Work at Home Mama

Archive for October, 2009

This is just a short post on why Unionbank EON is the best choice when it comes to receiving and withdrawing Paypal funds. Here are the reasons:

1. You can use Unionbank EON to verify your Paypal Account. See related post.
2. Opening an EON Account in Unionbank requires only P350. No maintaining balance at all. Cool!
3. Withdrawal of funds from Paypal to your EON is FREE. No bank charges unlike most banks which charge P150 to P250 for every withdrawal.

Check Unionbank’s website here.

But of course if maintaining multiple bank accounts makes you uncomfortable, you can still use your other bank accounts BUT you cannot use those cards to VERIFY your Paypal account. You will still need to verify it using a credit card.

My profile on oDesk started April 2009 but I just fully used it last May 2009. I haven’t stopped since then. It gave me constant income that I have no choice but to keep it! Who doesn’t want a job like this?

Moving on, here are some terms that you will encounter as you register in oDesk:

oDesk – oDesk is the marketplace for online work teams, with the best business model for both buyers and providers. Our unique approach guarantees that an hour billed is an hour worked while also guaranteeing that an hour worked is an hour paid.

Provider - Refers to the one who provides the services or the freelancer or it refers simply to ‘us’. Providers can work hourly or in a fixed price project. It really depends on the buyer. Click here to see the Hourly Versus Fixed Price article.

Buyer – Refers to the client or the one who looks for services. Buyer can pertain to a company or a person. Buyers will pay you in oDesk and each withdrawal from oDesk to Paypal charges $1. Providers can also choose from various oDesk payment methods.

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Provider 101

Create your Profile – every provider has a profile in oDesk which he or she needs to fill out as completely as possible.

Take Free oDesk Tests - to beef up your profile. this is very important as most buyers rely on this in screening candidates.

Apply for jobs and please make a decent cover letter. Specify the time you are available for interview and if you are available through skype, YM or email. DO NOT HESITATE to tell the buyer that you are not comfortable in TALKING with them. On my case I always tell them that I will only communicate through email.

Like applying for any job, be on time during interviews and be polite.

Understand that each company or individual buyer differs so be flexible.

Communicate regularly. Always, always update your buyers on what you are doing.

One last tip, in anything you do, give it your best shot.

A friend told me that the internet is a gold mine. Yes it truly is and I can attest to that. After almost a year of being stay-at-home I was already bored from chatting with friends. I was online 20 hours a day but I was earning nothing so I did what my friends do – plunge into Paid-to-Click (PTC) sites! Whoa! wrong move! It will take you eons of years to earn $ and will take you forever to meet the payout threshold. I felt so bad that I vowed not to register in any PTC site again. Next, I took surveys and all but I was spending more than I was earning. Just imagine my ballooning Meralco bill and SmartBro monthly dues, I knew right then and there that I’ve got to do something.

Monetizing Blogs
Then I started earning by monetizing my blogs. I am no writer but I love putting my thoughts on blogs and since I was into it, I said “why not, poknat?” Here are some companies who are giving me $$$ each month. They are reliable as I already received payments from them. Click the company name to register.

Blog Advertising Store

Blogsvertise

Social Spark

Link from Blog

Of course there’s a lot more like PayU2Blog who pays big time but I am so unsuccessful on it (domain issues – I only use free ones which they don’t allow).  Just keep on searching, because on my case my hands are already full just with oDesk and my blogging sideline and it’s already worth thanking the Lord for.

Working for Companies and Individuals
There are a lot of people in the world who are in need of services which vary from simple customer service task to project management and website maintenance. Companies and individuals based outside the Philippines are more than willing to pay you in $$$ for your services. Filipinos are very diligent, trustworthy and responsible – that’s why most foreigners look for us when they want something done.

The On Demand Global Workforce – oDesk

Get a Coder

Get a Freelancer

There is no perfect outsourcing company but on my case I am more comfortable working with companies or individuals from oDesk so I stick with them.

All of them pay via Paypal so better make an account first before rushing into work.

Before jumping into the work-at-home bandwagon you need to know that majority of clients will pay you via Paypal – the safest way of receiving and sending money worldwide. To know more about Paypal, click here.

One of the basic questions I got when it comes to Paypal was “Can I open a Paypal account even if I have no credit card?”

Of  course you can.

Credit card details are just used to verify your information. An unverified Paypal account will only allow you to receive Paypal funds but you cannot withdraw funds to your local bank. The transfer of Paypal to Paypal funds is only limited to $500 which is quite a hassle if you are already working and receiving funds often.

Now if you are like me who have no credit cards, then the best way is to apply for an EON Account in Unionbank.

Go to your nearest Unionbank and apply for one. Your card will be given to you within a week and only then you will be asked to pay the P350 Annual Fee. It requires no maintaining balance but to deposit at least Php250 is recommended since Paypal will charge your Eon card $1.95 upon verification.

Once verified, you are now capable of receiving and transferring unlimited Paypal funds to other Paypal accounts or withdraw to your local bank.

It is also recommended that you use this same EON bank account when you enroll a local bank in Paypal.

Why? Because there are no bank charges and it will only take 2-4 days for your money to appear in your EON account.

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Now that you already have a Paypal account and let’s say you already received Paypal funds from your clients. It’s payday!

You can now withdraw your Paypal funds to your local bank (Enroll your Unionbank EON first). The minimum amount is $10 by the way.

Click ‘withdraw funds to your bank account’ and choose Unionbank from your list of banks and click withdraw.

Work at Home Ph

See Paypal charges above.

It usually takes 24 hours for paypal to deposit your funds to your local bank (you will notice the word ‘COMPLETED’) on your transaction details BUT it doesn’t mean that your money is ready with withdrawal. It will take 2-4 days for your money to appear in your bank account.

To work at home you will need to set-up several things:

Home Workstation
Assign a space at home where you can do your tasks and for moms, remind your kids to respect this space. On my case, my husband and I are still working on my own workstation because currently I work on our dining table which isn’t recommended. My husband uses my old workstation where Oldie is, I am now using Kelly by the way.

High-speed Internet Connection and Reliable Computer
You don’t want your computer to conk out in the middle of a task, right? So invest in a good one or upgrade to one with higher specs. As for the internet service provider, hmmmm it really depends on which one works best in your area. I am using Smartbro for several years now and it has not failed me though I already heard a lot of Smartbro horror stories in Metro Manila.

Be flexible
You can have several bosses globally so their demands quite differ from each other so be flexible. Your time also needs to be flexible as you will be dealing with people from various parts of the world so time differs as well.

Paypal
You will be needing this because majority of clients send payments via Paypal. It is safe and secured by the way. Here’s a helpful Paypal post.

Basically that’s it. When you have all these you can now start working at home! But how? where? Check out my next post.

After reading this and you are still decided to start working from home then read on.

You have a lot of time when you work at home so you might as well make the most out of it.

First things first, Do you want to run a business or work for someone? I’ll list down some pros and cons of each topic, this would not be an extensive list but just so you’ll get the picture of what to expect with each choice.

Running a business
- You can work at flexible hours. You are the boss, right?
- the income is yours though spending will sometimes go out of hand if you lack entrepreneur skills, planning and business management.
- you can hire someone to do things for you though it requires proper screening because one wrong choice and your business is down without you knowing.
- you need to invest a LOT of money.

Here are some home-based business suggestions:

Sell items on eBay and Multiply, or if you are creative enough you can make something and sell it on Etsy, or if you’re good in baking you can put up an online bakeshop! Cakes and cupcakes are selling like hotcakes these days!

Working for someone
- You would still have a boss albeit you will only see him on cam. On my case I prefer communication through email but some would communicate via Skype and YM.
- You can work at hours that you are most comfortable with and yes, work in your pajamas. No one would really care.
- You can do things such as cleaning the house in between tasks without being reprimanded by a supervisor or team lead.
- If you are a mom like me, expect to have a ‘hug me mom!’, a ‘let’s dine out mom! break’ and more. These things you can’t do when you are on a regular 9-5.
- You are with your kids 24/7. This is the best reason for working at home!

There! I can go on and on when it comes to the benefits of working at home because it’s simply the most ideal job for mommies who would love to be with their kids yet still want to help augment their family income.

I just started working online 2nd Quarter of 2009 so I am not an expert in this field – yet. I am not a very techie person so my technical know-how is quite limited but I am always open to new ideas and yes, I am very eager to learn new things which is why I am here, very much willing to help those who wanted to make the most out of life and start working at home.

Everybody who knows that I work at home have asked me questions such as “Malaki ba ang kita?” (Is the pay good?) or “Anong ginagawa mo?” (What do you usually do?) or just simply, “huh? may ganun pala, pano?” (Huh? Is there really such a thing? How do you do it?) because until now, working at home is still a vague concept among Filipinos.

Believe me, most of my friends have given me the are-you-from-another-planet? look when I babble about working at home. So most of the time I just shut up to spare myself from hours of explanation. Oftentimes I’d get tempted to ask them “Hey, have you heard of the word slash verb ‘GOOGLE’? Go search working at home to see for yourself!” But it is so mean, I know.

To those who really want to work at home, my question is: Is working at home really for you?

It is helpful to know your personal goals first before you decide to quit work.

It takes a lot of discussions for your decision to materialize but there are simple questions that you should throw yourself before submitting the white paper slash resignation paper.

- Are you ready to give up everyday adult interaction? I am not saying that it is impossible, but a very sociable person who is motivated to do well by competing with work buddies will most likely fail in staying at home to work. Working at home means competing with yourself, competing with people around the globe virtually, you will feel so isolated at some point so ready yourself. Because if you can’t give up your social everyday life, then you will end up in the corporate setting within a month.

- Are you willing to give up the ‘corporate ladder’? This is the kind of ladder that I hate. It breaks relationships, ruin friendships, it gives someone the ‘extra-high’ of being up there but believe me, being up there is lonely. I see corporate ladders this way: The top most portion being the ‘highest position’ or let’s say you’re goal. It’s so bright that most people who look up gets blinded and yes, they will do anything to reach it. It just sucks. So if you are the type who values corporate ladders and career-growth more than anything else, then working at home is definitely not for you.

For me, these are just the two biggest factors that one should consider before quitting 9-5′s. The decision to work at home needs to be evaluated several times before it gets approved but it has to start within yourself.

If you are are willing to be with kids 24/7 (they can make you insane, really!), can keep up with the demands of your household and work with grace and you are not concerned if you don’t get promoted for centuries, then working at home MIGHT work for you. While I believe that working at home is can be very rewarding to some people, it’s really NOT for everyone.

I’ll share more of the benefits in my next posts.