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Avoid These Horrible Mistakes in Work At Home and Online Work

Updated on July 29, 2020
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I'm a dad, husband, and Christian first. Second, I'm an educator and organizational development professional.

Just imagine how many people are now turning to work at home and online work for extra income. Earning money online seems to be a popular trend and there is no stopping it from continuously getting popular. Although there are many ways to make money, opting for an online work seems to favor many individuals because of its flexibility. Likewise, the number of online opportunities has soared thus enticing more people to try it out. However, finding financial success through work at home or online work requires a little shift in mindset and strategies to make it really work. After all, this is still a venture that needs adequate attention and forethought. So before you find yourself cursing and cussing at the futile efforts, remember NOT to make these mistakes.

Work at Home as a quick fix to get rich

Let me begin by saying that earning money from online work requires, well, work. This is not a get rich quick opportunity. If it were, I’d have a chauffeur drive me around in my Rolls Royce. However, there are many websites, emails and online work opportunity ads that promise you instant cash, effortless riches and other enticing gimmicks. What is even disturbing is that many fall for these stunts. I don’t blame them. Getting cash quickly is something that I want as well. For most of them, they are merely scams or hard to accomplish tasks that are packaged to look like it is really easy. Here’s the bottom line: if you want cash you have to work for it. Money does not just magically get credited to your account simply because you signed up or did some online job.

Be careful with what you do online it might just be a ploy to scam you.

  • Investing in a product or service that is either too hard to sell or market can backfire drastically
  • Networking schemes can easily turn into scams easily
  • Promise of loads of cash for doing nothing is obviously dubious.
  • Paying you currency that you can’t use – yup, online money, credits and the like can become a waste of your time and resources

The most important mental attitude that you have to master is not to fall for get-rich quick schemes. With these strategies, there is higher probability for you to lose money than gain some. Remember that working smart is better than flashy ads and empty promises. The internet is a tool for you to earn extra cash. So you should use it wisely.

Work at Home and Online work are great ways to get extra income.
Work at Home and Online work are great ways to get extra income. | Source

Failure to commit to your online work activities

In order to maximize your online earning potential you need to commit to the work. There is no autopilot switch that you push and everything works out like magic. Although many work at home programs offer risk-free, effortless programs they often come at a price. And worse case is that you dish out cash and find yourself struggling with the system.

Signing up for work at home opportunities is just like having a regular 9 to 5 job. You need to set aside time for you to accomplish work. Online work like being a virtual assistant, copyrighting tasks, ghost writing, blogging, encoding and others, require that you focus on the job to accomplish them. The quality of your work will reflect your professionalism and character. And even in the online world, these are integral traits employers look for.

The online world is similar to the real world. There are different personalities and opportunities. Being able to understand how it works and how relationships are formed will help you manage yourself better. This is why signing up for work on the net requires building positive and productive relationships. You can only experience getting easy money when you put in your share of work and effort.

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Not knowing the job you are doing

The internet provides many ways to earn money online. Unfortunately, many are not trustworthy. Your ability to discern what is legitimate or not will come in handy. But who can tell which is which with all the sparkles and gimmicks that goes on in the internet? The simple solution is to research more about the company, the person or the task itself. The more you know about what you are getting into will save your from a lot of headaches. Be reminded that you are communicating over a virtual world. In most cases these employers maybe in a different country.

Here are some reminder when applying for online jobs:

  • Make sure you match the required skills or qualifications with your skills and knowledge. Your performance will affect how your clients/employers will rate you.
  • Brush up on your skills. Take online courses that will help keep you abreast with the latest.
  • Take certification tests and courses. This will greatly improve your chances of getting hired. Moreover, this will prevent any mishaps when you are doing your work.
  • Never lie in your resume. Choosing an online job simply it pays high even if you do not know the task will be difficult. Worse, you'll just get fired.
  • Read the job descriptions carefully. If it fits you then go for it. If not, do not waste your time.
  • Clarify the task that you are supposed to accomplish. Remember that each employer.client may have specific style. So make sure you provide the right outputs.

It is wise to check and recheck the information that you read on the internet. Online jobs can be easy work when you the tasks are clear. It is essential that you look at jobs that fit your capabilities and skills. Of course, in order to get more from your online work you should continuously improve and widen your skills and knowledge.

Not getting paid for your hard work

Imagine working hard then not getting paid. To say that is irritating is an understatement. But this is a real risk that many work from home individuals face. It happened to me several times and it still stings. I just set it aside and think of it as a hard lesson I learned.

Here are some signs that should raise a red flag:

  • Asking a certain amount from you before you can join or work for them
  • Asking personal information such as credit card number and social security number
  • The site does not have a company address or even a contacts page
  • There is no one to talk about your concerns
  • The site is always getting blocked by your antivirus or spyware program

There are people out there who will take advantage of your desire to earn from online work. In spite improved security measures of different websites, some still get through. Moreover, many online work opportunities do not go through the scrutiny of the Department of Trade and Industry. You need to be careful.

So how can you protect yourself from situations like this? Well, there are several important steps you need to take.

  • Make sure you choose a reputable online work. There are companies that have established themselves through the years. e.g. online teaching platforms, online work platforms, freelance websites.
  • Ask the online community about the platform or website. Nothing beats actual experiences of other individuals. but then again, be wary of comments that seem to good to be true. Websites can plant comments to boost their ratings.
  • Check their website credibility. Analyzing the website requires looking at numerous parameters. And this is a wonderful way to measure the credibility of a site. However, this is too tedious just to earn a buck or two. So an alternative is to look at what other websites say about them. Check the websites Google Page Rank, Alexa ranking, Use WOT (Web of Trust) just to name a few.
  • When talking to the employer, you may suggest getting paid every week instead of monthly. As you build trust you can adjust the payments farther apart. Sometimes, i also ask payment whenever I submit a completed. This way, the risk is smaller should the unthinkable happens. I've been honest about this with my clients/employers especially if this is the first time I work with them.

Protecting your interest is important especially if it means money for your self or your family. Just remember that if you want to get paid through your online work efforts, you have to lower the risks that you face.

The allure of earning extra cash in your own home is appealing to many. In fact, some quit their jobs to go full time. However, not every online worker or work at home professional see financial success. It is apparent that many people are willing to prey on these individuals wanting to find some financial freedom from the online world. Earning online can be lucrative. However, it takes a level of prudence, skepticism and a lot of patience to truly make money from online work. Many have succeeded. Now it is time that you succeed as well.

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