CoVid19 changed the landscape for employers and most people were forced to execute remote jobs as a precaution. This has opened up possibilities that most employees did not imagine feasible before this crisis. Some of them include working from home for a longer period of time, finalizing the tasks in fewer hours per day, and most importantly considering remote jobs.
Why should you consider remote jobs?
This question was harder to answer 3 months ago, when people did not experience this and thought it to be very difficult. However, since most of the countries were (or still are) in lockdown for 2+months, working remotely has become mandatory in most industries. Thus, people had to make this work. They had to reinvent their traditional jobs, so that most of the tasks can be executed from afar. The conclusion is that remote jobs have pros and cons, as expected. Let’s analyze both.
Pros
- Flexibility – You can work from anywhere so even if you need to go out of town, you don’t need to take a day off.
- Convenience – You can choose your workspace to suit your likings and needs (co-working space, cafe, or even own home).
- No commute – If you choose to work from home or a close-by space, you eliminate the commute, thus gaining time.
- Higher pay – In freelancing you can negotiate your fees and/or choose only projects with higher income.
- More choices – As you are not limited by your physical location, you can choose from more employers. This is especially beneficial if you live in areas with high unemployment rates.
Cons :
- Self-managing – You’ll need to manage your finances, organize as a business entity, and pay your own taxes.
- No paid vacation – There is no paid vacation when you freelance. You only get paid if you work or produce output.
- No health benefits – Since you are working project-based, as a business entity, there is no health benefits attached to your work. You can always pay private health insurance, but remember to factor in the cost.
- Idle time – There can be idle time between 2 projects. Consider saving to cover expenses in an eventual downtime.
You need to weight the above and decide what matters most to you, as in both traditional as well as remote jobs there are pros and cons.
What do remote jobs require?
To freelance or work remotely you have to possess some skills to ensure you are successful.
- Self-starter – you have to drive yourself to find the best opportunities/projects, rather than waiting for someone to assign work to you.
- Planning skills – As you work with limited supervision, you need to have great planning skills. These will help you deliver on time, as procrastination can sneak up.
- Great ability to communicate – Not being face to face makes communication tougher. You need to be able to clearly communicate verbally and in writing to avoid misunderstandings.
- English knowledge – English is a mandatory requirement as the majority of platforms and jobs are in English.
How can you find remote jobs?
There are multiple platforms that match supply and demand on the remote jobs front. Most of them are free to use, but once you start a job they will get a commission from both you and the employer. You will have to pay a percentage of your earnings on each job/project. This is only normal as they also offer some benefits. First off, they are a one-stop-shop for the available opportunities. Secondly, they offer you protection and ensure you get paid for the work you deliver. Once you start a project/job they block the money from the requester(Escrow) and release it upon milestone completion or on a weekly basis(for hourly projects).
They offer collaboration tools for a smooth partnership with your employer: chat with audio/video calling, time-tracking software and other options so that you needn’t leave the platform (for your safety and their profit, of course).
When finishing a project/job you’ll also get a rating from the employer (client). This rating is very important so that you get chosen for other jobs/projects. Ensure to always do a great job so that you are constantly among the top-rated. Another criteria to obtain great remote jobs/projects is to have a solid profile. Design a great one, similar to how you would compile a resume. In addition, make sure you display very specific projects you already completed as a reference.
We’ll cover the specific freelancing platforms in a different article.
Don’t forget that you’ll still need to get chosen for the job, so make sure you are prepared to stand out in the selection process.