The Best Careers For Working From Home

Are you super-organised? Are you able to see the bigger picture while planning for the fine details? Able to manage clients with specific visions and priorities? If so, becoming an event planner could be an optimal career. From weddings to graduations and other parties, the opportunities to choose a niche are endless. Most importantly, there’s money to be made here. Event planners make around $46,000 on average.

2. Photographer

As long as weddings, babies, marriages and other milestones take place, people will be looking for photographers to capture them. This represents an ongoing need that anyone with the right equipment and a few photography courses, coupled with some practice to build a portfolio, can fill. Photographers’ salaries average around $29,000, making it an excellent option for working on the side or to supplement another family income.

3. Tax preparer

While preparing taxes requires a finance degree and – in many cases – an advanced certification, the options are endless. Many companies hire tax preparers to work from home on a contractor basis. On average, freelance tax preparers make around $1,000 a week.

4. PR specialist

Have a knack for proactive action to raise awareness and build reputations? You might be skilled in public relations. Ideal for individuals with communications degrees who’ve completed coursework in public relations and marketing, many companies are on the hunt for contracted PR specialists who are able to provide services on an as-needed basis for specific campaigns. PR specialists in many fields earn more than $50,000 a year. If you have the qualifications, don’t overlook this possibility.

5. Writer

You’ve heard all the stories about struggling writers looking for their big breakthrough. This doesn’t mean that freelance writing should be a no-go. Instead, possibilities are ripe for individuals skilled with words and grammar who are willing to think outside the box: writers for content marketing, business newsletters and blogs are always in high demand. Freelance writers pick and choose assignments, can take their clients with them on the go, and are capable of earning more than $50,000 on a yearly basis. This makes it an excellent career choice for military spouses, stay-at-home moms and others looking for flexibility.

6. Graphic designer

Would you classify yourself as both creative and skilled at desktop publishing and design? Why not turn it into a career? Degree programs exist to add credence to your skills and a strong portfolio can go a long way toward increasing customer confidence. If you’re armed with both, you can take on the world – from home, on your own time. While graphic designers must be able to work under strict deadlines, they’re able to choose which assignments and clients they accept. One strong project can lead to repeat business in many situations. The median salary for graphic designers in the U.S. is $51,000.

7. Tour guide

Do you live somewhere that could be considered a tourist destination? Do you love getting out, meeting new people and sharing the excitement that your hometown has to offer? Why not create a tour guide business? Advertise your services and think of tour routes that could be of interest to out-of-town guests. From there, think of ways to build. You could be running a tour guide company in no time, from the comfort of your home office. While general tour guides earn around $23,000 a year, there’s no reason why, by building your own company with multiple guides, you couldn’t increase that figure.

8. Songwriter

Remember the last time a song on the radio spoke to you? Guess what: The singer singing the words probably didn’t write them. Because of how the music industry operates today, songwriters that are skilled at connecting to listeners through lyrics are in high demand. While this demand is higher in certain areas, such as Nashville, New York and Los Angeles, putting yourself out there could lead to some big opportunities that average around $23.50 per hour.

9. Medical transcriptionists

The medical industry has always been and will always be needed in society. As such, those who are able to perform necessary functions – like transcribing doctors’ notes – will continue to be needed. With basic certificate programs that take as little as a few months to complete, any woman looking to start an at-home business can start as a medical transcriptionist. It’s estimated that, on average, medical transcriptionists earn between $30,000 and 50,000 each year.

10. Virtual assistant

For every professional looking to grow their business without an in-office staff and every business looking for support without extra employees, there’s a need for a virtual assistant. Virtual assistants work from home and grow their client bases at will, making it easy to oversee regular operations for a limitless number of clients. It’s nothing for a virtual assistant to charge $50 to $100 per hour, making it a lucrative career for someone who doesn’t want to work full time, though that option is always a possibility.

Working from home doesn’t have to mean scrambling for cash; instead, it can be an excellent way to jumpstart a new career that you are completely in control of. Start with the options listed above and consider your skills to get started today.