Where's the first place you should look to find a legitimate
telecommuting job? Is it at Monster.com, is it on the hundreds
of free telecommuting job boards, is it in your local newspaper?
Actually, the place to look when first start a telecommuting
job search is at your present place of employment. I know,
I know, I can hear all the moans and groans right now. I bet
you thought I was going to send you off to some secret website
that only a few fortunate telecommuting souls know about.
If you were one of them, I'm sorry.
I wish I could promise that you could log onto any one of
the free job boards, find one you like, contact the company
and be hired on the spot. And I'm sure that there have been
some cases where that has occurred. But that shouldn't be
the first place you start. Start where they know you.
Traditional job searches can last months. Now, how much harder
is it going to be to convince a company who doesn't
know you, doesn't know your skills, and doesn't know your
work habits to hire you to work from the comforts of your
home for their establishment? I believe you know the answer
to that. Unless you have some highly sought after skills,
I can assure you a traditional job search would more than
likely be easier.
I don't mean to discourage or disappoint you, I just want
you to be able to face the facts and reality as it truly is.
Yes, you can find a telecommuting job on these job boards...but
it will take some effort. However, as more and more companies
become familiar with telework and develop telecommuting policies,
job searching and your odds at finding employment while working
from home will increase in your favor.
But today, one of the easiest places to find telecommuting
employment is at your current company. As an engineer I telecommuted
for a company that I started out with in a traditional position.
Your current employer knows you, knows your skills and knows
your work habits. Use this to your advantage. Try to negotiate
a telecommuting position with your existing company first.
To begin with, you will need to determine whether or not
your current job is suitable for telecommuting. This is usually
obvious, but as technology advances more and more jobs will
become telecommuter-friendly. To learn more about this, read
the article: Is
Your Current Job Suitable for Telecommuting?
Second, you will need to determine whether or not your company
already has a telecommuting policy established. If so, your
task just became a little easier. If not, you will have to
convince your company of their benefits in allowing you to
telecommute. Yes, I did say THEIR benefits. You'll have to
become a salesperson persuading them with what THEY will gain
by letting you work from home.
And last, you will have to convince your manager that your
position is suitable for telecommuting and that you'd like
to work from your home. Usually, it will start out on a trial
basis. Maybe two, three days out of the week. But if it all
works out, you may be surprised to find yourself working a
telecommuting job full-time.
The last three paragraphs sound pretty basic. But entire
books have been written on the subject. My intentions here
aren't to explain all of the ins and outs of how to do this.
I just want to let you know that your current job is one of
the best places to find a telecommuting position when first
starting out in your job search.
To learn more about how to convince your boss to let you
telecommute, we recommend Grace Washington's popular Essential
Home Job Search Guide.
You can read our in depth review of her site by clicking
here.
For even more information on this topic see the "books
and resources" section of this website. Some of these
resources will arm you with what you need to bring your job
home to you, provided your current position is suitable for
telecommuting.
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