Legitimate Work at Home Jobs

This opportunity involves the creation of an at-home claims processing center. Getting started involves the purchase of $2,000 to $7,000 worth of equipment, specialized training, and support. To make this business successful, it's also necessary to find clients, which is difficult since very large players dominate the market.

This type of work involves assembling something for a company, with payment rendered for each part assembled. In some instances, the at-home worker may be required to purchase specialized machinery.

These companies have very high quality standards that workers will have a hard time meeting. The company will often take the merchandise assembled, but refuse to pay for the product due to its "inferior" quality.

In exchange for an upfront fee, the company will send a tiny brochure explaining how to get this business started: By placing advertisements in local newspapers. The only way to make money is if someone responds to the advertisement; which is very unlikely.

Telecommuting has been around for years and relatively recent technological advances have made this approach even easier. Broadband access, video conferencing, email, and powerful personal computers are inexpensive and everywhere. In fact, call centers often have remote agents that answer customer calls from the comforts of their homes. Some telecommuting jobs may require employees to spend at least part of the workweek in an office environment. Making telecommuters come into the office provides managers with a sense of security and control.

Some people like the idea of working as a consultant for companies on an as-needed basis. Freelancing from home is becoming more popular because companies are hesitant to hire professional staff to address what appear to be short-term or low-volume problems. Most professionals can act as freelance consultants and work from a home office. The following companies specialize in matching employers with freelancers:

• Guru.com: provides businesses with the ability to find the help they need from a variety of talented Freelancers throughout the world. Guru claims to have over 1 million users worldwide.

• Upwork.com (formerly Odesk.com): claims to be the number one freelancer in terms of earnings (May 2015), with 9 million registered users.

• Staff.com: a global employment website based in Sydney, Australia. The company specializes in full-time telecommuting jobs throughout the world, with emphasis on the U.S., Canada, Australia, and the UK.

Market Research

While participating in a market research panel is not a substitute for full or part-time employment, these companies do allow participants to earn small sums of money as well as test market new products:

• The American Consumer Opinion: includes free membership, panel surveys, monthly prize drawings, and incentives that range from $4 to $50. Also recruits for focus groups, where incentives are usually in excess of $25.

Anyone that has a talent for writing, grocery shopping, pet care, running errands, decorating, crafts, baking, cooking... can usually find a market willing to buy those services. Start out by conducting research on several topics, and see what lessons others have learned. Once a business model is chosen, it's going to take some "sweat" equity to get it started. The best part about running your own business is that all decisions are yours alone. While that may sound challenging to some, the rewards that come from the efforts are also yours to keep.

Online Resources

If you're a skilled professional who enjoys online education and e-learning, and like the idea of adding income to your household, the following online resources can help:

• Small Business Association: offers information on starting a business, financing its operation, and even how to provide goods and services to the government.

The following website offers specialized information for women:

• Online Women's Business Center: run by the United States Small Business Association, the center provides professionals, as well as stay at home moms, with the information they need to start their own business.

Classified Ads

The chance of finding a legitimate opportunity in the classified advertisement section of the newspaper is low. A better approach is to search any of the major resume and job posting websites and look for certain keywords such as telecommuting, freelance and part-time.

Evening Classes and Volunteer Work

Another quick way to gain experience, or a skill, is to check out the local schools of higher education and see if something sparks an idea. Graphic arts, photography, journalism, painting, software coding, sewing, are just some of the opportunities available through local colleges and universities. Finally, volunteer work can also be an extremely rewarding opportunity. Not only does this help the local community, but it also allows volunteers to gain valuable experience.