How to Choose your Work-from-Home Job

Most people wishing to work-from-home or telecommute start with a state of confusion. There are so many work-from-home scams that most newbies end up burning their fingers at their initial attempt to set up home businesses.

If you wish to stay away from the scams, the first rule is to avoid the get-rich-quick schemes. Focusing on job satisfaction instead of big money will steer you past many of the scams strewn across the marketplace.

When looking for a work-from-home opportunity, here are a few questions you need to ask yourself:

1. What do I enjoy doing?

There may be several things you enjoy doing; list them all. Don't leave out anything. List also those activities that you suspect might not earn you money, for example, watching TV. You may be surprised; there are work-from-home opportunities also for people who would like to watch TV for a living. The only criterion in this list is that it should be an activity you enjoy doing.

2. What are the activities I would rather not do professionally?

Doing something professionally means doing similar tasks everyday, even repetitively. There may be activities you enjoy doing, but rather not do professionally. Many people stop enjoying certain activities if they have to do them for a living. For example, you may enjoy watching a certain TV program. However, would you enjoy watching the same scene repeatedly about 20-30 times? This is what you might need to do if you became a video or movie editor.

3. What are the activities I have the skills for?

Make a list of all the skills you have used in the past. Don't limit yourself to workplace skills. Include work that you may have done for your family, friends, or charitable organizations.

4. What are the skills I would enjoy learning?

Make a list of all the skills that you would enjoy learning. For example, you might enjoy learning how to play a musical instrument or story writing.

5. What are the required skills I can learn in the shortest time?

Based on your interests, make a list of the skills it would take you the least time to learn.

6. What are the tasks I hate doing or what working styles do I hate the most?

List tasks related to the workplace as well as tasks in other informal settings. For example, you may hate creating detailed reports or working under a boss.

Now identify an activity with the most occurrences across all the "like" categories and absent in the "hate" category. For example, your most frequent "like" activity may be watching TV. Then search for work-from-home opportunities that involve activities like editing or categorizing videos.

This exercise will help you narrow down your search and possibly land you a job that will bring you job satisfaction. In most cases, when people enjoy their job, they produce quality output and consequently are more successful.  Remember also, that success and money don’t always go hand. While ideally, a job you love will mean money and happiness, you may have to sacrifice some (or a lot) of the former to achieve the latter.

Use the Comments section below to share your tips, views, or experiences with other dads.