecommuting. Sylvie Fortin works from home full time and wrote this book to share her unique techniques with others. You can download your copy of “You Can Work in Your PJs” by visiting http://inyourpjs.com

This article is available for free reprint on your site or newsletter, provided it is copied in its entirety, and the byline remains intact. The only allowed change to the byline is to replace http://inyourpjs.com with your unique affiliate link so you can make money from any sales of “You Can Work in Your PJs”.

Sign up as an authorized affiliate here…
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Once signed up as an affiliate you will receive your unique affiliate link and may replace Sylvie’s URL with your affiliate link.

3 Tips to Turn Yourself Into a Work-at-Home Telecommuter originally appeared on Workaholics4Hire.com. Please visit Workaholics4Hire.com to subscribe to it, or Tweet This.

Do you want to learn the biggest secret that all great telecommuters know and the main reason they are employed full time from home?

The secret is simply that if you want to work from home, you have to change your mindset and realize that you are in control of whether or not you are going to have a job you love. Once you realize that you are the only one who can make the necessary changes in your life, you are giving yourself permission to imagine what it would feel like to have a work-at-home job that you absolutely love.

Let’s explore what makes you tick and what you love to do. See, if you are going to work from home, you might as well do something that you love to do. There’s no point in spending time doing what you hate doing or you’ll be miserable every day you’re doing it. So, let’s go about finding out what you love to do so you can find joy in your work!

List Your Hobbies

To discover what you love to do, begin by listing everything that you love to do in your spare time. If you have a passion for cat grooming, put it on your list. If you drool over building birdhouses, put that on the list. Don’t dismiss it just because you think it has nothing to do with telecommuting. You may find yourself surprised how even the most peculiar hobby can be turned into a successful home business.

List Your Skills

Now, you need to list your skills. This list should include all the things that you do really well, whether or not you like doing it. Be very precise.

Now that you have your raw list of skills, let’s start flexing our creative muscles. To discover your ideal job, you’re going to have to start thinking like a business consultant — you know, those well-paid executives who are paid to come up with creative ideas for other companies to implement. It’s time for you to start being your own business consultant and come up with your own creative niche in your telecommuting career.

Invent Your Own Career

What you need to do is take a few steps outside yourself. Pretend that you are a well-paid executive business consultant that needs to figure out what you do best. Review your two lists very carefully and let your creativity tell you what your perfect career choice may be.

If your favorite hobby is antique furniture refinishing it might not seem like there would be a telecommuting career hidden in there. But, if we look closer, we’ll see that there is any number of possible home-based careers that can take advantage of your knowledge of antique furniture. For example…

• If one of your skills was writing, you could write a How To Guide on refinishing antiques and sell it as an eBook. You could also write a How To Guide on finding great deals on old antiques and how to spot an authentic antique under years and layers of old paint.
• If you were an excellent researcher, you could freelance your research skills to antique stores. You could contact antique shops and offer your services as a researcher to locate rare pieces for them to purchase.
• If you were tech savvy, you could create a series of web templates specifically geared towards antique shops and give them away to antique stores. Of course, you would also offer to modify any template of their choice and maintain their site, for a fee.
• If you were good at organizing parties and events, you could organize an antique show and involve many of the stores and shops in your area. You could set up a trade show where antiques were showcased and all the stores who want to participate would pay a fee to have their booth at the show.

As you can see, even a seemingly obscure hobby like antiquing can be turned into a work-at-home job when you align your loves with your skills. Are you starting to get the idea now? If so, turn on that little light bulb blinking above your head and get started imagining how you can turn what you love into a thriving and satisfying home-based business.

This article is excerpted from “You Can Work in Your PJs”, a real world guide to telecommuting. Sylvie Fortin works from home full time and wrote this book to share her unique techniques with others. You can download your copy of “You Can Work in Your PJs” by visiting http://inyourpjs.com

This article is available for free reprint on your site or newsletter, provided it is copied in its entirety, and the byline remains intact. The only allowed change to the byline is to replace http://inyourpjs.com with your unique affiliate link so you can make money from any sales of “You Can Work in Your PJs”.

Sign up as an authorized affiliate here…
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Once signed up as an affiliate you will receive your unique affiliate link and may replace Sylvie’s URL with your affiliate link.

Turn What You Love Into a Home-Based Business originally appeared on Workaholics4Hire.com. Please visit Workaholics4Hire.com to subscribe to it, or Tweet This.

Do you know how to market yourself? If you’re like most telecommuters, the answer is “no.” If you’re ready to leave the rest of your fellow telecommuters behind and find personal and professional success, you need to learn how to market yourself like a pro. To help get you started, we’ve identified the top 7 ways you can begin making your mark in the business world with time-tested, proven strategies for marketing success.

1. Create a Professional Website: It is vitally important for every contractor and jobseeker to have a professional website. You must have a good- looking, professional site that represents your skills, talents, and showcases your service offerings. Once you have a site, you’ll be able to market yourself in a variety of effective and inexpensive ways, including search engines, discussion boards, reciprocal link exchanges, and with articles in newsletters.
2. Create an Online Portfolio: Creating and maintaining an online portfolio is so critically important to a successful telecommuter! Your potential clients need to see proof of what you can do. You cannot expect them to just “use their imaginations”. You need to go above and beyond the call of duty to impress the socks off of them and you cannot do that unless you have rock solid proof of your skills.
3. Network with Local Businesses: There is nothing quite as effective as meeting with fellow businesspeople at local business networking events. This is particularly true when you are attempting to generate contracts for yourself from companies that are not necessarily looking for staff or new projects. If the service you offer is unique and in demand, spending a few hours a month making the rounds at business events can skyrocket your business and reputation as a serious businessperson.
4. Research Your Prospective Clients Intensively: Learning all about a potential company before you make that first contact is vitally important. It is a great way to find out beforehand whether or not you and the client are a good fit, and it also helps you get your foot further in the door.
5. Pick Up the Phone for Maximum Results: It never hurts to pick up the phone and set up appointments to show your service offerings. Too many home-based workers are afraid of marketing and this is the biggest hurdle you’ll need to cross to make it as a telecommuter.
6. Place an Ad in Your Local Classifieds: Place an ad in the business services section of your local classifieds. Running your ad constantly provides you with consistent visibility in your community. Businesspeople tend to do business with people they are familiar with, so keep that ad running to present an image of reliability.
7. Believe in Yourself: When you believe in yourself and your ability to succeed, you project an air of confidence that will draw success to you. Fellow businesspeople can feel your well- placed confidence and trust you with their projects. When you prove to them that you are capable in every way, they’ll come back again and again. Believing in yourself may be one of the most successful marketing tools you have!

There you have it; 7 simple ways to begin marketing yourself as a pro. If you can make each of these seven part of your business strategy, you’ll discover just how satisfying your work-at-home business decision really can be.

This article is excerpted from “You Can Work in Your PJs”, a real world guide to telecommuting. Sylvie Fortin works from home full time and wrote this book to share her unique techniques with others. You can download your copy of “You Can Work in Your PJs” by visiting http://inyourpjs.com

This article is available for free reprint on your site or newsletter, provided it is copied in its entirety, and the byline remains intact. The only allowed change to the byline is to replace http://inyourpjs.com with your unique affiliate link so you can make money from any sales of “You Can Work in Your PJs”.

Sign up as an authorized affiliate here…
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Once signed up as an affiliate you will receive your unique affiliate link and may replace Sylvie’s URL with your affiliate link.

Top 7 Ways to Market Your Freelance Services originally appeared on Workaholics4Hire.com. Please visit Workaholics4Hire.com to subscribe to it, or Tweet This.

Let’s face it. Finding a work-at-home job is one of the hardest things you’ve ever done, right? Everywhere you look, you see promises, promises, and more promises and most of these promises fall far short of reality. If you’re like me, you probably feel sick every time you see one of those ads: Make Money Fast! Earn Millions with Little or No Effort! It’s time to take control of your own destiny and leave the scams behind.

At first look, work-at-home jobs databases seem like a great way to find a work at home job. However, believe it or not, these are often the least effective way to find a currently available position. Let’s take a look at the top 4 reasons why job search databases rarely work. Then, we’ll equip you with some tips to make the most of your job searching time. In no time at all, you’ll learn where and how you really can find those work-at-home gems.

Reason #1: Jobs are filled before you get a chance to apply

Many jobs may already be filled before they show up in the database at which you’re looking. Because the job listings in most job search databases are almost always found by researchers who search sites like Headhunter.net and Monster.com they are often outdated. Thousands of other people have already seen the ad before the job is posted in the work-at-home jobs database and that doesn’t bode well for your chances.

Reason #2: The competition is fierce

As you know, the competition is fierce for any home-based position that is posted anywhere on the web. Who wouldn’t want to work from home if they had the chance? Many times, when an employer posts a job listing publicly, they become inundated with resumes very quickly and good resumes get lost in the frenzy. With every posting, you are competing against thousands of other applicants.

Reason #3: Many are “local only”

Many positions are “local only” because many employers do not realize the advantages of telecommuting at a distance. They are thinking about “control issues” and having workers local for onsite meetings. In time this will change, but for now, it is a disadvantage to many.

Reason #4: Jobs are severely outdated

Many positions are severely outdated. The jobs you see listed have been listed for months…even years after the position was filled. In these cases, the employers don’t bother answering anymore because they are sick of seeing resumes. Because you are totally unaware of this reality, you waste countless hours applying for jobs that don’t even exist any longer.

To make the most of your job search, you must arm yourself with this knowledge. When you have a better sense of the playing field, you’ll know how to avoid the landmines and obstacles to your career — like bogus, outdated, and misrepresented job listings — and begin focusing on the business of pursuing time-effective and productive strategies to maximize your success.

For example, if we were to create a set of helpful guidelines based on our 4 reasons why job search databases rarely work, we might see the following useful tips:

• Always check the posting date and referring site of any job listing. If the job was originally listed elsewhere, go to the source and see if has been updated.
• Create the best telecommuter’s resume and online portfolio to stand out above the rest of the competition.
• Find the “local only” jobs in your area to narrow your search and to lessen the number of applicants you’ll have to compete with.
• Search at the source. Rather than paying for a work-at-home job database, use traditional job search methods and see if working from home can become an option after you’ve secured the job.

As you can see, arming yourself with the proper knowledge can help you make the most of your precious time. When you’re “in the know,” you can turn the inside scoop into jobs on your resume and dollars in your pocket.

This article is excerpted from “You Can Work in Your PJs”, a real world guide to telecommuting. Sylvie Fortin works from home full time and wrote this book to share her unique techniques with others. You can download your copy of “You Can Work in Your PJs” by visiting http://inyourpjs.com

This article is available for free reprint on your site or newsletter, provided it is copied in its entirety, and the byline remains intact. The only allowed change to the byline is to replace http://inyourpjs.com with your unique affiliate link so you can make money from any sales of “You Can Work in Your PJs”.

Sign up as an authorized affiliate here…
http://inyourpjs.com/affiliates.htm

Once signed up as an affiliate you will receive your unique affiliate link and may replace Sylvie’s URL with your affiliate link.

The Top 4 Problems with Work-at-Home Job Search originally appeared on Workaholics4Hire.com. Please visit Workaholics4Hire.com to subscribe to it, or Tweet This.

Working from home is more than resumes and cover letters. You need to have a professional portfolio if you want to be successful. A portfolio shows prospective clients that you’ve got the “right stuff.”

Without it, you’re just another faceless name on a piece of paper. When you learn how to create your first portfolio, you are taking the first step toward growing your career toward success. Let’s get you on your way, shall we?

The most important thing you can do to create a professional image for yourself is to create a portfolio online. Without it, you’ll just be sending resumes and employers don’t respond as well to resumes as they do to a great portfolio.

It really doesn’t matter what kind of job you are looking for: If you don’t have a portfolio as proof of what you can do, it will be much more difficult to rise above your peers and land a great contract! Portfolios are not just for artists and web designers. Anyone who really wants to work from home should consider putting up their portfolio online.

Let’s face it… resumes are boring. Endlessly droning on about past employment and skills is enough to make employers hate reading resumes. But, if you have a nice website with high-quality graphics that portray you as a real professional, employers are more likely to sit up and pay attention to who you are and what you do.

Don’t worry! Even if you don’t have any previous client projects to display, you can create a wonderful portfolio online.

So, now that we’ve established that you need a portfolio, what can you do if you don’t have any previous client projects to show off? Having a portfolio if you have no experience is the most important thing you can do! Think about it! If your resume is skimpy on experience and you have no projects completed for pay, then how on earth are you going to compete with all those others with tons of experience and a thick portfolio? The answer is simple: dummy it up!

That’s right — get very creative and think up all kinds of dummy samples. Do your best work and show off the skills you’ve got! Show your entire range of skills in the form of “Examples Only” samples. You aren’t lying to your future customers: you are showing them examples of what you are capable of.

Employers are typically more interested in what you are able to do for them, as opposed to what you’ve done for others, so it is important to show them what you can do in the form of dummy brochures, logos, transcription samples, research spreadsheets and other types of samples relevant to the job you’re looking for.

When an employer can see what you’re capable of, as well as your commitment to doing whatever it takes to get the job, you’ll find that you’ll be able to quickly replace that dummy data with all the work that you’re getting!

Once you have samples to show off, it’s time to create your own online portfolio. There are a few ways you can do this, depending on how you want to put it all together. You can create your own website or post your portfolio on a career builder website.

But, perhaps the easiest way to publish your portfolio is to use a professional online service that allows you to host your portfolio online with no need to learn html. This is the most recommended way to do it, especially if the cost for doing it is very low.

No matter how you do it, getting your portfolio online is a must for the would-be telecommuter. By showing the world what you have to offer, you are taking your destiny into your own hands and making the first step toward turning your work-at-home dreams into a reality.

This article is excerpted from “You Can Work in Your PJs”, a real world guide to telecommuting. Sylvie Fortin works from home full time and wrote this book to share her unique techniques with others. You can download your copy of “You Can Work in Your PJs” by visiting http://inyourpjs.com

This article is available for free reprint on your site or newsletter, provided it is copied in its entirety, and the byline remains intact. The only allowed change to the byline is to replace http://inyourpjs.com with your unique affiliate link so you can make money from any sales of “You Can Work in Your PJs”.

Sign up as an authorized affiliate here…
http://inyourpjs.com/affiliates.htm

Once signed up as an affiliate you will receive your unique affiliate link and may replace Sylvie’s URL with your affiliate link.

The Telecommuter’s Portfolio: What’s In Yours? originally appeared on Workaholics4Hire.com. Please visit Workaholics4Hire.com to subscribe to it, or Tweet This.

Cover letters are a critical ingredient commonly missing in most telecommuters’ applications. Creating a great telecommuting cover letter is immensely important to your potential for getting the job! It is the very first thing a prospective employer sees when you send in your resume and, without a great cover letter, you may as well not bother applying for any job.

However, you can’t just write any old cover letter like you would for an onsite job. You need to include very pertinent information when you are applying for an offsite job. Beyond the basics of every good cover letter, let’s look at some of the specifics that are involved in writing the perfect telecommuter’s cover letter.

• To Cover or Not to Cover? Always include a cover letter. Even if the posting didn’t ask for a cover letter, it is best practice to always include one. Many employers have been known to use this small thing as a test that weeds out the unprofessional applicants. All professionals automatically know that a cover letter is critically important and worth the extra time invested.
• “To Whom It May Concern” Is a No-No. When addressing the recipient of your telecommuting cover letter never write “To Whom It May Concern.” For the most part, jobs you find online (as opposed to jobs you find in your local newspaper), will include the name of the person you are supposed to send your application to. If this information is not included, it’s time to do some research.
  
  Find out who is in charge of human resources and address it to that person. You will most likely find the name of their HR Manager listed on the company website. When you are inserting a name like this, make sure you address your cover letter to “Dear Mr. Doe or Mr. Doe’s assistant.” This way, you cover your bases if the person reviewing the application is different from the Mr. Doe you located on their website. If you don’t find a name, only then use Dear Recruiter, Dear Hiring Manager, or Dear Sir/Madam.
• Where Did You Hear About Us? In the first paragraph of your letter be sure to let your reader know where you heard about the position to which you are applying. Many times a company will be advertising in numerous places for numerous telecommuting jobs; by including this information right up front you will help direct your letter to the right place should there be any confusion.
• Drop Names! As an independent contractor, you will definitely grow your business much faster if your own customers are willing to vouch for you and make recommendations about their business associates that may be hiring. When you have satisfied customers, don’t be afraid to ask them if they can think of any of their business associates that may need your services. If they say “yes,” then make sure you get the name of the person they have in mind and send a cover letter to their associate, mentioning the name of your customer.
• Sell, Sell, Sell… Yourself! Before you begin writing your cover letter, you need to take a few moments to research the company and what it does, think about how you will be able to fit in to their company, and point to specific experience you have that pertain to this particular job description. This is your only chance to make a fabulous impression!
  
  Remember, you aren’t trying to see if you want to work for the company. You have already decided this when you decided to apply for the position. You are trying to prove that the company will find you indispensable! So, make sure you really go above and beyond the norm to impress this employer in this paragraph.
• Close in Style. The close of your letter is as important as the opening. It’s important that you close confidently and with style. Be sure to let your reader know what your desired outcome of your application is (e.g., an interview, a meeting, a chance to talk to decision makers). The closing is your chance to leave a positive parting impression, so be sure to thank the reader for his or her time and to sign off graciously.

If you take the fundamentals of quality cover letter writing and add in these telecommuting tips and tricks, you’ll quickly find that your applications are getting noticed and the jobs are rolling in more and more abundantly. Writing the perfect telecommuter cover letter takes practice, but — in time — you’ll master the art and have more business than you ever imagined possible.

This article is excerpted from “You Can Work in Your PJs”, a real world guide to telecommuting. Sylvie Fortin works from home full time and wrote this book to share her unique techniques with others. You can download your copy of “You Can Work in Your PJs” by visiting http://inyourpjs.com

This article is available for free reprint on your site or newsletter, provided it is copied in its entirety, and the byline remains intact. The only allowed change to the byline is to replace http://inyourpjs.com with your unique affiliate link so you can make money from any sales of “You Can Work in Your PJs”.

Sign up as an authorized affiliate here…
http://inyourpjs.com/affiliates.htm

Once signed up as an affiliate you will receive your unique affiliate link and may replace Sylvie’s URL with your affiliate link.

Writing the Perfect Telecommuter’s Cover Letter originally appeared on Workaholics4Hire.com. Please visit Workaholics4Hire.com to subscribe to it, or Tweet This.

Did you know that all successful telecommuters share four basic personality traits? That’s right; ALL successful telecommuters have four winning qualities that help catapult them to the top of their game. To help you on your way to becoming the next most successful telecommuter, I’ve assembled the following list of personality quirks that exist in ALL successful telecommuters.

If there is something on this list that doesn’t sound like you, don’t worry! Learning what you need to be is part of learning how to get work from home. Even if you weren’t born with these traits, you can definitely learn them.

1. Self-Motivated. This is the number one personality trait you must have in order to be successful. This means that you are completely reliant on your own steam to get things done. You don’t need a boss looking over your shoulder. You don’t need anyone to remind you about deadlines. You tend to find your own answers instead of asking others to answer your questions for you.
2. Obsessive-Compulsive. Granted, using the term that is most commonly associated with having a “disorder” is a little odd. However, this particular personality quirk is also critically important when you work from home. To be a successful telecommuter, you have the type of personality that feels compelled to finish what you start, no matter how much it may inconvenience you to do so. When you begin a project, you will never rest until that project is finished. You may be sick as a dog but will keep working until the job is finished, knowing that the deadline is too critical to miss. You simply refuse to fail. You are someone who will stay up all night if that’s what it takes to complete a project.
3. Perfectionist. This refers to individuals who are never quite satisfied with the work that they do. You’re the kind of person who is fussy about the details and will drive yourself nuts if you make mistakes. You are more likely to find your own mistakes, rather than wait for someone else to point them out to you. If you miss one of your own errors, and your boss or client points it out to you, you tend to have an emotional reaction to it and tend to go ‘above and beyond’ the call of duty to not only fix your mistake, but make up for it to the client in some way.
4. Cheerful and Optimistic. This personality trait needs to be in place before you should consider working from home. You need to be the kind of person who sees the rainbow in every thunderstorm, views the glass as half full rather than half empty, and looks for the light at the end of every tunnel. Sure, this sounds kind of fluffy and silly, but if you have this kind of personality trait, you will be able to weather every storm and confidently handle the stress that goes along with working from home.

When you have the above set of personality quirks, you definitely are well-equipped to handle the difficult times. Not only will you be able to handle the stages when you don’t have projects to work on, you will also be able to handle the projects as they happen.

You won’t be the type of person who disappoints employers and you will definitely become one of those rare gems that employers tend to rely on for lots of different projects. This keeps you employed for ever because you live and breathe success and independence. If you don’t have all of these traits, don’t worry; start cultivating each in your daily work and before you know it, you’ll be the most successful telecommuter you know!

This article is excerpted from “You Can Work in Your PJs”, a real world guide to telecommuting. Sylvie Fortin works from home full time and wrote this book to share her unique techniques with others. You can download your copy of “You Can Work in Your PJs” by visiting http://inyourpjs.com

This article is available for free reprint on your site or newsletter, provided it is copied in its entirety, and the byline remains intact. The only allowed change to the byline is to replace http://inyourpjs.com with your unique affiliate link so you can make money from any sales of “You Can Work in Your PJs”.

Sign up as an authorized affiliate here…
http://inyourpjs.com/affiliates.htm

Once signed up as an affiliate you will receive your unique affiliate link and may replace Sylvie’s URL with your affiliate link.

4 Winning Personality Traits of the Successful Telecommuter originally appeared on Workaholics4Hire.com. Please visit Workaholics4Hire.com to subscribe to it, or Tweet This.

If you’re tired of searching for those elusive, legitimate work-at-home jobs, it’s time you became a super sleuth as you find the jobs no one else is looking for.

Looking for telecommuting work can be a full-time job in itself! However, the telecommuters I’ve met who have been most successful don’t spend much time looking for work. Their biggest success and skill is that they know exactly where to look, they don’t waste time researching the wrong places, and they don’t spend time applying for jobs they know aren’t legitimate. They are, very simply, highly-targeted and efficient jobseekers who know what they want and they know how to reach out and grab it!

You can be one of these skilled jobseekers too, if you learn a few simple tricks to cut down on your time wasted in the pursuit of the wrong job types. Here are the top 3 ways you can fine-tune you job search for total success.

• Know what you are looking for: As silly as it sounds, many job searchers throw a wide net out into the world and just hope that a good-sounding job might come up. To make the best use of your time, you need to determine a) what you really want to do, and b) choose your list of search terms carefully before you start searching online databases or search engines so you can target the types of jobs you want.
• Have all your materials ready before you search: Make sure you have your resume, cover letter templates, and portfolio samples ready to go before you start searching. This will dramatically cut down your time and allow you to simply apply for positions and contracts instantly, without having to spend a lot of time fiddling with your materials. Remember, you’re not making any money when you’re searching for jobs, so you want to be as productive and prepared as possible.
• Choose your search tools carefully: With the number of work-at-home scams out there, you need to be incredibly cautious when choosing your search tools. To help get you started, we’ve listed some of the most popular search tool types and how best to use them.
  
  
  • Work-at-Home Job Databases. Select 2-5 trusted and reliable work at home jobs databases where you can search each day for the positions that are listed and updated regularly. Make sure you are familiar with how the sites work so you can narrow your search to only new jobs posted today. Do not spend more than 10 minutes a day searching work at home jobs databases.
  • Freelance Project Boards. Select 2 reputable and free or low-cost freelance project posting sites, where you can scan for new projects posted that fit your skills. Have all your materials ready beforehand and don’t apply for projects you aren’t entirely familiar with. Never apply for jobs you aren’t qualified to do. Do not spend more than 10 minutes a day searching freelance project boards.
  • Standard (Mixed) Job Boards. Select 1 high-traffic mixed job board. Use only your pre-selected search terms to find the jobs you want. Do not spend more than 5 minutes a day searching mixed job boards.
  • Local Newspaper Classifieds. Locate your city’s online version of the career classifieds and run daily searches, being very careful not to waste time applying for any kind of “pay to work” scheme. Searching your local classifieds is an excellent way to get home-based employment, but there can be a lot of scams to filter through, so make sure you know the difference. Do not spend more than 5 minutes a day searching your local classifieds.

Once you’ve put in your 30 minutes, spend the rest of your day working on projects! If you don’t already have a job, then spend the rest of the day learning a new skill, networking with potential clients, building a home-based business, or volunteering your services to worthy charities. Using your unpaid time wisely will lead to lots of opportunities to get work. Hard work always draws more hard work to itself. That’s the way life is, so get busy and watch the work come in!

This article is excerpted from “You Can Work in Your PJs”, a real world guide to telecommuting. Sylvie Fortin works from home full time and wrote this book to share her unique techniques with others. You can download your copy of “You Can Work in Your PJs” by visiting http://inyourpjs.com

This article is available for free reprint on your site or newsletter, provided it is copied in its entirety, and the byline remains intact. The only allowed change to the byline is to replace http://inyourpjs.com with your unique affiliate link so you can make money from any sales of “You Can Work in Your PJs”.

Sign up as an authorized affiliate here…
http://inyourpjs.com/affiliates.htm

Once signed up as an affiliate you will receive your unique affiliate link and may replace Sylvie’s URL with your affiliate link.

Top 3 Ways to Find Where the Jobs Are Really Hiding originally appeared on Workaholics4Hire.com. Please visit Workaholics4Hire.com to subscribe to it, or Tweet This.

Did you know that some people aren’t successful telecommuters simply because they are trying to work from home for the wrong reasons? Indeed, most prospective telecommuters fail in their goal because they are focused on the wrong reasons to want to work from home. They tend to be ‘self-focused’ rather than focused on the employer’s needs. In order to be truly successful, you must first change the way you think about working from home.

You must realize that you are not the one who decides where you are going to work from. Ultimately, it is the employer who must agree to hire you to work from your home. If you approach your work at home goal slightly differently and start thinking like your employer would, you will be far better able to get a telecommuting position. You will have placed yourself outside of your own needs and will be focused on your employer’s needs!

Think about this concept for a minute; really think about it. If you truly want to be successful as a telecommuter, you must step outside of yourself. You must start thinking like your prospective client. You must stop thinking about your own needs and start thinking about what your prospective employer needs from you.

This one simple concept is a critically missing component of most job search efforts. Most jobseekers make the biggest mistakes by approaching prospective clients or employers with clearly selfish motivations showing. Instead of saying “My services may be valuable to you because ___,” they approach employers with “I want the job because I need ___.”

If you think about it, haven’t we all been guilty of doing exactly this at one time or the other? We are all essentially selfish creatures. It is the nature of the human condition. It takes a lot of struggle and effort to change our mind set so that we focus on the needs of others rather than our own.

It’s not something that happens overnight, but if you consciously will yourself to switch your focus, you will find that you begin to approach everything in life with a whole new vision! Your eyes begin to open with awareness of what is really going on around you. See how different your future can be, simply by turning yourself into an empathic telecommuter.

In other words, if you start acting like an empathic telecommuter, you will “Put yourself into your customer’s shoes and try and imagine what he or she needs.”

It’s time for you to start to train your mind to forget all about why you want to work from home and start to focus on why your potential customer needs you to work from your professional home office.

This simple “turn of the mind” will transform every aspect of your life! You will find that success and money come more easily to you and your prospective customers will sense that you really care about their needs. They will have more trust in your ability to go beyond what they expect of you.

Believe it or not, when you become an empathic telecommuter, you will never again need to search for the right opportunities, because you will find that all the right opportunities will be drawn to you!

This article is excerpted from “You Can Work in Your PJs”, a real world guide to telecommuting. Sylvie Fortin works from home full time and wrote this book to share her unique techniques with others. You can download your copy of “You Can Work in Your PJs” by visiting http://inyourpjs.com

This article is available for free reprint on your site or newsletter, provided it is copied in its entirety, and the byline remains intact. The only allowed change to the byline is to replace http://inyourpjs.com with your unique affiliate link so you can make money from any sales of “You Can Work in Your PJs”.

Sign up as an authorized affiliate here…
http://inyourpjs.com/affiliates.htm

Once signed up as an affiliate you will receive your unique affiliate link and may replace Sylvie’s URL with your affiliate link.

Become an Empathic Telecommuter originally appeared on Workaholics4Hire.com. Please visit Workaholics4Hire.com to subscribe to it, or Tweet This.

If you thought just having a professional website was enough to land you more business than you could handle, think again. Just having a website is pointless if you don’t let people know you exist. That’s right: you need to market your site. But, don’t worry; you won’t have to spend your hard earned of dollars on advertising.

Believe it or not, there are simple, little-known, and — best of all — free techniques you can start using today to effectively market your website to your target audience. See instant results in your home-based business and discover how easy advertising can be with these top 4 ideas for marketing your work-at- home website.

Market your site using search engines

Everyone wants to be at the top of the search engine rankings, right? And, everyone wants to know the tricks that will get them there. The down side is that no one seems to agree with what works for every search engine. It can be downright confusing! To give yourself and your site a fighting chance, you’ll need to design for success.

• Make It Relevant! Start by designing your site correctly. Use your most important keywords — the ones that best describe your products and services — repeatedly throughout your site. This helps search engines determine the relevancy of your site when someone is searching.
• Meta Tag It! Use proper meta tags within your code. Meta tags are snippets of HTML code that “talk” to search engines and tell them what kind of content you have on your site. The better you can talk to the search engines with your meta tags, the better chance of a higher listing you’ll have.
• Submit It! Submit your site URL to the top search engines on the Web. Don’t get fooled into paying for a service to submit for you. Manually submit your site to the most used search engines (e.g., Yahoo, Google, Excite, and Lycos). Be patient. Search engines can take up to 4 months to list your site. If you want immediate results, keep reading…
• Pay Per Click It! While not free, Pay Per Click advertising is the most effective way to get your site to the top of the search engine list in a matter of minutes. With Pay Per Click companies, such as Overture and Google Ads, your site’s ad shows up whenever someone searches on the keywords you’ve chosen. If they click on your ad, you pay the company a few cents per click and you’re all set. Instant top listings in the search engines! You can’t beat it!

Market your site using discussion boards

Discussion boards are online groups where people who enjoy the same things get together and talk about them. Topics are unlimited! To market your site on discussion boards, start by visiting boards that relate to your business. Take a front seat as you learn about your colleagues and customers. And, when you’re ready to jump into the conversation, share your thoughts with the board.

How does this help promote your site? By simply adding a “Signature Line” (or “Sig”) at the end of your postings, you will be able to advertise your site and what you do. A Sig is simply your name plus a little tagline about who you are and how you can be contacted (e.g., via your website).

Discussions boards and Sigs are the perfect place to get the word out about what you do without spending a dime.

Market your site using reciprocal link exchanges

Reciprocal link exchanges are a wonderful way to generate a lot of traffic for your site, but most importantly, increase your rankings in major search engines.

Reciprocal linking is the internet’s version of “you scratch my back, and I’ll scratch yours.” The idea behind it is that you have a website about a specific topic and on your website you provide a list of complementary or similar sites that you enjoy. In return for driving traffic to their sites, you ask those sites to display your link. The more websites show your links, the more likely that search engines will place your listing towards the top because your site is popular. Win-win!

Market your site using articles

This technique can place your name and website in places all around the web for years to come. And, it couldn’t be simpler to get started. All you have to do is write short informational articles, between 500-750 words, on relevant topics to your business. Articles should be helpful to your readers and not blatant advertisements for your business.

Submit the articles to the many free article posting sites (like www.goarticles.com) and give the right for anybody to post your article anywhere they please as long as they keep your byline (or Sig) in tact. Then watch your articles spread across the internet like wildfire. Interested parties (read “prospective buyers”) will see your articles and expertise and will flock to your website to learn more about you and the services you offer.

No matter how you go about it, marketing your website does not need to cost an arm and a leg. In fact, with just these simple 4 techniques you can begin marketing your products and services like a pro and watch your sales increase with every passing day!

This article is excerpted from “You Can Work in Your PJs”, a real world guide to telecommuting. Sylvie Fortin works from home full time and wrote this book to share her unique techniques with others. You can download your copy of “You Can Work in Your PJs” by visiting http://inyourpjs.com

This article is available for free reprint on your site or newsletter, provided it is copied in its entirety, and the byline remains intact. The only allowed change to the byline is to replace http://inyourpjs.com with your unique affiliate link so you can make money from any sales of “You Can Work in Your PJs”.

Sign up as an authorized affiliate here…
http://inyourpjs.com/affiliates.htm

Once signed up as an affiliate you will receive your unique affiliate link and may replace Sylvie’s URL with your affiliate link.

Marketing Your Work-at-Home Website in 4 Simple Steps originally appeared on Workaholics4Hire.com. Please visit Workaholics4Hire.com to subscribe to it, or Tweet This.