Eco Jobs - Get a Great Life!

For many of us eco jobs mean jobs that do not involve long commutes, or a business wardrobe and often mean that we can work from home - the fantasy being just working from your kitchen table in your pajamas, or on your laptop out in your garden while watching the kids play.

When I had children I dreamed of having more time to spend with them as they grew up - but our family needed a second income. If this description fits you read on - there may be an eco job for you!

 

Listed below are some jobs you can do on your own schedule and from your own home. These jobs usually start small but have the potential to grow into a full income down the road.

Advantages Of Working From Home:
The pluses of these kinds of eco jobs are that you are in charge of how much you work, what hours you work, and ultimately how much you earn.

You can work from home or another non-traditional setting.

You can work part-time so that you can keep your full-time job. This allows you to explore new avenues to see if they interest you and to see if the income is really there before you take a financial leap.

Eco jobs you do from home can mean you can stay close to your family which will help you save money on child care and be better plugged in to what is happening in your family's life.

You can save money, time and gas by not commuting. You also can wear what you would like so your dry cleaning bill and clothing budget can be smaller.

Disadvantages of Working From Home:
Before you develop a mental picture of heaven, there are potential downsides to these green jobs.

One factor is loneliness - even if you have kids at home most people who are used to working in an office or other setting miss the frequent companionship in interacting with other adults.

Combat this by joining groups of work from home business people in your community. Such groups often meet at least once a month and more often for special workshops and networking sessions.

At the very least you may want to join an online forum of other parents with home based businesses.

What you are trying to achieve by moving over to an eco friendly job will probably involve you getting involved in passive income opportunities.

It is sometimes hard to sort out the income cons & scams from the real deals. If a job sounds to good to be true, then most likely it is!

Don't put any money on the line until you have fully checked out an opportunity.

Web searches on a company name will turn up lots of negative information if the company is less than truthful with its claims.

You can check the Better Business Bureau in the area the company is located in or you can even check with the FBI at Looks Too Good To Be True.

 

Types of Opportunities:

"So what kind of jobs are eco jobs that you can do from home?"

Writing:

Looking for writing work? Sign up at Elance and you can search their database of over 30,000 jobs today. Freelance writing is a nice, low cost opportunity to make money.

Get paid for writing articles, blog items and researching material at Elance. They have large and small writing contracts with big companies, small firms and individuals. It is easy to sign up and you can view and bid on available writing jobs.

You can expect to be paid as little as $5 or as much as $200 depending on who you write for. Some bloggers will pay $10 per article plus a bonus for high page views.

Your best bet is to choose writing assignments on topics you have a passion for and expertise in. It is no fun to write about something you don't like and if you are unfamiliar with the subject matter, it will show. Or you may need to use extra unpaid time to research the facts.

Is your dream to write a best selling novel or write for a magazine or newspaper? If your need for cash is not immediate you can afford to sharpen your skills and compile a portfolio. Start by writing free articles until you get a portfolio of work under your belt which will then expand your opportunities to write for cash or snap up a position with a magazine or newspaper or go on to write a novel. This avenue can take years before you begin to make any real money however, and is very dependant on your writing skills.

The upside of eco jobs like this is there are little costs associated with writing. The downside is that it will take time to earn money as a freelance writer.

Be sure to find a niche that not many people are writing about, do you research and be sure you have your work proofed before you submit it.

A great source for companies that pay for articles can be found at GreenGigs.com

Another good resource to check out is FlexJobs.com

Your Own Blog

If you love to write and have thoughts you'd love to share with the world, a blog may be for you! Most of us need money right away, but a blog can be an investment in income for the future.

Write often about something you are passionate about. In time you will attract readers. Once you have a large readership, you can make money by selling advertising that appeals to your readers. Or you may have related products of your own to sell. Popular craft related topics such as scrapbooking, memory books, and jewelry seem to do well.

For more information on how to set up your own blog see Web Hosting Critic.

Web Based Business:

If you have a specific area of expertise, or a hobby you are thinking of expanding into a web business or work from home job check out SiteSell. This company has a great track record in helping newbies set up home based web businesses online. (They also have a special info centre for aspiring work at home moms ) It is not instant however and you need to be prepared to put in some time before your business is up and running and generating income.

Call Center Operator:

If you love to talk and want to work physically from your home, an eco job as a call center operator could be for you.

There are many companies that are in need of someone to answer their phones 24/7. These companies hire call centers to do that for them. You can often do this from home.

If you work for any given call center, there will be a wide variety of calls coming in. Most likely you will only work with one or two companies at a time.

The nice part is you can pick companies that are of interest to you. Liveops.com and AlpineAccess.com are both companies that hire home-based workers for call center jobs.

Make sure you understand the costs associated with these companies. In most cases you cannot use a cell phone and must have a dedicated land line.

Virtual Assistant:

Another eco job avenue you may want to explore is the world of the virtual assistant.

These types of green jobs are great for those that want to do a wide variety of work and build relationships as well. Virtual assistants can be asked to do a huge range of tasks from researching topics to ordering flowers.

Essentially you serve a small group of clients with personal and professional tasks.

To get more information on this type of job check out StaffCentrix.com or the International Virtual Assistants Association.

Consultant:

If you have a specific area of expertise, consider becoming a consultant in that area.

This eco job is a little harder to get into. You can build this type of business by networking at industry events.

To succeed as a consultant you need a great reputation. Word of mouth is the best way to gain business and to grow your business.

But again, if you have a passion and an expertise in an area, this won't feel like work and will be more like fun.

Consultants do much of their work from a home office. They go to the client's office when they need to have a face to face meeting.

You have the greatest potential to earn money in this job so give it serious consideration.

 

 

Other Considerations:

There are often costs that you have to incur to work these businesses. Sometimes these costs are for items and services you already have in place such as a laptop and high speed internet service provider.

Other charges may be a dedicated phone line, a particular piece of software or back ground checks. These would be your responsibility.

When you first start working you may not be able to get high paying work orders. Some systems you have to be in for a while and take the low end jobs before you can bid for or earn the higher paying opportunities.

You may need to keep your full-time job for awhile and see if you can overcome this downside and "wait it out" until you can earn a higher wage.

Often with hourly or pay-per-service-rendered companies, payments are only made bi-monthly or when a certain threshold is met. You may not get paid as frequently as you would like.

Be sure you have checked out the compensation plan. Many opportunities only pay when a transaction is complete even though your end of the work is finished.

That said there are many great ways you can make money and be kinder to the environment by avoiding the commute!

If you want to test the waters and do some more research on your own, I recommend visiting Green Gigs. This blog offers great tips on how to find eco jobs and links to available jobs and job boards.

Good luck and have fun looking!