Online jobs are going mainstream. They’re pandemic-proof.
Small businesses are struggling now more than ever. With that happening, jobs are in limbo. Unemployment is through the roof (10 million out of a job – The Great Depression numbers). While this is horrible, it gives everyone the opportunity to make that digital transition. Like it or not, everyone will be forced to adapt to working online.
I don't think people realize that there is no normal to go back to anymore.
— Balaji (@balajis) April 3, 2020
With COVID-19, physical stores are bleeding money, having to shut down while the rent is due.
You pay zero or minimal rent for an online space. The only rent you pay is with your time, creativity and your online shop (hosting). The fee is minimal. What you do with your time however may be huge.
That doesn’t mean you’re guaranteed to make money. It’s hard work. But there has never been a better time to start your own gig on the internet. You can get started anywhere in a matter of minutes, with minimal upfront costs.
Today I wanted to share something that will help you out. Although you can’t do a lot out there at the moment… a lot of people sitting in their homes can now spend time doing something useful while making money on the side. Anyone can do it.
Sure, people say you need lots of traffic, tons of content, or many other technical things that you may not understand. Don’t worry though, I have the solution for the non-techie – you. Here’s how you work online with no experience (Fast).
Follow that and let me know if you run into any issues. We are all here to help each other out.
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- Start a blog.
- Make yourself useful by being scarce.
- Dress your blog with Athemes. Like how you dress up to meet a client.
- Build your email list with Brevo.
- Start a paid newsletter on Substack.
- Do email interviews with the well-known.
- Publish an ebook on Amazon as an Author or Publisher for authority.
- Publish books on unconventional topics pseudonymously on Amazon KDP.
- Write in categories that are meaningful to you. Or be topical.
- Try to contribute articles to popular sites… You may get rejected many times.
- Be a high-paying affiliate.
- Find online jobs and earn experience as a freelancer.
- Engage with famous people on Twitter.
- Write a thread. Coin a term or two. Break news. Get it trending on Twitter.
- Record a podcast talking about current trends. Invite a guest for interview.
- Do a YouTube show.
- Be evergreen… How-to topics that help and solve problems.
- Be a pundit on Reddit.
- Design any graphics using Canva.
- You can sell your artwork on DeviantArt.
- Become a voice over artist. Sell your beautiful or unique voice.
- Write summaries of popular books.
- Talk about your favorite book on a podcast or YouTube.
- Share your unique skillset on Patreon.
- Answer surveys and polls and earn bitcoins.
- Digest the good ideas of other people, all day, every day. Explain it like i’m Five (ELI5).
- Be an Instructor on Udemy.
- Create a digital course on Teachable.
- Writing a Listicle on Buzzfeed.
- The more constraint, the more creativity.
- Assume that every day is the beginning, because you always have new readers.
- Provide immense FREE value. Be patient & Consistent.
- Write about only one thing, in ever-deepening detail, so you become definitive.
- Write about obscure stuff that appeals to an obsessed minority.
- Incremental change creates exponential outcomes.
- Repetition allows you to reach out to more people.
- The more you reach, the more money you make.
- Don’t get distracted by ‘shiny objects‘.
But when you are constantly attracted to shiny objects, you never have the chance to become great at something. You’re always climbing the learning curve for each new thing you chase. (Image: Jan Sullivan)
Start from your home, make a global impact.
If you want to start online, now is a great time. Work your way slowly down the list. Don’t get greedy and try to cram everything in one day.
The question used to be “Is working online right for you?”. COVID-19 answered that question on our behalf. Now, the question isn’t so much whether online jobs is right for you, but what flavor is right.
Online jobs aren’t all created equal. They aren’t all the same, so it’s important to assess different opportunities to determine which might be the perfect fit for you.
Consider how much free time you’re willing to dedicate towards building your online presence. If stability is what you’re seeking, you will find no such thing here: There are a lot of different ways to work online. Stability isn’t one of them. But you will find immense opportunities for growth and fulfillment. This will give you flexibility and freedom (beyond location)
Think about when you want to be working: Work in your most productive hours depending on your time zone. The 9 to 5 rat race of life is no longer a thing. You are not caged like a hamster. Nothing holds you hostage indefinitely. That’s how you make an impact.
Your Online Job is Simple…
When choosing what kind of online work to focus on, you need to understand what sets you apart from the rest and figure out exactly how to frame those skills to reach out to 1,000 True Fans.
Make content that points out the problem.
Make product that provides the solution. pic.twitter.com/celIN6HdiW— Jack Butcher (@jackbutcher) April 2, 2020
A) You’ve flair in writing: Focus on your blog, write your best content consistently on WordPress. Build an email list of your readers. To get the job done, practice of Twitter. In any case, you need to publish an article one day before you think you’re ready to click publish. Maybe 2 days. You’ve gotta publish it before you’re satisfied, after you’ve done the work, where you know some people are going to hate it and you’ll learn something. Then you do it again, and again, and again.
B) You’ve a good voice & efficient communicator: Questions are your pickaxes. Dig for gold. You’ll primarily focus on hosting podcasts, so it is essential to be able to get your point across clearly and quickly with your interviewee. Start small and use Transistor.fm to transmit your audio to major services like iTunes, Spotify, Google Podcasts and Overcast.
C) You’re creative with design: Use Canva to design Pinterest styled images for each blog post you published. Instagram is for brand building and does not give as much Google link-juice as Pinterest. If you have previous experience in Photoshop, you’ve got a leg up on the competition.
D) You can articulate in front of a camera: In addition to being an efficient communicator, if you are comfortable in front of a camera, YouTube is a great way to get an audience very quickly.
As an author of 18 NYT bestsellers, I was very curious for his take on “perfectionism.” What’s the balance between volume of output and craft? When are you just sharing for the sake of sharing vs. providing real value?
His answer was poetic, of course: “To be clear, I’ve never said “just ship it”, because “just ship it” implies “what the hell.” I’m not interested in that, saying, “It’s crap, I’m putting it out there.”
You need to ship everything one day before you think you’re ready to ship it. Maybe 2 days. Maybe 2 weeks. You’ve got figure out where your thermostat is. But you will never, ever be ready. You might be prepared, but you will never be ready. Because ready means you’re sure, and If you’re sure, it’s too late.
You’ve gotta ship it before you’re ready, after you’ve done the work, where you know some people are going to hate it and you’ll learn something. Then you do it again, and again, and again.
Saturday Night Live goes on at 11.30, not because it’s ready, but because it’s 11.30.
I’ve done 30 years of projects and written all of these books, and every one of them I could’ve made better. And once every two weeks there’s a glaring typo in my blog. I know what I could do to get rid of those typos, and it wouldn’t be worth it. Because then I’d only blog once a month. – Seth Godin
How to Start a Legitimate Online Job at Home
In the face of a global pandemic and a financial meltdown, everyone is confronted with a new reality. Your home would soon be your office. What do you do when physical businesses go bankrupt? They need to find a way to adapt and transition to the digital realm. That’s where you come in.
Your online persona is recession-proof. When you socialize in public, you exchange stories and ideas with each other through gossips, on the internet, you will have to do the same on various platforms.
You use blogs as a medium to communicate YOU! Be vulnerable and share uncomfortable truths.
Market your ideas, sell your journey. This will be the most painful and challenging thing you do as the boss of you, but it’s often not so much about the what as it is the how. Your empathy and speed are key here.
The second is gaining ground. These are the ways you will reorient your focus, your tactics, and your team, so you come out ahead after a crisis.
The third is managing psychology. It is crucial you keep yourself, your team, and those around you healthy, sane, and productive.
You can use this extended period of forced quarantine to reshape your future for the better.
With such a sudden shift from offline to online, It’s important to keep yourself engaged in the community.
From online conferences to intimate virtual networking experiences, here’s how you ramp up virtual community building efforts quickly.
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- Don’t be afraid to swing for the fences.
- You’re growing a tree, not building a house.
- Focus on first principles.
There has never been a better time to go to work on yourself and being paid by your fans. You can get started on almost any platform for Free in minutes, with zero upfront costs. Of course it’s always better to own your blog like it is with your own farm land. Don’t build your kingdom on someone else’s land.
There are some general principles to keep in mind.
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- Mailing list size matters. Your paying subscriber base will always be a portion of your overall mailing list. You should see that about 10% of people on your mailing list will be willing to pay to learn more from you, provided you’re consistently publishing high-quality content that readers like. Build your list accordingly.
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- How must you make depends on your audience. Higher paying customers are harder to please.
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- It’s a numbers game – but the numbers don’t have to be huge.
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- You should make your best work free. Free posts are your best marketing. They demonstrate your voice, worldview, and quality of thought to the world. People who fall in love with your free work will be happy to pay to hear more from you. The content you then publish for paying subscribers can be more conversational, intimate, and in the weeds.
Below are three sample models for making money online. In each case, high-quality free content is fundamental to the success of the whole enterprise. But please keep in mind that the below scenarios are hypotheticals. Your mileage may vary.
Choose your dominant mode of articulation:
- Words,
- Visual,
- Audio,
- Video.
All-in: Make Working Online your living
Suggested publishing volume:
- 3 – 5 articles per week
- 2 – 4 ebooks per month
- 2 – 3 emails per week
- Convert into podcast/video (optional)
- Use Canva for all your design needs.
Recommended roll-out:
- Build your blog with WordPress using Hostgator, Hostinger or Bluehost.
- Publish articles consistently for a period (6–12 months) during which all content is of high-quality.
- Learn on Twitter to explain a complex topic in a simple way. Tweet and engage.
- Use Google to find out what questions people are asking. Answer those questions.
- Curate your best, publish an ebook on Amazon KDP.
- Collect your readers email list using Brevo.
- Start monetizing, join affiliate programs, sponsored posts, Adsense, etc.
- Expand paid communities with Patreon, (optional)
- Paid newsletters with Substack (optional)
- Build a digital course with Udemy/Teachable
How much can you make (per month) ?
- $500 – $1000 (After 12 months)
- $1000 – $2500 (After 24 months)
- $2500 – $10,000 (After 36 months)
Side gig: Supplement your existing income
Suggested publishing volume:
- 1 – 3 articles per week
- 1 – 2 ebooks per month
- 1 – 3 emails per week
- Convert into podcast/video (optional)
- Use Canva for all your design needs.
Recommended roll-out:
- Build your blog with WordPress using Hostgator, Hostinger or Bluehost.
- Publish articles consistently for a period (6–12 months) during which all content is of high-quality.
- Learn on Twitter to explain a complex topic in a simple way. Tweet and engage.
- Use Google to find out what questions people are asking. Answer those questions.
- Curate your best, publish an ebook on Amazon KDP.
- Collect your readers email list using Brevo.
- Start monetizing, join affiliate programs, sponsored posts, Adsense, etc.
- Keep publishing great free content and plan to grow your list over time. One day you might make it into the “all-in” category.
How much can you make (per month) ?
- $500 – $1000 (After 24 months)
- $1000 – $2500 (After 36 months)
Future-proof your Online Career: Build a mailing list
Suggested publishing volume:
- 1 – 2 articles per week
- 1 – 2 emails per week
Recommended roll-out:
- Build your blog with WordPress using Hostgator, Hostinger or Bluehost.
- Publish articles consistently for a period (6–12 months) during which all content is of high-quality.
- Learn on Twitter to explain a complex topic in a simple way. Tweet and engage.
- Collect your readers email list using Brevo.
- Don’t overthink it – just start writing!
- You can monetize one day once you start gaining traction.
READ NEXT: 14 Creative Ways to Make Money While Staying Home