Working from home can be a very rewarding job. It is such a gift to be able to see your kids off to school and be there when they return home. There are more than 10 million Work-at Home mothers ranging from your crafty mom to your data entry computer job mom. With gas prices still on the rise, you might welcome not having the daily commute and shelling out all that money.

work at home mom

If you are currently looking for something to do from home you need to be on the alert for the Work at Home scams. Just remember that old saying, “If it looks too good to be true, it probably is.” If they are asking you for money to help you find a position this should be a red flag. Real opportunities do exist, but you will have to exercise discretion to determine if the position is real or a scam. This would be an excellent time to have your guard up and take the time to do the research. After all, anyone, even scam artists, can build a presentable convincing website these days.

These are some good tips and words of caution:

  • If they are asking for money, NEVER send money; legitimate recruiters or employers will never ask you for money.
  • Check and see if the opportunity comes from a real website. If you are not familiar with the company do some additional research.
  • Look through websites to locate information about the company, such as; address, email, and telephone number. You may have to do a Whois.net search to see detailed contact information.
  • Filling out the forms could be a scam to get your email address, so be sure you thoroughly do your homework on every website, before giving out your personal information.
  • Watch out for the ‘Act Now!’ statements. Although you do not want to miss out on an opportunity, be patient no legitimate company will hire you on the spot.
  • If the income they promise seems too incredible or they promise you will only have to work a few hours a week, be very cautious. This is one of those ‘too good to be true red flags.

A good place to start is to determine what your areas of interest are. Also, what fields are you experienced in? The odds are if you like what you do you will probably enjoy doing it more. Someone once said “if you love what you do, the money will follow”, and I can attest to that statement. If you are starting your own business it can take 2-3 years to get the business off the ground. Starting an online business can be very rewarding but will still require work and research to climb to the top of the search engines. It is possible to create a successful internet business that requires less overhead.

If your Work at Home business does become successful you will have to learn how to balance working from home with managing your family. It is possible to use a content management system to build just about any type of online business. The content management software programs require a learning curve, but they are easier to manage on day to day basis. In the beginning, you will have more than enough time to expand your topics of interest although as your business grows you may find it is more than one person can handle. Unless your company is producing enough to hire outside help you will want to avoid spreading yourself too thin; after all, there is only so much one person can do in one day and still have time for her family.

Resources: 
http://workathomesuccess.com/scamalert.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Work_at_home

June 14, 2012 — Stephanie White

Leave a comment

Please note: comments must be approved before they are published.