Back in 2005, I finally decided to quit my job and leave my nauseating bosses behind to live a life free from stress emanating from eight hours in the hell hole I used to call e-Pacific. Yes, I’m naming the company. I hate it, I hate the people I worked with (most, not all) and I can call it a craptacular company if I want to. Darling bosses, if you still have enough money left over from that bankrupt piece of trash you call a company, sue me.

Ahem.

Anyway. Before I got carried away, I was trying to talk about the time when I found myself financially unstable after quitting my job. All I had was a freelance writing gig that paid decently, but I wasn’t sure I could actually survive on the pay I got from it. But survive I did. In fact, I made more money than I ever did with my corporate job. I stayed home, woke up late, worked in the afternoons and had siesta. I watched television, went to the mall, horsed around and generally just did whatever wanted. Best of all, I had money. Tons. Not “Bill Gates” tons, but tons. I got along great, bought myself a laptop and sent my mom on a trip to Thailand.

I lived the life everyone wanted: I worked from home.

Working from home is one of the best things that can ever happen in life. It’s just fun, lounging about in sleepwear the entire day while still making enough money to laugh your way to the bank. No bosses, no nasty commuters — it’s practically perfect.

Unfortunately, scammers cashed in on this dream. Work-from-home job opportunities are all over the net, and it’s difficult distinguishing true opportunities from scams. I have only one general rule when it comes to problems like this: if the company asks you for money so you can start working for them, that’s out and out bull. It’s not a fool-proof mantra, but it’s good enough.

Like you, I’m nearly always looking for new ways to earn online. It’s a gift. Anyway, here’s a list of work-from-home jobs you can try:

1. Academic Writing. As I mentioned here, I’m not denying the seedier side of this business. It’s impossible to ignore this freelancing juggernaut, though. It’s one of the most reliable aspects of freelance writing. You do need to have basic knowledge of research writing, citation formats and sweet organization skills to survive.
2. Pro-blogging. Get paid to talk about products and services on your own blog, be it on your own domain or hosted by some free blogging site like Blogger. Sites like PayPerPost and Review are two of the best known companies in terms of paid blogging. And Smorty, too, by the way. Required skills: knowledge in SEO, writing flexibility and a blog that actually gets hits (otherwise, your application with PayPerPost et al might get kicked to the curb.
3. Advertisements. Got a blog? Sell your space. Adsense, Adbrite and Bidvertiser are some of the most popular choices. The downside? It’s not quite as easy as it seems. You’ll need sweet SEO skills, a really marketable blog and lots of patience. Or tenacity. Some bloggers toe the line and engage in adventurous “bordering on insane” means to get their ad earnings up. It’s not quite for the faint of heart.
4. Content Writing. I just had to separate this from blogging, for OC organization’s sake, but it’s really quite related. In a nutshell, you have to write 300-500 words content of a specific topic for websites or blogs. Some call this ghost-writing, because your name doesn’t necessarily appear with your article. Not an issue with me; as long as the moolah’s in my name, we’re good. You’ll need sweet writing skills, the power of brevity and a wide range of information to deal with the variety of content required.
5. Online selling. Personally, I love multiply sites. I’m an online shopping junkie. Just imagine. If one in every five internet users is like me, you’re pretty much set. You do need a kickass product, affordable prices and accessibility. There’s nothing I hate more than a seller that doesn’t answer promptly. It gets me antsy, and antsy is never good.
6. GPT (Get Paid To) programs. You could get paid for clicking ads, answering surveys or writing email. I personally have never tried this, because it bores me, and the returns are incredibly small. Plus, a lot of scammers take advantage of the many applicants. You need tons of patience.

There are other jobs available, too, online, though I just concentrated on the best-known and least risky ones. I’m not too keen on investments, mostly because I see it as gambling and I’m not quite fond of taking risks. The internet has boundless potential, dear, so just sniff around and *remember*: if something seems too good to be true, it probably is.

There are tons of ways to earn online, you just need to be careful and diligent.

Good luck!

XOXO,