Difficulties of my Job

I love almost everything about working from home. Right now I am listening to the rain. With another job, I could be out working in it. I am in my comfy pajama pants and not an uncomfortable dress. I could not be happier.

Now there are some difficulties with this job too. If I don't work, I don't make money. Yes I do have residuals, but I can't just play on the internet or goof off and still get my hourly wage like some people do at work. I don't get sick days or emergency days.

Another thing that is hard about this job sometimes is not having co-workers. It is really hard to deal with people at work, but sometimes you can feel so alone at home. Your friends do not understand your work or why you are always busy.

I have to say I am blessed to have found an amazing friend across the country who does the same work I do. If it was not for her somedays, I would lose my mind. I can talk to her about my job, the stress of it, and the celebrities and she understands it all. You know who you are and please know that I am thankful for you every single day. Now can we just win the lottery so we can meet each other? :)

Writing for Textbroker

Many people are looking to start writing at home and Textbroker is a good site for this job. I do not really write there anymore, but it was one of the first places I worked and I still have love for them! They just pay you a set amount for doing the article. You can pick through all kinds of categories and prices for articles. They are worth checking out! It is a great place to get your feet wet in the world of online writing.

What Ever Happened to Break Studios?

As a writer, I used to love Break Studios. I could do easy articles and get paid good for them. I have to ask other writers, what happened here? I log in, but can't ever find any articles at all in the queue. I will try again in a week or so and still nothing. Does anyone have an idea?

Just Wanted to Share - Best Month Ever!

I feel like I am finally figuring it all out. I just wanted to share with all of you that I just had my best month ever working from home. I am coming close to making what my husband does and it is an amazing feeling! I am pretty much dividing my time between Gather and Examiner, but I do throw a bit of Associated Content in there still. I also write for a small newspaper, but I only do 1 article a month for them. I am super excited with the success and just wanted to share! Never give up on your dreams because you can do it! I never would have thought I could make what I am writing about celebrities and television.

Quicktate Transcription

If you are looking to work from home, but don't really think that writing is for you another idea to try is Quicktate. This is a work at home job that I have had for awhile, but just don't do very often because I love to write.

You simply log into their system and transcribe voice mails. I am pretty sure they go to the subscriber as a text message. It is easy work. You won't get rich, but it is a good way to make some extra money.

Once you have been doing this for awhile, they also have a company that does more in depth transcription you can get on with as well. I do not work for them, but it is called iDictate.

Sign up for Quicktate here.

Don't Put All Your Eggs in One Basket

Recently someone I know lost one of their writing jobs. They were freaked out and unsure how they would be able to pay bills. This reminds me to never put all of your eggs in one basket.

What this means is to work for more than one place. If a new place is hiring, it does not hurt to apply. It is great to have options available for many reasons.

One thing is if you ever lose a job then you won't be scared. You will know that you have other options available and work to do. Yes it might take a second to regroup, but you can still pay your bills.

It is also really nice to have money coming in all the time. Different places pay at different times. Don't you love the idea of getting money every week instead of just once a month? Working different places can help you to make sure this happens.

Work dries up sometimes. You will not be able to find good titles for yourself with certain companies. Instead of just taking time off work you can go to another place and find jobs for yourself.

Find the place that you can make the most money in the shortest amount of time and work there the most. Keep your other places and work there enough to not lose the job. You will thank yourself for it later.

My Journey to Becoming a Freelance Writer

Recently I posted links to a couple of articles that I wrote about starting at home as a writer. I want to share a bit of my experience with you.

I have been a stay at home mom for 6 years now. I have tried and tried to find ways to make an income at home. I tried Cha Cha, pay to click sites, and searched for legit ways to make money at home.

One day I finally stumbled upon eHow. I thought wow do people really make this kind of money writing. I would love to do that and I know I could. I started out writing for eHow and with big dreams.

Shortly after I started there, they shut down the freelance program and changed it where you have to be through Demand Studios to write for them. I did not feel comfortable doing this so I moved on, but I still make about $15/month from articles I wrote there for doing zero work. It is all residual money.

Next I started with Textbroker. They are an amazing company to start out with. I would be so excited if I could make $10/day. Now my husband thinks that is so funny because $10/day now is more than I make if I take the day off. I get that much each day and more on residuals.

I have since branched out into writing for several different places. We all have to work and find what is best for us. I work my butt off somedays and others I don't work at all. When asked if you can make a living at this, yes you can! Can you make enough money to pay your bills? Yes! I know single moms who support themselves and their child doing this every day. I could make that much money if I dedicated the time to it that they do. I will say that I am making more money than I ever thought was possible.

If writing is what you want to do, push yourself. Realize that you will get better with time and you will learn what works for you. Don't be afraid to try things out. Most importantly remember that it is hard work. The money does not just fall in your lap, but if you work at it you can make good money at it.

I am just a normal stay at home mom in a small town in Oklahoma. You can do this, but you have to believe in yourself and be willing to put the work into this job that you would any other job.

New Writing Opportunity

Today I was approached about a new writing opportunity. Someone that I know has a new magazine that they are starting locally. They contacted me on Facebook to see if I would be interested in writing for them. This will be an ongoing job that I will do every month and eventually bi-monthly.

I am so excited about this new venture! I could not be more happy that she had the faith in my ability to come to me with this job. Life is good right now. It is a wonderful thing to love what you do!

More on Examiner and Associated Content

This week has been very beneficial for me on Examiner. Everyone loves to watch Super Bowl commercials. I took that idea and ran with it. I had an over $500 week on there. I am so happy!

I also got a Top 500 Badge for January on Associated Content. This means that I was one of the top 500 writers in views. This is my first time to get a top 500 badge and considering I was gone a week on vacation I am very happy about it! Now if they would just review all my stuff that is waiting in the queue.

We got 15 inches of snow here last night. Today we took the kids sledding, made chili, and made smores over the fireplace. I didn't work a lot, but it was a lot of fun with the kids and my husband. Residual income makes it where I can take a day off like this and not feel guilty. I love it!

Writing for Examiner

I have a new place that I love to write! It is called Examiner. I am the Oklahoma City TV Examiner. It is a lot of fun. They only pay $1 for articles with a local spin, but they also pay for views and it is good! They have a science that they figure it out with but it is better than other places. I wrote an article last night about the Super Bowl and it did great!

The article I wrote was about Christina Aguilera messing up the words to the National Anthem. This article got over 23,000 views just last night. It has already made me over $150!!! I am so happy and I plan to put some more effort into working here.

Please if you decide to apply use my name Mandy Robinson as a referral. They pay $50 per referral if you get hired which is great money! Thanks!

Starting as a Writer at Home

When I decided to start looking for work at home jobs, I tried everything and it was hard to find a job. Once I discovered the world of writing, I knew this was what I wanted to do for sure. It was hard to break into and decide where to even start with this venture. I found a forum of wonderful women who helped me. I want to share with you two articles I have written to help you start if you are interested in working from home. Check out Working at Home as a Writer Guide to Getting Started and Work at Home as a Writer - 10 Legit Places that Hire Writers at Home. Remember that if something wants you to pay to get started it is probably a scam. You should never have to pay to get a job.

Working from Home Social Life

Since I work from home, I don't have much of a social life anymore. I will admit that I am a bit antisocial anyway. I have been hurt in the past and guard myself because of it. The problem I have now is that some people don't understand I am not always just sitting here eating bon bons and watching television. I do work for a living, but I do it at home.

Every single day I have views to check, backlinking to do, blogs to write, and goals to meet. I don't have set hours, but I do still have deadlines. I can't always answer the phone when you call because regardless of if you understand I have to watch "Holly's World" and write about it within 12 hours of the end of the show. It's amazing job and yes I do really get paid to do it.

I just hope someday that people will understand how hard I work at home and that I do pay bills with the money that I make here. For some reason, they sometimes just think it is all a scam, but it isn't and please understand when I am working sometimes I just don't have as much free time as I used to have everyday.

On top of that, I am taking care of a 2 year old and 7 year old all day long. Love them and wouldn't trade it for the world, but it makes me one busy momma.

Mystery Shopping

Working from home, I have tried many different things. One thing I have done is mystery shopping. The best way to get started in this is search for companies on google. You will find a ton! Only sign up for the ones that are free. If they charge you, it is either fraud or a waste of money. You do not need to pay to do these jobs. I have done several including Cato's, Sonic, IHop, and more. These can be a lot of fun, but the pay is not great. You will normally get paid back for your meals plus maybe $10. They can be fun though and a nice addition to your other income. I live in a smaller area. It might be better doing this in a large metro area if you live there. Here are a few places I have worked and been paid for the jobs.

Shoppers Inc.
Shoppers Critique
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