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5 Most Profitable Ways to Work from Anywhere


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I’m not going to perpetuate the widespread myth that it’s easy to make a solid income working remotely… because it’s not! And the highest paying work-at-home jobs are especially challenging.

Sure, there are ways to make money from anywhere that don’t require much effort or brainpower, like or clicking ads, but if you want to build a real business using actual skills to make a sustainable income from anywhere, you’re going to have to work for it.

Sick of commuting to work every day? Check out these 5 ways you can work anywhere -- from your home to a couch in Paris!What if I don’t have the skills to work anywhere?

You don’t have to have the skills right now, don’t worry — you can learn them (and it doesn’t have to break the bank). My point is that it’s next to impossible to make good money without training to gain the skills and practice to build those skills.

If reading that makes you sad, this post isn’t for you. Stick with the low-paying gigs.

On the other hand, if knowing you can achieve just about anything by using your brain + hard work makes you EXCITED, then keep reading — I’m about to share five of the highest paying, in-demand work-from-anywhere jobs out there.

RELATED: Why a College Degree Doesn’t Create Income — and What Does

High-Paying Job #1: Proofreading

Hey, you’re on a proofreading blog — I can’t leave it off!

When proofreading was my sole source of business income, I earned $43,000 in a year.  Now, that’s not a fortune, and I know that. But it is so much better than $2 per survey, and because working with authors and court reporters allows you to garner repeat clients (as long as you know what you’re doing and can do excellent work), it’s much easier to build sustainable income this way.

A lot of work goes into building a proofreading business — and a lot of learning, too. General proofreading is a great fit for those who are just starting out and are looking to build a solid foundation of skills. You’ll need to know proper grammar, punctuation, and spelling, plus be able to point out any formatting errors you come across.

If you’ve aced general proofreading or want to start off in a more specific niche, then transcript proofreading is the way to go. Proofreading spoken word isn’t the same as proofreading a term paper or your company’s marketing materials. Grammar doesn’t matter as much as punctuation in transcript proofreading, and this can unnerve some people who consider themselves good at proofreading. It’s unnerving because this type of proofreading isn’t about just spotting errors — it’s also about fully understanding the mechanics of a transcript and how a court reporter’s job works.

NEXT STEPS Watch our free 76-minute workshop to learn more about general proofreading. If you’re interested in learning more about transcript proofreading, enroll in our free 7-day intro course.

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    5-most-profitable-ways-to-work-from-home-1High-Paying Job #2: Transcription (NOT Medical Transcription!)

    Full-time general transcriptionists earn an average of $45,000 per year — but here’s the catch. You’re not going to make that much if you only work for the “big box” companies who pay beans for your work. You’ve got to get your own clients to make real money. You’ve got to take action — not just wait for someone to hand you work.

    And there are a lot of people peddling cheap products claiming a $3 eBook or a $99 “course” about how to get work is all you need to make the big bucks as a transcriptionist… except it’s not.

    Transcription is more than just typing work: you actually need to know more than typing to truly make a good living — things like punctuation, software skills, networking, even bits and pieces of virtual assistance knowledge like how to prepare a PDF of show notes for a podcaster.

    Transcription is a real skill. Yes, you may be able to get a couple of gigs without actually knowing what you’re doing, but you’ll likely find it frustratingly difficult to make your efforts financially worth it — and next to impossible to get work from higher-paying clients. These clients need someone who actually knows their stuff.

    You’re there to make your clients’ lives easier. Higher paying clients are 99% of the time not going to be able to help you along, teach you the ropes, or give you extra time to finish work so you can build your speed. They want it all up front — accuracy, speed, and excellent service.

    General transcription is in high demand. I even use transcriptionists for my blog posts! In fact, transcription authority blogger Janet Shaughnessy writes a powerful blog series titled People Who Use Transcriptionists where she profiles the vast array of people who use general transcriptionists to grow their businesses — from best-selling authors to wine bloggers (!!). You won’t see information like that anywhere else on the web.

    NEXT STEPS Enroll in Janet’s free mini-course to learn more about what it takes to become an excellent, well-paid transcriptionist.

    High-Paying Job #3: Bookkeeping

    All businesses need bookkeepers — even mine! I don’t have time to manage all the people I have to pay for what, what payments have come in, nor do I have time to sort through all my receipts and attach them to my FreshBooks account as expenses.

    Did you know well-trained bookkeepers can earn up to $75 per hour for their services? The key is niche marketing: don’t market to everyone; instead, narrow down your niche to orthodontists or life coaches. Become “The Life Coach Bookkeeper.”

    The catch? To be successful, you have to know what you’re doing. We can’t really call that a catch, though, because if you’ve never done any bookkeeping work before and don’t know how to network properly and find your clients, it’s gonna be awfully hard to get even $7 an hour, much less $75. This is a situation where training from an expert truly pays off.

    NEXT STEPS Certified Public Accountant Ben Robinson of Bookkeeper Business Launch is the guru for all things bookkeeping businesses. Check out his free 3-part course to learn more about starting your own bookkeeping business.

    Which Work-at-Home Career is Right for You-High-Paying Job #4: Virtual Assisting

    A lot of people don’t think of blogging as being a lot of work… but it is! Even running a blog in a somewhat “quieter” niche like proofreading is a ton of work. There’s so much stuff to manage: accounts payable, social media, affiliate programs, course content, grading quizzes/tests for the course, writing blog posts, creating newsletters… the list of things to do is endless!

    This may surprise you, but I’ve currently got more than NINE virtual assistants helping me run my blog and my courses! They help me immensely by completing various tasks such as…

    • grade tests and quizzes (yep, a human actually does this!)
    • help me answer simple emails and prioritize my inbox
    • create and send out custom Certificates of Completion for course graduates
    • write and edit guest posts for the blog
    • manage social media and create images for my Pinterest account
    • create new and/or improved reference tools within the course content
    • design new and challenging worksheets for our punctuation module

    I’m sure I’m forgetting something somewhere, but you get the point: even for a “small” or — dare I say it! — obscure blog like mine, there are lots of things to do! Virtual assistants (VAs) get paid pretty well, too: for simpler administrative tasks, pay is around $10 per hour; for more complicated, technical stuff, the hourly rate can go to $20, $30, even $40 per hour and up. It all depends on the task.

    The more skills you have as a virtual assistant, the higher your value is to a busy blogger/ business owner. Put in the time to increase your skills — I have fired many VAs in the past that pitch me perfectly but then can’t deliver. DO NOT attempt to become a virtual assistant without knowing what you’re doing. Just don’t do it.

    NEXT STEPS To get started as a virtual assistant, check out our friends at Virtual Savvy.

    make-money-from-home-get-started-with-5-free-mini-courses

    High-Paying Job #5: Freelance Writing

    fifth high-paying career that would suit word nerds is freelance writing.

    I started this blog to help grow my freelance business. Just a few years later, I’ve written more words than I can count — books, blog posts, online course content, social media posts… millions of words. And it’s all because I took the plunge and started making money as a writer. Proofreading got me into the freelance world, but writing is what helped me get to where I am today.

    Starting your own blog isn’t the only way to break into writing. Writing is a huge medium for companies to connect with consumers, but they don’t always have the time or writing skills to maintain a blog. Companies hire freelance writers to keep their blogs loaded with fresh content. Other ways writers earn money are through ghostwriting, grant writing, and self-publishing their own books.

    The amount you can earn as a writer is limitless!

    Do you need a little inspiration on how to start your own writing business? Check out these interviews with women who are kicking some major butt with their writing businesses:

    Ready to look for freelance writing jobs? Jooble is a great place to start!

    Your Turn!

    For more job inspiration, check out 15 work-at-home job ideas and side hustles that pay weekly.

    What are your next steps? Which work anywhere job do you have your eye on? What challenges are you facing in your life? Share below!


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    1. Thank you for the helpful article. I worked in a very busy office for the last 15 years.
      Due to my health issues I took my disability pension. Now wanting to get some kind of work that I can do kinda at my pace but yet bring in enough to help get the bills paid and still have a little spending money left at end of the month :/. No extra money for all these pay to get work sites… Going yo try these links and see how this goes.

      1. Glad you enjoyed the article, Becky. Wishing you all the best as you explore which of these opportunities might best fit you!

    2. This was very interesting to read. I am a stay @ home mom who has not worked for 14 years, worked as a Library Aide for 5, and now no longer employed. With a daughter going to college I will try one of these and hopefully one will work. Thanks for all the information. Opened my eyes as to what is required.

    3. This looks promising. I’m an ELA teacher for 6th and 7th graders and would like to supplement my teaching income, especially during summer. Definitely going to look into it. Thanks for putting this together.

      1. We’re happy to have you, Sunny! Shoot us any questions you may have. We’re here to help. 🙂

    4. Will enrolling in this course help me find openings in the field and connect to job opportunities?

    5. Great article!!! Really enjoy reading the different routes you can take to earn money from home. Thank you for sharing these links.

    6. Enjoyed your blog. Would be interested in your recommendations for part time work to supplement retirement. I’ve worked for almost 50 years but affording full retirement is getting more and more challenging. I don’t want to work full time, or even ” regular” part time, but something that can make retirement less stressful. Thanks in advance for your response.

      1. These five ways ARE my recommendations for exactly that. You can work however much you want to work. If you’re looking for something “easy,” then I would look for seasonal work in retail, but the money isn’t nearly as good. If you’re okay with the possibility that you may need additional skills than what you already have to make income at home, then I’d strongly consider one of these five options as a way to help finance your retirement.

    7. My question is how could I actually find these type of gigs? I believe I could be successful in all of these areas, but I live in a small town and not sure those type of jobs are in demand here. Or does it matter where the job is since its work from home?

    8. Good morning,
      your information was very informative but you made a mistake. In the bookkeeping section, you have a link for Ben Robinson that says a 3 week free course. It is not a 3 week course, it is a 3 part course. I thought it was something different than what I had already signed up for.

    9. Is there a way to learn how much each course costs before you spend the time doing the intro courses? I took one mini course already once and was disappointed when I found out how much the tuition cost.

      1. Of course, Barbara! On the menu bar, if you hover over Courses & Books, you can click Full Course Overview & Enrollment for details. 🙂

          1. If you see Courses & Books in the menu near the top of the page, you can just click on the name of the course you’re interested in looking at. 🙂

            1. I can’t find the tuition information for the general proofreading course.

            2. You can go here to find that information. Let us know if you have any other questions! 🙂

    10. Hi Caitlin,
      Thank You ? for providing awesome information .
      You’re always on ☝️ point with your information.
      Whenever I see your name in my “inbox”, I know there’s powerful content to get me that much closer to my goals & dreams.
      I haven’t taken any of your courses yet, because I have not decided which one is for me yet, however, after reading about the “copy editing” I do believe it may be a good ? fit for me.
      I currently work a full time job ; I want to leave in 2 years. I know not working in a non structured environment will be a challenge of which I’ve been preparing myself for.
      I have to finish reading your “survival guide”
      Keep up your awesome work!!! I love ❤️ your energy.

    11. Do you know if Gina Horkey is still offering a Free VA Course try out?

      1. Hi Leslie! I did some looking, and it doesn’t appear it’s a current offer. Sorry about that — and thank you for letting me know so I can get this post updated.

    12. Caitlin, you mention niche proofreading options. I have a good background in medical transcription, medical terminology, etc. Who would I get work from, or rather, how would I market this niche?

      1. Hi, Leslie.
        Thanks for your comment! While we applaud your efforts to get clients, we don’t divulge marketing info until we’re sure the individual has the skills. 🙂

    13. Thank you for sharing your experience! It is so useful- and comforting. I need more money – and I know I'd be good at proofreading – but I've been SCARED – of how and where to start, and of what to say and do. Thank you for providing a road map, and for being a caring, knowledgeable guide.

    14. I,am seventy three , make one thousand ninety dollars a month . I pay five hundred for rent , utilities, gas, etc. I spend most my days reading . I thought maybe i could do something at home because i have also lost my hearing . I can see mistakes in what i read or the games on facebook ,where you find the different letter etc. I like writing , thoughts, letters . Don,t know how good i would be on my computer ?

    15. I left the USAF, where I did Accounting till the end of '74. I dabbled in Linguistics in '75, and took some Bible courses in '76. After helping my parents move from NYC to PHX that year, I moved to Manhattan. In '77, I started working for a typing firm as a Bookkeeper (I love numbers!). I learned their word processing system (known as a Vydec), and turned my expertise into a freelancing job doing word processing for banks and law firms. In '80 I moved to TX and did word processing for a mission (the Summer Institute of Linguistics). In '82, I got married and joined Arthur Ansersen's typing pool, using my training on the Vydec.

      Elsewhere you heard of my history in proofreading. But I love your 5 ways of earning money, and I might enjoy working for people like you!

    16. I am very interested in your proofreading course that you offer. I am ready to sign up, but I do have a question, or two.
      My husband and I are retired so money is tight. If I sign up, are there other fees, such as taxes or shipping charges? This is important to us. We want to make sure all the charges are covered. I am so thrilled to find something that I can do, to help us thrive, instead of just surviving.

      Thank you for your time. It is very much appreciated.

      1. There are no additional fees or taxe. The course is entirely online and all of the bonuses are ebook downloads, so nothing is shipped to you. You will have unlimited access and no time limits, so you can complete the course on your schedule. If you have any questions, please write to [email protected]. Thanks!

    17. I have wanted to have my own work from home business for some time but have never felt like it was something that I could accomplish. You have given me a lot to think about. I have quite a bit of experience in medical transcription, did not know that that was still a thing with scribes now. Thanks for all your hard work in getting this together.

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