The hectic environment of the present day workplace is taking a heavy toll on the physical and mental health of many people. Tensions at office, long commutes, health issues, and lesser quality time spent with family and friends are some of the major pitfalls of today's fast-paced lifestyle. Given these factors it is no wonder that more and more people are choosing to become home-based entrepreneurs.
Working from home brings with it many advantages like saving time on commuting. On an average, a person spends nearly 10% of his/her day on transportation. A home-based enterprise helps you save all that time, which can be put to better use. Another major advantage of being self employed is that one can allocate more time and attention to the house and its members. Quality time spent together, which is a rarity nowadays, goes a long way in enriching the family. Women benefit more from home-based businesses as they are able to juggle both work issues and family demands in an efficient manner. Working from home gives people more flexibility as they are able to cater to personal needs without drastically affecting their work schedule. Reduced expenses are also another major benefit of setting up a home-based unit. The cost of travel, eating out and other expenses are much lesser when one functions out of home. Stress levels are considerably lower among self-employed people as they are their own bosses and the normal politics being played out in other offices is not seen in home-based businesses.
Here’s a list of the ten most popular jobs that can be done from the comfort of one's home:
1) Medical transcription - Can easily be done by people with basic computer skills and good knowledge of the English language. This job is ideal for people looking to work out of home as all it needs is a computer with Internet connection. Medical transcriptions are required to convert the medical details of patients into text-written format from records dictated by doctors and healthcare officials. This form of self employment is very popular as it requires minimum set-up facilities but guarantees a steady income. With more and more countries, especially the United States, outsourcing archiving of medical records, it is boom time for people wanting to give home-based employment a shot. The medical transcription industry is poised to reach greater heights in the future and thus will attract more aspirants. Another related form of employment is medical billing and coding, wherein codes are allotted to settle financial claims from insurance companies and other agencies. The medical coder is required to keep track of insurance claims of services provided by health care agencies.
2) Accounting: Accounting is a good career option for those contemplating working from home. People with sound financial knowledge can start an accounting company right at home by handling the finances of small or medium business enterprises or personal finances of family members and friends. One can also secure a tax and accounting franchise for an area and begin business. Once the business begins to flourish, home-based accountants can also look at bookkeeping for larger companies.
3) Freelance Writing/Copy Editor: Nowadays more and more people are taking up freelance writing as a lucrative career. Former journalists and people with a flair for writing work from the comfort zone of their homes to earn fast money. There are many options available for people looking to make a living out of freelance writing.
One can either write exclusively for one company or send in articles to numerous others. The major advantage of freelance writing, apart from offering a flexible schedule, is that it opens up a wide variety of writing options. One can cater to the print audience by publishing articles in newspapers, magazines or write for e-newsletters and Internet editions of magazines. Freelancer writers are always in demand for a wide variety of publishing materials like brochures, technical manuals, publications and websites. Another avenue generating income for freelance writers is writing and selling e-books online, creating company blogs highlighting certain products.
4) Telemarketing/Customer Service: Companies have designed software, which allow customer service agents to access the system from home and earn an income. The role of customer service agents includes providing solutions to customer requirements, providing general information to clients and recording orders into the computer database. While providing telemarketing services from home, people need to make calls to sales leads, directly sell services or set up appointments for sales personnel.
5) Forex trading: Forex trading or foreign exchange trading is fast catching up as a remunerative career option for people wanting to quit the 9-5 regular job routine and try something different. To enter this field one must have a good knowledge of stocks, shares and how the Forex market works. There is a lot of risk involved in this business and one can either make big money or suffer heavy losses both on the same day. Like medical transcriptionists, home-based Forex traders also need only a computer and an Internet connection. Nowadays many companies offer currency trading courses, which enables one to buy/sell shares online and thus make profit.
6) Day care/playschool: A relatively easier mode of income for people with kids, especially women, is setting up a child care centre or playschool at home. With the number of working couples on the rise, there is an increasing demand for day care centers and playschools. Child care requires very less investment as it can be started in your own house if you have the extra space. The advantages of setting up a playschool are many as it offers parents a flexible schedule and they can spend more time with their own children while taking care of other people’s kids as well. This venture brings in good returns for people experienced in handling kids.
7) Catering/Cooking classes/Baking items: Opening up a small catering unit supplying breakfast, lunch and dinner items to offices and individual homes is ideal for people interested in good food and wanting to make it a source of income. Most of the cooking can be done from home while taking care of household chores, with only very little time spent outside if everything is planned in advance. Women can also conduct cookery classes from home as nowadays people are more than ready to experiment with their palate. Classes teaching North Indian, Chinese, Thai and Continental dishes are in great demand as people get exposed to new food and cultures. If your hobby is baking items and distributing them among your friends, then it is time you made it your livelihood. One can bake different items and sell them to bakeries and sweet shops and earn a decent income. People trying out this venture will have to give special importance to decorating their items and presenting them in a different manner.
8) Graphic Designing: With the aid of advanced technology, people are taking up graphic designing as a career. They learn how to design websites and make logos. The job can be done from home as all one needs is a computer and Internet connection. There are many online tutorials teaching the basics of graphic designing so people can learn these courses from home and set up their own design unit. With more and more companies setting up their websites there is high demand for designers who can provide original and creative designs and logos. Once business begins to pick up, one can expect a steady flow of income.
9) Jewelry making/Custom Gift Baskets: Jewelry making is an easy source of income for housewives as it requires very less investment. Women can use their spare time to attend jewelry making classes and then make and sell jewelry either among their friends or to shops. With some help from word-of-mouth publicity one can some fast bucks. Homemakers can also design fruit baskets, variety packs, arrange and sell gift baskets. Once the unit is established, making custom gift baskets is a fruitful home-based business.
10) Painting: The art market is one field which has not been affected by the financial meltdown and this means boom time for upcoming artists. So if you have that artistic streak then the time is right to make painting a source of income. The demand for murals, Thanjore paintings, oil paintings is always high so one can earn good money after the initial hiccups. One can also begin taking painting classes from home as nowadays more and more youngsters are being attracted into the world of colors. The initial investment required in this field is comparatively less and all one needs are some colors, pastels, and brushes.
With each passing day newer avenues are opening up for people fed up with the regular cycle of office jobs and looking for something different. The number of home-based entrepreneurs is sure to rise in the future as it is a perfect blend of professional and personal lives.
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Chillibreeze's disclaimer: This is a contributed article and was published on Chillibreeze in October, 2010. The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not reflect the views of Chillibreeze as a company. Chillibreeze has a strict anti-plagiarism policy. Please contact us to report any copyright issues related to this article. The relevance of the facts and figures cited (if any) could change after a period of time.
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