Leslie Truex - The Work-at-Home Success Bible: A Complete Guide for Women: Start Your Own Business; Balance Work and Home Life; Develop Telecommuting Strategies

The Work-at-Home
Success Bible

A Complete Guide for Women

Leslie Truex

Avon, Massachusetts

Copyright 2009 by Leslie Truex
All rights reserved.

This book, or parts thereof, may not be reproduced in any
form without permission from the publisher; exceptions are
made for brief excerpts used in published reviews.

Published by
Adams Business, an imprint of Adams Media, a division of F+W Media, Inc.
57 Littlefield Street, Avon, MA 02322. U.S.A.
www.adamsmedia.com

ISBN 10: 1-59869-916-4
ISBN 13: 978-1-59869-916-6
eISBN: 978-1-44052-053-2

Printed in the United States of America.
J I H G F E D C B A

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
is available from the publisher.

This publication is designed to provide accurate and authoritative information with regard to the subject matter covered. It is sold with the understanding that the publisher is not engaged in rendering legal, accounting, or other professional advice. If legal advice or other expert assistance is required, the services of a competent professional person should be sought.

From a Declaration of Principles jointly adopted by a Committee of the
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DEDICATION

To all women who are looking to create
fulfilling careers and have inspired lives.

Contents

Acknowledgments

Wow. Where do I start in thanking everyone who has had a hand in making this project possible? First I want to thank my parents, all four of them, for their support and assistance. Thank you to my children, Zachary and Hannah, who were the inspiration behind my wanting to work at home and continue as my cheerleaders as I embark on new projects. I want to give a very special thanks to my husband Jay, who has always supported me, even when I was flailing and failing in my effort to work at home.

Thank you to all the WorkAtHomeSuccess.com readers, and my online friends and mentors for all your support, advice, and friendship! Thanks also to Jennifer Zajac, Nell Taliercio, Heidi Marshall, Jenn Cangelosi, Kitara R. Wilson, Angela Wills, Annette Yen, Adriana Copaceanu, and Tammy Kipf for sharing their success stories.

Finally, a big thank you to Lilly Ghahremani and Stephanie Von Borstel, agents extraordinaire, for taking a chance with a forty-something pajama-clad work-at-home mom, and especially to Lilly for helping me find my voice. And thank you to Peter Archer, my editor at Adams Media, for being so approachable and helpful to this novice author.

Introduction

As I watch my children waiting for the bus through the front window of my home, I cant help but notice all the cars passing by carrying some poor soul clad in a red power noose (aka, a tie) or sausage casings (known as pantyhose) on the way to a job. They have glazed looks in their eyes despite the travel mug of hot coffee sitting in their cup holder. Why do they do it? I wonder. Then the bus comes, I grab my coffee mug, and head down the hall to my office dressed in my pajamas and fuzzy slippers. I power on my laptop, turn on iTunes, and go to work. Ah, the life of a pajama mama!

You picked up this book because you want to join the ranks of comfortably clad women who set their own hours and work from the comfort of their own homes. The good news is that you can. Millions of women just like you have already taken advantage of the increasing number of employers offering work-at-home options. Other women have seized control of their careers, leaving the rat race to start a home business that has afforded them the flexibility and financial stability that jobs have failed to provide. The work-at-home trend is expected to continue giving you more and more opportunities to join us.

What Qualifies Me to Be Your Coach?

Why should you take advice from a forty-something mom who spends most of her day in her pajamas? Because Ive been where you are and Im now where youd like to be. I struggled to find my way through the work-at-home jungle of scams and crazy schemes, until I found success. Ive telecommuted online and off as a social worker, writer, and researcher. Ive started a variety of home businesses, some that failed, and some that made money. Through study, research, and lots of action, I was able to create a work-at-home career that I love. Today, I telecommute part time as an adoption social worker, run a successful website that earns income through advertising and affiliate programs, and create information products related to working at home. Youre holding one of those products right now.

However, it didnt happen overnight. One thing I hate about infomercials and many how-to gurus is how they give the impression that your life can change today with very little effort and $49.99 plus shipping and handling. My journey to work-at-home success was not fast or easy. It was a lot of work. I had setbacks and disappointments. I failed, several times. But I was determined to create a life that gave me the income I needed while still being able to be at home with my children and pursue personal interests. Today I live that life, and I want to help you do the same!

What Youll Get from This Book

The Work-at-Home Success Bible will show you the real deal about working at home. Youll discover why telecommuting is growing, what companies want in home-based employees, and how you can take advantage of it. Youll also learn about home business and how you can turn your hobby or passion into a home-based career you love, as well as get paid what youre worth (finally!). Further, youll learn how you can telecommute or start a home business (or both) using the Internet.

But more than a book filled with information, The Work-at-Home Success Bible will take you step by step through creating a plan of action so that starting today, youll be taking steps to work at home. When you finish the book, youll have a work-at-home proposal to show your boss, or a winning resume to apply for a work-at-home job. Or maybe youll have a business plan in place and be ready to take your first customer.

What This Book Cant Do

Like a recipe, this guide tells you exactly what to do to cook up the career of your dreams. But for it to work, you need to do the activities provided in the book. You can read a book about baking a pie, but you wont have dessert unless you put the ingredients in the bowl, mix them up, and cook them. The same is true of working at home: It takes action.

I dont know about you, but I frequently skip over exercises and worksheets in books, usually because I cant see how they are going to help me learn what I want to know. You wont have that problem here, as the exercises are directly related to helping you find or create a work-at-home job or business.

Plan for Work-at-Home Success

How long have you been thinking of working at home? A week? Six months? Three years? Longer? Thinking about what you want in life is a good first step, but thinking by itself doesnt get things done. I think about investing in real estate and writing a mystery novel. But I own only one home (the one I live in) and I dont have a book in the mystery section of the bookstore.

To be successful at working at home, or anything else, requires action. By reading this book and doing the activities, youre taking action. But when this book is done, youll still have more steps to take, whether its talking to your boss, applying for a new job, or getting a business permit. The best way to ensure that thoughts are followed by action is to have a plan. Research suggests that writing your plan will increase the chances of your following through, so throughout this book, youll be creating your plan based on the work-at-home options you choose. The sections marked Plan for Work-at-Home Success will be your cue to take action. While you can write in this book, I recommend that you get a notebook where you can keep all your information organized in one place.