Career coaching services assist job seekers in different ways. A career coach provides job search clarity. They can also create career marketing documents like resumes and cover letters.

Some career coaches can even help you perfect your online presence, practice video interviews, and build your personal brand. 

As a new remote job seeker, you will likely need all of these career coaching services. After all, a work from home job search is a lot different than a traditional one. You won’t be able to meet someone in person, hand in your resume, or fill out an application.

Instead, you have to know where to find remote jobs, how to position yourself as a great remote worker (even if you’ve never worked remotely before), and leverage virtual networking like a pro. 

Fortunately, as a Certified Professional Career Coach (CPCC) specializing in remote work, I know just how career coaching services can help you find (and land) a telecommute position quickly. Be sure to take advantage of these services if you’re ready to kick your cubicle to the curb. 

1. Q & A Session 

Sometimes it’s helpful to pick someone’s brain. That’s exactly what a Q&A session with a career coach offers. You can book a time with a coach and ask all your burning questions. 

For aspiring remote workers, this is especially helpful. You probably have a ton of questions like: 

• Do I have the necessary skills to work remotely? 
• What remote-friendly positions am I qualified for? 
• Which companies hire remote workers? 
• How can I avoid scams, MLM, and other business opportunities? 
• What type of remote job is really right for me? 

Of course, that’s just a small sampling of questions you might have. Whatever you’re wondering, you can ask these questions during a general Q&A session with a career coach. 

After one of these sessions, either via phone or Skype, you walk away with:

• Job search clarity 
• An action plan to move forward 
• A better understanding of your career ideals 
• Clear career goals 
• And more…

Often, if you’re interested in working remotely, you spend a lot of time, energy and effort googling “work from home” “work at home jobs” and similar inquiries. Unfortunately, the information posted online isn’t always helpful or even accurate. Sometimes, you can even come across a scam. 

Avoid the misinformation and save your sanity by discussing the world of remote work with a career coach. At the end of your session you’ll understand if working remotely is right for you and how to proceed with your job search, saving you tons of time (and aggravation). 

2. Resume Writing Services 

There’s a lot of debate as to whether or not your resume matters anymore. I’ve worked with many career coaching clients and can confidently say, “yes your resume matters,” just not like it used to. 

You see, in the past your resume was the main document that got you an interview and ultimately the job. Traditionally, you would send your resume directly to hiring managers or even pass them out in person. 

Of course, for a remote job search this simply doesn’t work. Instead, your resume only becomes a small piece of your overall job search strategy. 

Even still, your resume is important. Often, it is your first chance of landing on a hiring manager’s radar. And, since you will be submitting your resume online, you have to first get your resume past robots. 

The Rise of Resume-Reading Robots

Today, most companies rely on Applicant Tracking System (ATS) to manage the hiring process. On average, a corporate job opening will receive 250 resumes! ATS makes it easier for employers to sort through the hundreds of applicants. Typically, ATS scans resumes for keywords related to the job opening. When a resume has the right keywords, it is passed on to a recruiter or hiring manager. If it doesn’t have those keywords, it’s discarded — never to be seen again. 

It goes without saying, you want your resume to land in the ‘yes’ pile and not the digital discard pile. A career coach can create a resume that is friendly to both ATS and humans. 

Resume career coaching services can also include rewrites that highlight remote skills employers look for in candidates. This can make you look like the ideal remote worker even if you’ve never worked a telecommute day in your life. 

If you’ve applied to home-based positions but haven’t heard back, your resume may be to blame. Use career coaching services to spruce up your resume and get a remote job faster. 

3. LinkedIn Profile Optimization 

An estimated 70% of all jobs are never even advertised. Instead, companies rely on word-of-mouth referrals and internal promotions to fill open roles. In other words, if you’re not currently employed at a company with remote jobs, you need to network to increase your odds of being referred for a remote position. 

LinkedIn is the perfect platform to find people working in remote jobs and connect with them. These current remote workers are valuable sources of insider information, like current open roles and company culture. 

But, in order to be an effective networker on LinkedIn, you need a great LinkedIn profile. And that takes a bit of thought. Not only do you want your LinkedIn profile to read professional to potential connections, you want it to be optimized so you can be found in searches too. 

Like your resume, your LinkedIn is regularly being scanned for keyword matches by recruiters, companies, potential connections, and hiring managers. When you optimize your profile for the remote job you want, you’re more likely to show up in search results when employers set out to find someone to hire. 

One of the most valuable career coaching services you can sign up for is LinkedIn Profile optimization. A career coach with experience working with remote teams can put together a profile that is both optimized for searches and creative enough to catch the eye of connections and recruiters alike. Plus, there are a few tips and tricks you can use to signal to employers you’re available for job offers — including remote-only job offers. 

You could drive yourself crazy trying to craft the perfect headline or write a summary that shines. Or, you could use career coaching services to get the job done for you that gets results fast. 

Other Career Coaching Services To Consider 

While the career coaching services listed above are what I consider to be the Top 3 to help you land a remote job faster — they’re not the only ones. 

Other services that work great for aspiring telecommuters include: 

• Personal Branding 
• Resume Website 
• Company Targeting 
• Informational Interviews 

Remember, a remote job search is quite unique. Much of what you know about finding traditional office work doesn’t lend itself well to remote-friendly searches. Instead of setting out to find telecommute positions on your own, enlist the services of a Certified Professional Career Coach that specializes in remote work to help you (successfully) transition to telecommuting. 

Be sure to check out my career coaching services as well as learn about my credentials by visiting my Career Coaching Page. 

Of course, if you have any questions or want to discuss how I might be able to help you, please feel free to email me at: 

ashlee(at)workfromhomehappiness(dot)com

Put “career coaching services” in your subject line. 

Happily, 

Ashlee 

P.S. This post might contain affiliate links. Check out my disclosure statement to learn more.

The post Top 3 Career Coaching Services To Find A Remote Job Fast appeared first on Work from Home Happiness.

At some point, you’ve probably thought to yourself: “I want to work from home.” (Why else would you be reading this?) And, you’re not alone. 

Harvard Business Review found that most workers would trade-in their current job for a remote-friendly one. Honestly, for good reason. 

There are a ton of benefits to remote work. For starters, you have no commute. Without a daily commute, you save time and money. Plus, remote work makes you happier.

A new study found that telecommuters are more content than their office-dwelling counterparts. And this contentment leads to all around greater job satisfaction and a better outlook on work. 

Sounds great, right? It is! It’s no wonder, then, that you find yourself saying “I want to work from home.” The good news is, you’re in luck.

I’m a Certified Professional Career Coach that happens to specialize in remote work. I have super-specific expert advice to help you kick your cubicle to the curb. 

Identify Your Ideal Way To Work

Not all work from home jobs are created equal. There are a variety of ways to earn a living from home. As soon as you declare I want to work from home, you need to figure out what type of position is right for you. I’m not talking about job title or responsibilities but, rather, the much broader classification of how and when you work.  

Part Time Jobs

When you work part time as an employee from home, you’ll have a set schedule with shorter shifts. Typically, you work at least 20 hours a week but no more than 32. However, the Bureau of Labor and Statistics considers part time work to be anywhere from 1 to 34 hours each week. 

Employers are not required to give their part-time employees benefits like healthcare or paid days off. However, part time employees are still covered by Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) which involves concepts like overtime and minimum wage.

Many people choose to pursue part time work from home jobs voluntarily. Less hours per week worked may work better for your schedule if you’re a parent, caregiver, student, disabled, or have commitments that take up a big chunk of your time. 

Full Time Employee Jobs

Chances are, you’ve held at least one full-time employee position in your life. You probably worked 40 hours a week (or more) and punched your card at a physical location like an office or job site. 

Full time employee jobs from home are just like these but instead of ‘going’ to work every day, you get to work from your home office. 

As a full time worker, you likely qualify for health insurance, paid time off, and other perks. However, you will be expected to keep a set schedule and be available during ‘office hours’ even if your office is your home. 

Full time employee positions from home are great for anyone who wants to take their career virtually. You can climb the corporate ladder without having to commute.

But, keep in mind, when you opt to work full time from home, you are expected to keep a quiet home office free of distractions. You simply cannot try to manage childcare and daily responsibilities while putting in a full day’s worth of work. 

Independent Contractor Positions

Independent contractor (IC) positions may be full time or part time. Instead of being classified as an employee, you’re considered a contractor. As an IC, you bill for your time or services and are paid accordingly. Taxes are not withheld from your pay and become your responsibility. 

Because you are not an employee, you are not eligible for benefits. You are also not guaranteed work. That is, some days or weeks you may find yourself with little or no tasks to perform. 

However, as an IC you get a lot more freedom in how and when you work. For example, one week you might decide to accept more work and the next opt to work as little as possible. Similarly, you can choose to work on the days and times that work best for you. ICs get to choose a schedule that works best for them.

For many of my clients who declare I want to work from home, IC positions provide the flexibility that drove them to seek at-home jobs in the first place. 

You too may prefer the IC life if you want to have a pool of work available to you when you have the time and inclination to get it done.

Freelance 

When you freelance from home, you are quite literally your own boss. You are in charge of finding work, pricing your services, collecting payment and paying taxes. Essentially, you become the CEO of Y-O-U. 

Freelancers often offer services to clients on a contract basis. A contract can be ongoing or a one-time deal. For example, freelance writing is a popular career path from home. As a freelance writer, you could have daily short writing assignments for a blog, weekly newsletters for online publications, or a one-time research report for a large corporation. 

Like ICs, freelancers get to choose how and when they work — late into the night or early in the morning. There is no standard 9 to 5 here. But, keep in mind, freelancers find their own work. That means you have to pitch your services to potential clients before they award you a gig. 

Some freelancers choose to sign up for large freelance marketplace sites, like Upwork, others opt to source work directly via cold emailing or networking. Either way, many people create amazing careers as freelancers. It’s exactly how I got my start and continue to make a living as a Career Coach. 

I Want To Work From Home but Which Type Of Job Is Right For Me? 

It’s easy to say I want to work from home. It’s much harder to actually find remote work. I get it. Often, this difficulty comes from the overwhelming number of options there are to work from home. When you’re presented with too many choices and bombarded with an equal amount of extra information you can be hit with information overload.

Fortunately, I’ve worked with many job seekers in your shoes. The single best thing you can do for your remote job search is determine what type of work makes sense for you. There’s no sense in looking at IC gigs if you value employee-sponsored benefits just as you wouldn’t even bother considering part time work when you need a guaranteed 40 hours a week. 

So, before you even look at a single work from home job lead, first figure out what work from home job type is right for you.

Here are some core guiding questions to ask yourself to help definitively narrow it down: 

• Do you want to work full time or part time? 
• Can you work a set schedule? 
• Is there a quiet home office you can work from that is free of distractions and noise? 
• Are there other responsibilities that take up a large chunk of your time during normal business hours like caregiver responsibilities?  
• Do you place a lot of value in employee-sponsored benefits like health insurance, 401(k), and paid time off? 

With the answers to those questions in mind, objectively look at the pros and cons of each of the following type of at-home positions to figure out which one works best for you.

Consider Full Time Employee Positions If…

• Your career ideals include career advancement, recognition, and benefits
• There is a quiet place you can work out of free of distractions 
• You do not have conflicting responsibilities during typical business hours 
• You have availability to work 40+ hours a week, Monday – Friday 

Part Time Works Best If…

• You’re unable or don’t want to commit to a 40-hour a week schedule 
• You consider employee perks a plus but not a necessity 
• There are at least 20 hours a week you can devote to work 
• During those 20 hours, you can provide a quiet office

Independent Contractor Jobs Might Work If…

• You want to set your schedule and work as much as you want (when work is available) 
• You’re not concerned about health insurance and other benefits 
• You are able to keep track of your income and pay taxes accordingly 

The Freelance Life Is Best If…

• You’re ready to be your own boss 
• You understand that you will have to source your own clients 
• You have skills you can sell to clients like writing, virtual assistant, design, etc. 

I Want To Work From Home. Help! 

Remember, don’t jump into a work from home job search all willy nilly. All successful remote job searches have a plan, and the first step in that plan involves identifying career ideals and what type of work is best for you. 

Take it from a Certified Professional Career Coach who has helped hundreds of job seekrs, like you, find remote work that best suits them. 

If you need help developing your own personal job search plan, consider my one-on-one coaching services. Simply send me an SOS via email at ashlee(at)workfromhomehappiness(dot)com with the subject line I want to work from home. 

Happily, 

Ashlee 

P.S. This post might contain affiliate links which are a way for me to earn money without costing you anything. Check out my disclosure statement for more information. 

The post I Want To Work From Home. Now What? Expert Advice from A Certified Professional Career Coach appeared first on Work from Home Happiness.