We have all heard of working from home, and many of us have longed for it: working from the comfort of your own home, or home office, is an increasingly common way to hold a job or run a business. Today it is a very attractive employment option with ever-growing potential and opportunities. Companies themselves now very often offer some form of home office.
Let’s take a look at specific ways to work, run a business and earn extra money from home using an internet connection, for which all you need is a computer and fast internet. Below you can browse pages about specific positions, and in the second part of the article there is a further breakdown with commentary.
💡 TIP 1: If you would like to start working from home and you enjoy writing, be sure to try our copywriting internship, where you will learn many useful things.
💡 TIP 2: If you want to make working from home more efficient, you can read our article on the TOP fifteen daily rituals for an efficient home office.
Table of contents
Working from home on a PC
6 Tips: How to find a job working from home?
- Show that you are independent. This applies to side jobs, company jobs and running a business alike. You have to prove to yourself or your managers that you are independent and can work on your own like this.
- Write to people and reach out. Simply try to get your foot in the door somewhere, even if you have no experience. Courage and persistence matter.
- Browse job portals, but feel free to ask companies directly too.
- Feel free to gain your first experience even for free, and only then start making demands about money. Internships and trainee programmes are ideal to begin with.
- When working from home, you will not enjoy the company of colleagues or a work environment, so you should enjoy the work itself.
- Try to set up your working-from-home routine so that you do not just sit at home at your PC 5 days a week. You could quickly get fed up with it. It is therefore a good idea to commute to the office or a co-working space at least once a week. Alternatively, shorten your working week and set aside, for example, Wednesdays for other activities.
Which path to working from home online and on a PC should you take?
The most fundamental question you need to ask yourself at the start of your career path is whether you intend to launch your own business or rather go down the route of an employee carrying out tasks. Above all, comparing all the pros and cons and weighing up your options will help you decide. Each of us has different abilities and a different drive when it comes to business. Some people see business as a chance for personal growth, while others see only worries and risks. However, working from home is now possible for both employees and entrepreneurs. It is simply a way of doing your work.
Being your own boss brings plenty of freedom, but it comes with just as many risks, hardships and responsibilities. As an employee, you will work within the boundaries of various restrictions, but on the other hand there will always be a helping hand beside you. It is entirely up to you how you decide, but here are a few helpful questions that are important to answer.
If you want to work from home on a PC, you definitely need a high level of self-discipline and self-control to drive you forward. You also need self-reflection, which allows you to evaluate both your direction and your daily work. Many people struggle to get up on their own when they do not have to go to work. They put things off and do other activities instead.
How much time and money are you willing to invest at the start?
Let’s say you decide to launch a new online shop. Creating a website, choosing quality goods and suppliers, and reaching the right group of customers take a lot of time, and you can rarely manage without an initial financial investment. If, on the other hand, you join an established and functioning online shop, you only need to learn the work processes and then off you go “selling”.
The first path is certainly more difficult and riskier, but its successful outcome is definitely more rewarding. After all, who would not want to own a thriving online shop bustling with satisfied customers?
Do you want to stay anonymous or “make a name for yourself”?
As a regular employee, you can do excellent work that is noticed mainly by your manager and, ideally, properly appreciated. But what if ten thousand people saw you that way? What about a hundred thousand? Or even a million? In today’s age of social media, you can become an influencer or a YouTuber, build a loyal audience and earn money from advertising and product promotion.
Nowadays it is very important to build a good name that customers or clients will respond to. Thanks to social media and websites, personal brand building has become fairly accessible, but competition has also grown enormously. Building authority and credibility is key. It does not happen by itself. You have to sacrifice some time for it, but if you devote time to building your personal brand, that time and money will come back to you, and not only in the form of recognition.
You can also become a respected freelancer who is a recognised leader in their field. You can be a kind of modern-day craftsperson or artist, building your brand, your skills and your price!
However, do not be misled by rumours about the fairy-tale easy life of internet celebrities. Behind their success, too, lies great effort, hard work and often life under a lot of pressure.
Self-discipline, self-discipline, self-discipline… Do you have enough of it?
A free and flexible working schedule without strict supervision can very easily tip over into so-called idleness. Do not expect money to appear in your account without any effort on your part. Although working for a company still offers some flexibility with time, there will be someone above you who makes sure the assigned task is completed on time and to a good standard.
Can you manage to be your own boss and say to yourself: “No, today you will work all day so that you can have tomorrow off.”, or do you need someone else to supervise you? Some people are simply not cut out for working from home, but most can change if they work on themselves.
Not everyone masters the art of being efficient in a home office, and it is also a matter of practice and good habits (see the introductory article with 15 tips). People who struggle with this time management usually have the problem that they do not set any working hours. It then often looks like this: they get up at 9 in the morning and only get down to work at 10. Throughout the day they often go on social media or procrastinate in other ways. And what is the result?
They get less work done, their attention is scattered and the quality of their work is not great. In addition, these people often stretch their work across 7 days a week and 24 hours a day. This means they constantly feel the need to do something but cannot bring themselves to do it. As a result, their mind never switches off from work mode, which is very bad in the long term. Self-control and self-discipline are the foundation of success in many fields, but if you want to run a business or be efficient in any way when working from home on a PC, focus on this point!
If you have calmly thought everything through and decided that the best option for you is to stand on your own two feet and work for yourself, the article How to make money online will certainly help you. If you have concluded that you want to start a career in an established company, here are a few more tips for you.
When you are starting to work from home, or have already been doing so for some time, it is good to have some rituals. The answer is not gruelling work from morning till night, but treating working from home as a rest and procrastinating does not pay off at all. Be motivated to do your work, but also set aside short periods during the day for activities that take your mind off work for a while. To start with, I recommend, for example, the book Tools of Titans by Tim Ferriss.
A fast PC and internet are essential for working from home
Fast internet and a fast PC are the basis for most work-from-home jobs. A slow computer and internet do more than just hold you up. Waiting can cause tension and, for some people, can completely destroy concentration and enthusiasm. I noticed this in myself not only as a feeling, but my smartwatch told me so too.
Before you start working, I definitely recommend doing a simple internet speed test. This will show you whether your connection meets the demands of your work.
If you work from home on a PC, think about how often your computer or internet connection slows you down. Sometimes very little is needed, the costs will pay for themselves in record time and you will enjoy working on your PC more. Working online naturally requires a very fast connection, but there are also jobs such as copywriting where mobile data is perfectly sufficient. For most computer-based jobs, however, fast internet is a given (MUST-HAVE).
For a computer, the most important things are an SSD and more than 8 GB of RAM. These two specs do not add much to the price of a PC, but they greatly affect the speed of most everyday tasks. Other tips include working on two monitors or using an ergonomic mouse and keyboard. Do not underestimate these accessories or a fast computer. I can judge very well how much time, and above all how much stress, my new computer has saved me. A lot. I am convinced that investing in a good-quality computer is extremely important.
We will leave the Mac vs. Windows dilemma for another time. One side says one thing and the other says something else. A Mac does not offer as many ways to get burned. With Windows, users have to put in much more effort to keep their computer fast and in good condition.
Where to start looking for work from home?
The internet is an endlessly vast place where you can find offers of almost anything, including work from home. However, if you already have a job, for example in an office, it is definitely not a bad idea to go to your manager and suggest that you could do at least part of your work from home. Does that sound like something from a science fiction novel? Do not be afraid to show your initiative, reliability and loyalty. Many employers are open to this way of working and will be willing to offer it to you.
Have a look at job listing websites. All you need to do is enter a few keywords (for example: work from home, online work, computer-based work). You will see that there are plenty of vacancies and you will be able to choose from many different types of work.
Working from home at least once a week is now a very common benefit in many jobs. In marketing, graphic design or IT, working from home is even more common than being physically present at the workplace.
It is worth pointing out again that working from home on a computer is far from suitable for everyone, and many people cannot manage it. The main reason is a lack of self-discipline, and after a while many people also start to miss simple human contact with colleagues.
Beware of scammers!
But no one with honest intentions will offer you a pile of money for three clicks a day
It does not matter which industry you work in, there will always be people who only try to lure you in and con you. Be careful. Every employer highlights the positives of a job to win you over. But no one with honest intentions will offer you a pile of money for three clicks a day. Working online has many advantages, but it will not be magically easy. Otherwise we would all be millionaires.
What types of online work can you choose from?
There are really a great many options and it would be hard to list them all. In today’s fast-changing world, more and more room is opening up for new jobs. So I will list a few of the most common ones here.
- Customer support: a job you can do in an office or at home. You help online shop customers choose products and handle complaints, answer questions and deal with email correspondence.
- Copywriter: this involves writing articles for various websites, which may cover politics, IT, finance, lifestyle and much more.
- Inbound/outbound telemarketing: contacting existing and new customers to present the products and services on offer. It is often used in call centres and has recently become widespread, especially in the healthy nutrition sector.
- Graphic designer : freelancing has become very popular in graphic design.
- Chat operator: the operator is responsible for communicating with the customers of a particular service.
- Administrator: whether it is a website or an online shop, someone has to make sure the system runs properly, fix any errors, fill in gaps and look for efficient solutions. That is what an administrator is for.
- Accountant: believe it or not, even such a classic office job as accounting can be a pleasant and relaxed job done from home. You just need to search well.
- Online marketing: online marketing offers many options, from SEO and PPC to social media. In this field, working from home and working online from anywhere is almost a given and a necessity.
The choice really is wide and everyone is sure to find something for themselves. If you have found an offer that really interests you and you feel the work will be enjoyable and fulfilling, all you need to do is send your CV and set off on a new journey full of great opportunities.
Working from home is not all sunshine and roses!
The advantages and disadvantages of working from home are clear. Self-discipline and time management are absolutely the most important things when working from home. You also need to work efficiently so that your client or employer can appreciate your work.
Once you overcome the difficulties mentioned above, however, incredible opportunities open up for you. You will be completely free to organise your time and work not only from home but also enjoy the advantages and delights of working from abroad.
It is also good to admit to yourself whether you are the right type of person for independent work or for working from home in general. Some people are simply unable to concentrate and perform well at home. They do much better in an office, which they associate with work. They are more efficient there, and interacting with colleagues energises them and helps them move forward.
It also matters whether you are a so-called lark or night owl. At what time of day are you most productive? When working from home, you can set things up to suit you. But be careful not to let working from home on a computer take over your whole life. You sit down at the computer in the morning, procrastinate and then have to spend the whole day at it. Many people working from home are also much more prone to so-called burnout.
