How To Find Remote Jobs From Home (Without Losing Your Mind)

Remote jobs from home — they’re all the rage right now. More than 3 million Americans work from home at least 50% of the time. That number is expected to rise over the next decade. 

And, for good reason – remote work makes you happier. Plus, it’s more affordable for companies and promotes employee longevity.

With the happiness factor and time saved without a daily commute, remote work sounds like an ideal arrangement and something you definitely want to pursue. But, where do you start?

Don’t panic. Nobody expects you to be a work from home expert right out the gate. What is important, however, is that you go about finding remote jobs from home the right way — without losing your mind.

It’s easier than you think and worth the effort to find remote work just for the extra time, money saved, and happiness boost. 

Figure Out What Kind Of Remote Worker You Are

You have a life. And, part of the appeal of working from home is gaining a better work-life balance. But, remember, just because a job lets you work remotely, doesn’t mean you get to set your own schedule. 

Work from home jobs run the gamut from full-time employee positions with 40-hour schedules to flexible freelancing gigs that let you work whenever you want. 

That’s why it’s important to determine right off the bat what kind of schedule you want or need. There’s no sense applying to employee positions if you want to be your own boss. And, of course, you wouldn’t pursue freelancing gigs if you need steady pay and employee benefits. 

So, before you even look at another work-from-home job lead, I highly recommend you figure out what type of remote worker you are — freelancer or employee. You’ll save yourself a ton of time, energy, and effort when you only pursue the right types of jobs for you. 

Determine Your Remote Career Ideals

Now that you know whether you’re a freelancer or employee material, it’s time to dig a littler deeper and identify your career ideals. 

“What are those,” you ask? Good question. 

Your career ideals are broken down into specific areas. Some of the big career ideal areas include the tasks we do, with whom we work, how we work, and where. As someone looking at remote jobs from home, telecommuting would be an example of your ideal career location. 

Only you can determine what your career ideals are. It’s best to be honest about what you want  (and don’t want) from a remote job, but don’t sell yourself short either. Your career ideals are just that — ideal, so don’t be afraid to shoot for the stars. 

Psst: I’ve created a free cheatsheet you can use to figure out your career ideals. Plus, it’ll make it so much easier to find the right remote jobs from home for you. So be sure to grab your free career ideals worksheet and put it to use now. 

Get Inspired By What’s Out There 

With your career ideals identified, you’re probably thinking, “Now what?” Now, you look at your completed career ideals worksheet for inspiration. You’ve got a blueprint right there telling you what skills you want to use, the type of company you want to work for, the hours you prefer, and the industry you’d like to stay within. It’s time to track down companies with positions that fit those criteria. But where do you begin?

As a seeker of remote jobs from home, FlexJobs is a great place to start. With a paid membership, you’ll gain access to thousands of hand-screened (no scams to worry about here) job leads.

As a bonus, there are hundreds of resources to inspire your job search. This includes details about companies and industries that regularly hire remote workers. My favorite free resource is FlexJob’s, How To Find A Remote Job And Start Working From Home. This guide is packed with info like: 

• Common jobs and companies that hire 
• Job search best practices 
• Resume help and interview tips

You can also jump right in and sign up for a FlexJobs membership. Save as much as 30% at checkout when you use FlexJobs promo code FLEXLIFE.

Learn Something New, If You Have To 

You’ve got a handle on what kind of remote jobs from home you’re after. And, you know what’s out there and companies that hire remote workers. If you’re lucky, you’ll find that your existing work experience or education is enough to jump right in and apply. In some cases, you’ll discover your ideal remote job requires a skill or two you just don’t have. Don’t give up. Instead, start learning. 

There are plenty of free resources out there that will teach you an in-demand work-from-home skill for free. 

Codecademy will teach you to code for free. 

• HubSpot has a free InBound Certification course. 
• Google Academy for Ads offers a free AdWords certification. 
• Alison offers hundreds of free workplace-focused certificates. 

In other words, no excuses. If you need to boost your employability, there are free courses out there that will help you do just that. You just have to be willing to put in the work. 

Create Remote Jobs From Home With Paid Courses

Perhaps there’s one particular remote career path that sparked your interest. But, it’s not something that you just jump right into. Instead, you need to learn the ropes of the trade as well as how to break into the industry. 

Fortunately, there are work-from-home focused courses just for you. Remember, these are paid-for courses because they cater to specific career paths and not just a small skill. These courses will not only teach you a work-from-home skill but show you how to get established and find work — often working on your own terms.

These courses include options like: 

• CareerStep Medical Transcription and Editing
• CareerStep Medical Billing and Coding 
• Bookkeeper Business Launch Online Bookkeeping 
• ProofreadAnywhere General Proofreading Theory and Practice 

Want to see what else is out there? I recommend one of 14 online courses that’ll teach you how to work from home. 

Apply Sparingly

If you got laid off in the real world, you’d dust off your resume and apply to local jobs that you know you could do. That is you have the right skills, experience, and know-how to get the job done. You wouldn’t waste your time applying to auto mechanic positions if you never even looked under the hood of a car before or try to land a job as an ER doctor if you never went to med school.

Instead, you would focus your job search on the positions you could actually get hired for because you have relevant experience and the right knowledge. 

The same rule applies to remote jobs from home. You should not apply to every work from home job you find just because it lets you telecommute. You need to remember your career ideals and the skills you want to use (or are willing to learn) to work from home. 

Only apply to those jobs you are qualified for and interested in. You’ll save yourself a ton of time (and heartache) when it comes to finding remote jobs from home. 

Don’t Give Up 

Remember, the average job search lasts about five months. Remote job searches can take even longer due to heavy competition and fewer options. The bottomline is — don’t give up! 

Give yourself a work from home goal and get to it. Use your career ideals to guide you. Now you can actually find remote jobs from home, without losing your mind. You’ve got this! 

Happily, 

Ashlee 

P.S. This post contains affiliate links Check out my disclosure statement for more information.