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You Can Work From Home if You Have These Skills

Winning the work-life balance like a total boss!

Oh to be the boss of you. To earn from doing what you love doing. To work from home on your own terms. You want to have coffee in bed while checking your emails? Walk the dog first thing every morning before getting down to business? Finish a passion project at your favorite spot in the condo where the view from your window is scenic and inspiring? Working from home while following your passion empowers you to subscribe to your own routine, command your own asking price, and work with a network of clients. Some believe it’s the ultimate work-life balance scenario. Others prefer the systematic ways of working in a corporate setup and the financial stability of getting a monthly salary. It’s up to you, really. But if you dream of leaving the 9 to 5 grind, are sick and tired of the long and arduous commute, or you just want to earn by doing your own thing, tapping into your hidden talents is definitely a great option for you.

Being a freelancer is not just about setting up a cool home office, though. Your services or creations have to be in demand—and you have to be pretty good at what you do—in order for you to earn a living.

Ask yourself the following questions, check your skills, then get to it.

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Do you like sharing your lifestyle to total strangers?

You visited a quaint café on your lunch break. Click and post. You traveled to a cool new hangout during the weekend. Click and post. You wore a totally lit outfit that’s screaming #OOTD. Click, click and post. If you like instantly sharing your lifestyle with the world and you have quite a following, there may be a blogger in you. You can make a decent amount of money from brand sponsorships, affiliate marketing, and straight-up ads. Some bloggers have made a career writing reviews about their favorite restaurants and hotels. Blogging basics include trusty gadgets, a great camera, a reliable Internet source, a good grasp of whatever language you want to use, plus a winning personality. “In order to stand out as a blogger or influencer today, you have to have the ability to make yourself stand out without looking like it’s forced. So many people fail at this because they simply forgot to be original and true to themselves,” advises blogger and Instagram influencer Danielle Gonzalez of www.trustmeitsparadise.com fame.

When people see your works of art are their minds blown?

We envy people with legit drawing skills. It’s a talent you can make easy money from, especially if you have a unique style that stands out. You can make logos for companies or startups, draw a person or a pet for a fee, create a comic book—sky’s the limit! It’s all in your hands. There are some great companies you can work for but nothing beats working for yourself. “Being able to enjoy what you do and be proud of the things you make have made me genuinely fear ever having to work in an office again,” shares illustrator Asia Noble, who uses her IG account, http://instagram.com/asianobleart, as her digital portfolio. People who can make amazing arts and crafts, too, like detailed dioramas, cute crochets, or intricate calligraphy can quit their day job and just work from home if they wanted to. Etsy and Amazon are good places to start selling your wares. Websites like Behance, deviantArt, and Dribbble also allow you to showcase your artworks for the entire world wide web to see and connect with clients on a global scale. Never mind if you’re halfway across the globe. As long as they like your output and you can deliver quality goods on time, they’ll keep commissioning you to work for them.

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Are you good at planning and organizing?

Being good at planning out-of-town trips, important events, or huge celebrations is no easy task. Not many people are wired to take the stress of coordinating with different types of people, to improvise when something goes awry, to adapt quickly to a sticky situation, and to overcome a demanding crowd. People will pay good money for someone with excellent time-management and organizing skills. The life of a freelance travel agent or day planner could be for you if you’ve got the chops to make sure things run smoothly. It helps if you have a well-established blog or even a few trips that you have documented on your personal blog or IG. You can easily find connections through existing travel agents or advertise on Facebook. Mirra Reyes, the main girl behind Biyaheroes.com, is a freelance wizard planner and she loves the freedom of working with different clients: “It feels [liberating] to have my own set of clients and projects!”

Do you have Excel-ent Microsoft office skills?

If you’re a master at manipulating the MS program lineup like Excel, Word, Publisher, the works, then you just might have a career as a virtual assistant. There is a good market for skilled types like you, especially for people with A+ English skills. Sites like PeoplePerHour and Upwork offer freelancers a platform where they can connect with super-busy individuals seeking help with data entry, writing emails, and organizing PDF files.

Is you a grammar Nazi?

Anyone who understands good English can catch the subject-verb agreement blunder in the question above, but if you’re above-average in the grammar and writing department, you can work from home as a copy editor or proofreader. To be competitive in the editing business, you have to be a stickler for detail (Important side note: Not all grammarians are good editors. One has to be flexible at times and give leeway to creative expression.), constantly read well-written material, research about publishing trends, and get a lot of experience and training.

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Is photography your life?

Perhaps you’re the type of person who loves to take hundreds of sunset photos, who finds the aesthetic in a picture of a pair of scissors on a wooden table, who can tell a story through a lens in a single frame. Maybe you have the complete equipment for the job. If so, you must be a photographer at heart. There are many photography gigs you can land but it’s better to be good at a particular genre like wedding, nature, documentary, portrait, food, etc., so it’s easier for you to be recognized and develop your craft. Once you capture your target market, you’ll be their go-to photographer for a specific job.

Building your own business from the comfort of your own home is a challenge many are too scared to face, but with the right mindset, skills, and a whole lotta passion, you can be anything you want to be.

 

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