How to start working from home?
What online jobs are legitimate?
How do I start working from home?
How can I make money online instantly?
What jobs pay $25 an hour and above?
How do I make an extra $1000 a month?
I get it! There are so many questions about how to start working from home with 0 to no investment at all.
I have been writing on this blog encouraging you to take up work from home or freelancing (because of the endless benefits it offers, like flexibility) but yesterday, someone asked me THE question –
“how much does it actually cost to startup your freelance business?”
Wow. I am surprised that I never thought of covering startup costs to freelancing or work from home business!
The quick answer to this – you can spend as little or as much as your budget allows! You can even start with ZERO costs (we will cover that in a minute)
Cool, right?
This post may contain affiliate links to products I trust. This means if you make a purchase using the links I may receive a small commission at no extra cost to you. Thank you for your support!
Note: Micala has afree course for momswho want to start a freelance business from home. Grab the training (comes with a detailed workbook) and learn the 5 essentials to make money from home for stay at home moms.
Don’t believe? Trust me, it is possible to start your freelance business or work from home business spending practically ZERO dollars.
Similarly, it is also possible to spend like a mad man on setting up your freelance business.
In this post, we will look at how to start work from home and what you need to start working from home
HOW TO START WORKING FROM HOME – STRATEGIC OVERVIEW
Step 1: Figure out the WHY behind working from home
It is important to know your WHY when you want to make money online or work from home – it keeps you motivated during the struggle and the low times.
Ask yourself – What is the driving reasons for you to be looking to work from home? This might have to do with the future, financial goals, preferences, family etc. It is your reason and it holds the power to motivate you throughout the journey.
Once you know the reason, you will be able to understand your options in a better fashion.
50 best work from home jobs that pay well in 2019
20 jobs for pregnant women (+ how to get them)
How to become a virtual assistant and earn $50/hour with no experience
Step 2: Figure Out Your Approach to working from home
It is time to brainstorm and understand what appeals to you the most!
There are types of work from home options – It could be a straightforward work at home job with one employer or a telecommute job OR you can start your own freelance business of some sort. It could part-time or a full-time job, depending on how many hours you can dedicate to your side hustle.
So, understand what suits your requirement –
- Work from home job with one employer
- Work from home job (Freelance)
- Telecommute
37 legit remote job websites to find your dream job
Step 3: Decide How Much to Put Toward setting up your work from home business
If you have the budget to spend a bit of money and get things running, I would recommend you to do so.
By that, I mean, you can invest in a website, training, etc or you might need the basic infrastructure – new equipment, software, internet connection etc. These expenses do not need to be high, but they do exist. We will talk about how to do this in detail in the later part of the post
If you have a budget crunch, don’t worry. We can give you some creative ideas to make extra money online. Before that, decide on how much cash do you need. Once you know, you can start with these options to make/save money online to invest in work from home business. If you are a stay at home mom, check out this post on best jobs for moms in 2019.
You can also check out these frugal living tips by Michelle. You will surely find at least 5 tips that you can implement right away and save money to invest in the work from home course of your liking!
Note –Skillshare is my go-to place to learn a new skill without having to splurge hundreds of dollar.It is an online learning community where you can explore thousands of classes in design, photography, business, and more.You can get started with a free trial usingmy link and get access to hundreds of courses.
Step 4: Don’t Give Up
While it is not necessary that you find it difficult, there are many, for whom, it takes time for things to really get rolling. To get an idea, check out these interviews with people who quit 9-5 to build a profitable freelance business. They talk about the challenges and how much are they making along with the total time frame.
Work from home job interview 2: Meet Drew Drew Duboff – Virtual Assistant
Voice over jobs from home interview #3 – Meet Julie – A voice artist
Work from home job interview #4 – Meet Jessica (Blogger and Businesswoman)
Freelance writing for beginners interview #5: Meet Lisa Tanner
Pinterest Virtual Assistant Interview #6 – Meet Yi Ming Lai
Mom blogs that make money, Interview #7 Meet Saranya
Start a freelance writing business, interview #8 – Meet Kevin
How to become a Pinterest virtual assistant, interview #9 – Meet Teagan
Once you launch it, do not give up. Give yourself at least a year (or a generous timeframe to get off the ground) and do not quit before that.
WHAT YOU NEED TO START WORK FROM HOME OR FREELANCE –the minimalist route
Decide on what service you will offer – As we discussed above, you need to settle on the service you will offer as a freelancer. Depending on your current (or past) jobs, skills, responsibility, and experience, you can take up something that translates into service in the online business land. For example, if you are a teacher, you have writing, planning and conversation experience. Similarly, as a salesperson, you have experience working on the customer journey, sales funnel etc.
In the online business world, it can translate into
- Freelance Writing
- Project management
- Social media
- Leads management etc
Marketing your services– You will have to market your services heavily. So, decide on how you will do that.
The minimalist way of doing this is to have a Facebook page and a portfolio (that you can make on Canva for free!). Both of these options does not cost you a penny!
You can easily scale your business to $2k a month without having a professional website, branding and other similar things.
Communicating with clients professionally – You can use two free tools for this purpose.
- Skype
- Zoom (this is considered more professional and have a free version for you to use in the beginning)
For scheduling appointments and calls, you can look up Calendly. It has a free version and works really well. You can also use Google calendar and share it with your client.
Others –
For invoicing, you can go the simple way. Use Paypal.If your country allows Waveapps, you can use that too. It is free of cost.
You will have to invest in a laptop or a computer and an internet connection (assuming you do not have one already!).
- A services website
- Courses and/or coaching programs (if you are running on a budget check out how to get free money and how to earn with surveys.)
- Subscription to online job portal
Relevant Reads
How to become a Virtual Assistant for FREE – Courses and Resources you MUST HAVE
20+ blogging tools for beginners and freelance writers
1 hack to learn a new skill for FREE
6 FREE tools for freelance writers
My recommendation for you
- Go with the minimalist route initially. Reach up to $2-3k a month and revisit your strategy
- Invest in at least 1 course or a coaching program. It will tell you exactly what to do to scale your business and you will not be making a lot of mistakes (which you might end up making and increasing the time frame)
- Invest in a website. Do not go overboard and DIY it. It is simpler than you think!
The only reason I recommend courses and investment – it saves you time and in any business, time is money. You can be earning $2k a month right away if you follow the steps that have been tried and tested. If you try to figure out everything on your own, it will take time.
Note: Micala has afree course for momswho want to start a freelance business from home. Grab the training (comes with a detailed workbook) and learn the 5 essentials to make money from home for stay at home moms.
Actionable tips
Check out “Start a blog with ease”series and get started with your blog
Join myFacebook communityand post your questions, wins and get the support
Resources that will help you get started working from home –
50+ work from home options that are high paying
How to be a freelance proofreader and earn $40000 a year
How to write an email pitch that helps you land clients
Resources that can help you with land work from home jobs
How to find and pitch clients your freelance services– You can find my strategies to find high-paying freelance writing clients.
Become a work at home mom– A FREE training session that comes along with a workbook and guides you through the entire freelancing journey.
FlexJobsYou can find 100% legitimate work from home jobs and freelancing gigs on this platform
