Telecommuting

Key

$ Earnings equivalent to salaried position, depending on work done.

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Find a Telecommuting Job in Less than an Hour a Day
© Leslie Truex Nov 21, 2001

Searching for a job is full-time work. If you are working full-time but still want to obtain a telecommuting job, finding the time to search and apply for work can be difficult. Making the time to do the work necessary is essential in achieving success and not very hard if you get organized and develop an effective system. Below you will find some tips that will help you make the most of your search in as little time as possible.

The first section involves preparing for the search. That is followed by a daily regimen that you should be able to complete in 30 to 60 minute per day.

Preparing to Search for Work:

With these basic preparations you will be able to quickly apply to jobs you find. The preparation involves creating the materials you will need to apply to jobs as well as developing a system and organization.

The Resume:

1. Once you locate a job, you need to submit a resume or fill-out an online application (even if the announcement doesn't ask for a resume, send something that details your skills and experience. Don't just send, "I'm interested in this job."). This can take a great deal of time particularly if you don't have a ready-made resume or stock answers to common questions. Therefore the first step in conducting a work-at-home job search is to prepare a resume. The resume you make at this point should be generic, outlining all your skills and experience. If you know the different types of jobs you plan to apply to, you should make a general resume for each job type.

2. As you find jobs, you should open your resume document and change it to fit the specific job to which you plan to apply. I recommend copying and pasting the generic resume into a new document, make the changes and then name the file after the job or company.

3. Many companies will not accept attachments so it's best to create a simple resume without fancy fonts or formats. That way you can copy and paste it into your email or the online submission form that asks for resumes.

4. You will also want to create a generic introduction or cover letter that you will also change to fit with each job to which you apply. The cover letter should contain information about the job to which you are applying, where you saw the job, brief overview of your qualifications, and your contact information. If you are pasting your resume into the email, just put a line indicating your resume follows the letter.

5. If you can, set your computer or get a program (i.e. Gator) that can help you fill out the forms by already having your name in the box or if you click on the box, you name appears in a list. For standard questions such as "what are your qualifications?" or samples of work, have answers prepared and saved in a word document. You can then copy and paste these answers into the online boxes. Be sure to check and make sure your answers are specific to the question being asked as well to the job being offered.

Setting up Search Resources

1. Bookmark all the job search sites you plan to use. Many are listed are listed here at the Telecommuting Forum at Suite101 so you can bookmark this site. If there some sites you use more than others, bookmark those as well.

2. Sign-up for email notifications or work-at-home newsletters that provide you with job announcements. If you can, set up an email folder specifically for your job announcements. That way if you want to go back and review a job announcement you can easily find it in your "Jobs" folder instead of scrolling through all your old email. Anther idea is to obtain an account at Yahoo or some other free email site specifically to use in your job search.

Conducting the Job Search

1. The easiest way to search and apply for the most jobs in a single sitting is to have everything you need readily available. To start, open all possible file documents such your resume, introduction or cover letter, and stock application answers.

2. Check your email for new job announcements from job sites or newsletters. If you find a job that interests you, print it out for your records. Also send this email to your "Job" folder.

3. There are two methods you can use to handle job announcements: 1) you can respond to them as you find them or 2) you can mark the ones you are interested in and then go back later and apply to them. Personally, I prefer the first method, as it can be hard to mark job announcements in a way that is easy to find them again. Plus, I think you can send out more resumes in a specific time period by handling them as you come across them.

4. If you find jobs in your email, respond to them according to the directions the announcement supplies. Use the open documents to cut and paste your information to be sent. Be sure to customize the resume and other materials so that your application fits the specific job. Add a brief introduction to your email responses. Again, make it specific to the job.

5. Once you have taken care of emailed job announcements, click on your book marked job search sites and conduct your job search. I generally use "telecommute" and "work at home" as my search words. Note that sometimes "work at home" is in a job application but refers to work at home office meaning the businesses base office. I generally put "work at home" in quotes in the search box because it is a phrase.

6. Apply to jobs you find in your search just as you did with your emailed jobs. Some job search sites do allow you to have your resume posted and you can send it with a click of a button. If you do this, try to have your resume generic enough to fit the different jobs to which you may apply but not so generic that your skills don't fit any job. I once heard that the resume is designed to get you interviewed not to get the job. Its better to have a newsletter that just gives a little information; just enough to make you interesting. Too much information can put you in the reject pile.

Once you get used the system above, you should be able to send off several resumes in an hour... assuming you find work to which you want to apply. There are many great search sites and hundreds of jobs. Through consistent effort you will find announcements. Through a systematic approach to applying for work, you will find a job

Follow-up

Suite 101 http://www.suite101.com/welcome.cfm/telecommuting
Job bank - payment required http://www.tjobs.com/
Government http://www.telework.gov/
General http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Telecommuting

Your level of success in attaining the results in our materials depends on the time you devote to the program, ideas and techniques mentioned, your finances, knowledge, market conditions and various skills. Since these factors differ according to individuals, we cannot guarantee your success or income level. nor are we responsible for any of your actions. Any and all forward looking statements here or on any of our material are intended to express our opinion of earnings potential. Many factors will be important in determining your actual results and no guarantees are made that you will achieve results similar to ours or anybody elses, in fact no guarantees are made that you will achieve any results from our ideas and techniques in our material.

The author and publisher disclaim any warranties (express or implied), merchantability, or fitness for any particular purpose. The author and publisher shall in no event be held liable to any party for any direct, indirect, punitive, special, incidental or other consequential damages arising directly or indirectly from any use of this material, which is provided "as is", and without warranties.

As always, the advice of a competent legal, tax, accounting or other professional should be sought.

All links are for information purposes only and are not warranted for content, accuracy or any other implied or explicit purpose.

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