Since, I don't have any blogs now, I will just post it here on FB, the tips about working from home. So, let me start by Introducing my background. I have 10 years experience in the BPO Industry. I used to work for Convergys as a Senior Technical Customer Care Representative 2 for 7 years, it started in December of 2005, and 3 years in JPMorgan Chase Bank as a Fraud Investigator in May of 2013. When I quit working in Convergys back in January of 2013; I tried blogging and working from home. But, no one encouraged me to find job or explained to me what I was doing wrong, or what I should do next. Marami lang nagsasabi na madaling kumita from home. I tried finding a stable job for almost 5 months, but, I got no luck.
So, I applied in JPMorgan Chase Bank, and I got hired as a Fraud Investigator. A couple months ago, I filed my Resignation Letter. Why? I got so tired of my commute. Imagine, from Malabon to Taguig, BGC, I am spending around 5-6 hours of travel time (back and forth) daily. SERIOUSLY. And, even more, kapag malakas ang ulan, sobrang baha, or nasira ang LRT or MRT. Dumating ako sa point na, I got so depressed, yung tipong darating ako ng work, pero drained na ako. I was just giving a mediocre kind of work attitude, madalas nega vibes pa. Hindi na healthy, so I decided to quit. Wala akong pera, basta nag resign nalang ako. I think, MALI itong ginawa ko na ito, wag niyong gagayahin. Wag kayong magre resign ng walang pang buffer, dahil ang mga bills niyo, dire diretso pa rin naman, even if you stop working! Hehehehe! So, punta muna tayo sa PROS and CONS:
PROS AND CONS OF WORKING FROM HOME
PROS ARE THE FOLLOWING:
1. Commute - No More HASSLE of TRAFFIC, No More Sira or Mabagal na MRT or LRT, No More BAHA, Ulan, Bagyo or DELUBYO sa daan naiisipin. Nasa bahay ka lang eh! Hehehe! :)
2. Pay - It's all up to you kung gaano ka kasipag, gaano kalaki yung job offer sayo, ilang hours a week or fixed income, nasa kamay mo lahat, and by God's grace, of course! Now, I am working 70-75 hours a week for 2 employers. May iba nga kaya nila ng 85 hours a week! Ang masasabi ko lang, yung kinikita ko ng isang buwan sa mga dati kong typical BPO or Office work, kinikita ko lang ng isang linggo dito. Kayang kaya ang 6 DIGITS a month, basta masipag ka! Sounds like Networking/MLM? Ahahahaha! :)
3. Time - Imagine the time that you can save. In my case, naka save ako ng 6 hours sa biyahe at 1 hour from Lunch break sa work. Heto pa, nag resign ako para lagi kong mayakap ang mga fur kids ko na sila Mommy Omprah, Baby Baldog, Roshanda, Lavinia at Sassy! Para sa akin, priceless yun eh! Hirap ako na di sila makita or makasama ng matagal! Ngayon, katabi ko pa matulog at gumising, hehehe! More time for the Lord, tagal ko ng di nakaka attend ng church! Seriously. And, more time for the Family, lalo na kapag FLEXIBLE hours ang nakuha mong work. Minsan may makukuha ka ng client na 30-40hours a week, tapos there's no specific time na naka login ka. Meaning na, kapag di mo feel mag work ngayon, wag ka mag work, or magagawa mo outside activities mo, provided na babawiin mo yung working hours mo sa ibang araw. More time for the Lord, Family, Yourself, Pets, Wife, Husband, GF's/BF's, and etc! More time to FB, play COC, and etc. Like right now, I'm waiting for task, nakakapag sulat ako. Minsan, ilang oras akong walang ginagawa na bayad, provided na hindi maa apektuhan ang work mo. Wag ka naman mag FB sa PC mo kung saan ka nagwo work, ma screenshot ka nyan, lagot ka sa client! Hehehe! :)
4. No Uniform - Totoo ito, kahit nakahubo ka pa, naka pajama, or what, walang makikialam sa'yo kung nasa room ka lang. You can wear the same clothes, walang mamimintas sa iyo kahit butas butas pa yan! Hehehe! Savings in wardrobe pa! NO MORE PA CONTEST NG DRESS DOWN! Ahahahaha! Kasi kadalasan sa mga BPO or CALL CENTER, privilege ang makapag Dress Down, ginagamit ito as a PRIZE sa mga contest, aminin! Hehehehe! Ngayon, kapag malakas ang ulan or baha, oks lang, kasi nasa bahay ka naman eh! :)
5. Flexible Working Hours - Again, depende ito sa kukunin mong client. Ako kasi pinag aralan ko yung schedule na makakakuha ako ng clients na di makaka affect sa existing client ko. Gaya nga ng nasabi ko sa itaas, it's up to you when you want to work, basta magawa mo yung tasks sa'yo. Meron rin naman na clients na may fixed schedule. So, titignan mo yung Time Zone nila. Kaya in my case, kumuha ako ng FIXED Schedule from 8am-4:30pm PST from a U.S. Client (40-45 hours a week), and isang Flexible schedule sa Australian Client (30 hours a week). Pero sa totoo lang, nakaka adik maghanap ng clients, masarap mag work sa bahay eh, maganda ang kita. Kung pwede nga lang, kumuha pa ako ng isa pang client, gagawin ko talaga, kaso wala ng oras, hehehe! :)
6. Savings - Let me correct that... BIG SAVINGS! Why? I am saving money from my Transportation and Food, around 5-6K. Savings from wardrobe, since you can use your Pajama or any comfortable clothes while working. Savings from buying food from Canteen or Fastfood P100-150 savings a day, or even more, lalo na kung panay pa Starbucks mo! Hehehehe! :)
7. FOOD - Kung ano yung ulam sa bahay or fridge, yun ang kainin mo, matipid di ba? Luto ka ng dalawang LuckyMe Pancit Canton, lagyan mo ng dalawang Fried Egg sa ibabaw, tapos Orange or Mango Juice, solved na! Ahahahaha! :)
CONS ARE THE FOLLOWING:
1. EXERCISE - Kailangan mo ng exercise! Dahil literal na mag papagulong gulong ka sa kama kapag walang ginagawa, basta naka ON ang PC mo. Hindi rin madali, lalo na kung nagpapa payat ka. You need to get some walking or jogging after your shift, if you have a fixed schedule. Or, allocate some time for Gym or other activities.
2. PAY FOR EVERYTHING -Ikaw ang magbabayad ng Fiber Optics or Internet Connection mo, Electiricity Bill. Ikaw rin magbabayad ng SSS, Pagibig, Philhealth, pati pag file ng Taxes ikaw rin. Oks lang, isipin mo nalang na malaki pa rin ang nase save mo, at kung anuman ang binabayaran mo ngayon, ay parte na rin ng expenses mo, even before you get into working from home! :)
3. NO HUMAN INTERACTION - Unless, meron kang asawa, bf or gf, kaibigan, family or friend na kausap, kahit sa FB or Skype. You are working without someone supervising you. Some people don't like this. There are people who may feel that they are lacking of competitive spirit or becoming anti-social as the time goes by. Wala nabasa ko lang sa post ng ibang nagwo work from home. Hehehehe! :)
4. KATAMARAN - Sometimes, if you have no one encouraging you to do something, or when there's no pressure to start working, what to wear and etc, baka tamarin kana mag work. Which is your choice, and what you work for is what you will get at the end of the day! Hehehe! :)
5. NO HMO or HEALTH INSURANCE - Ito yung isa sa mga nakakahinayang, kasi malaking bagay ang may HMO like INTELLICARE or MAXICARE. Kaya ang ginawa ko, nag inquire ako sa mga HMO Providers. Meron pala sa MaxiCare, around 25k a year na yung Family plan nila. Kayang kaya na ito kapag malaki na ang income mo. Baka next month, maasikaso ko na. Pati rin yung mga Philhealth, Pagibig at SSS ko... :)
6. CONTRACTS - Usually, the jobs at Upwork.com are contractual, it ends at around 5-6 months. So, hahanap kana naman ng client. Unless, makakuha ka ng client na magalingan sa'yo at kunin ka nila, even outside Upwork! :)
7. NO 13TH OR 14TH MONTH PAY - Yun ang masaklap, walang Christmas bonus. Pero depende pa rin talaga sa client. Kagaya nyan, last week i received 100$ from my client. May mga mababait at galante na clients, na nagbibigay ng bonus kahit hindi inutos ng batas. Wag kalimutan na mga foreign clients ito, di sila saklaw ng batas ng Pilipinas para ma obliga na magbigay ng 13th or 14th month pay. Honestly, kapag kumikita kana ng 3-4x ng dati mong sahod plus yung nase save mo na pera at oras. You won't really mind it anymore! :)
HERE ARE THE TIPS:
Sa ngayon, tutok muna tayo sa Upwork, ito yung dating Odesk. Marami pang ibang site like OnlinejobsPH, Freelancer, and etc. Ito palang kasi yung nasubukan ko, and it is the largest site for homebased jobs.
You MUST have the following:
1. CREATE AN ACCOUNT at Upwork.com -Madali lang ito, you just have to COMPLETE your PROFILE, and etc.
2. RESUME - You have to prepare a neat, precise and formal resume (soft copy) that you will send to a client for JOB APPLICATION, usually, in the form of attachment.
3. COVER LETTER - Make a generic Cover Letter that you can COPY and PASTE when you are applying for a Job, or pwede mong i attach kasama ng Resume mo. Make sure to edit it or tailor fit it sa ina applyan mong work. Make it presentable enough to SELL YOURSELF!
4. SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS: Ito yung mga basic na tinatanong ha, about sa setup ng Home Office mo.
a. Basic DSL Requirement is 2.5-6MBPS or Fiber Optics Connection at 50-100MBPS. Clients prefer hardwire connection, which is much stable than wireless. They hate LTE connection, lalo na yung mga merong calls.
b. Computer Desktop MINIMUM Requirements: CPU: 2.4ghz Dual Core Processor, 4GB RAM, and a monitor. With a NOISE-CANCELLING HEADSET (only for those who will be taking in calls).
c. UPS / Inverter Power Generator - Not really part of the requirements, but, recommended.
d. Quiet or almost Sound Proof Home Office - This is for those who will be taking in calls. Requirement ito ng client, ayaw nila may mga nagtatahulan na dogs or mga tandang na tumitilaok, hehehe! :)
HERE ARE THE TIPS:
TIP 1: After you create an UPWORK Account, take the SKILLS TEST. Get as many as you can, and get a pretty good score! If you are a BPO or Call Center Agent, you might want to make sure to take the Phone and Email Etiquette, Customer Service Skills, and etc. The more TEST with high scores you have, your Profile will look more appealing to the clients. Also, do not forget to create a SKYPE ACCOUNT, kasi yung mga Interview, either Skype or Google Hangout (you may use your existing gmail account for it).
TIP 2: SELL YOURSELF, but do not sound ARROGANT - Make a presentable, neat and professional COVER LETTER and RESUME. Be very PATIENT too, imagine that there are thousands of Job Applicant waiting for that job as well. It's not easy to find job, It actually took me at least, a month to get hired! Just be patient, and continuously try to improve your profile! :)
TIP 3: BE ONLINE AS OFTEN AS YOU CAN. Clients post their Job Posting from any Time Zone. It could be from Australia: AEST, or U.S. - PST, EST, and etc. You've NOT just gotta catch'em ALL, but, you also have to CATCH'EM FIRST! Hehehe! They tend to prioritize those who send the Application first. Also, think on which Time Zone you would like to work. Do not apply to a U.S. Time Zone clients if you have no plans working at night.
TIP 4: CHOOSE CAREFULLY - Sa UPWORK, meron kaming Connects na tinatawag. Para itong ONLINE TOKEN na LIBRE meron ding PAID. Nauubos ito kada APPLY mo, usually, 2 CONNECTS per JOB APPLICATION. That's why you can't SPAM employers with your RESUME. Mababasura lang yan. Don't just send your RESUME to everywhere, make sure that you are really DECIDED to APPLY for that Job vacancy before doing so. Hangga't maari, wag muna CHOOSY! And, Are you willing to work during their Normal Business hours in their TIME ZONE? Walang pilitan ito, kung ayaw mo, wag mo. WAG RIN MAG APPLY kung wala ka naman ng SKILLS na hinahanap nila, MAPAPAHIYA KA LANG! Hehehehe! :)
TIP 5: BABAAN ANG RATE - Make sure na babaan mo ang rate, take as low as 2.5-3$ an hour. WHY? Ganito kasi yan. Ya'ng mga client na nasa Upwork, they don't care if you have 10 years of BPO Experience, or if you were once a TL or even an Operations Manager. They don't care about your experience OUTSIDE UPWORK! They prefer people with experience with the working environment of WORK FROM HOME (WFH) or Homebased jobs via UPWORK. Ang mahalaga, magkaroon ka ng job, magandang REVIEW for future clients, para pwede kana mag taas ng RATE mo! :)
TIP 6: CHECK YOUR UPWORK INBOX / MESSAGES - You have to do this from time to time, so you can easily respond if you were chosen to be a Candidate for an Interview. Make sure that you reply within 24 hours or less, minsan, may mga papagawa na agad sa'yo na mga TEST nila or exam. Galingan mo lang, para pumasa ka! It will be included in your Profile, unless you don't want to. There's an option for you not to show it. Look at the picture below, that's what it looks like. Photo is not mine, CTTO, pero maganda kasi sa Profile ang maraming SKILLS TEST! :)
TIP 7: BE PATIENT - Sometimes, sa dami ng Applicant, matagal kang ma contact, it may take 1-2 weeks. Or, baka hindi kana ma contact at all, kasi may nakuha na sila. DO NOT DWELL. Apply lang sa ibang work! :)
TIP 8: PREPARE FOR AN INTERVIEW - You think this is EASY? Nagkakamali ka BOY! Kapag di ka pumasa sa mga TEST nila, wala ka ng chance, hehehe! Tapos, maswerte kapag umabot ka sa INTERVIEW, minsan, 2 or 3 times ang INTERVIEW. Isang Basic Interview, then, yung HR Interview, then MANAGER's Interview, then JOB OFFER na kasunod nu'n! I am not discouraging you. But, even if you have the EXPERIENCES OUTSIDE UPWORK, again, it won't matter to them. So, be extremely GOOD! :)
TIP 9: Pray Hard. Mahirap mang unawain, but, the Lord knows everything! We need the LORD, hindi natin kaya kung wala siya... All praise, honor and glory should all be given only to our Lord and Personal Saviour JESUS Christ! :)
TIP 10: Last but not the least. If you think that you can work more than the time that was given to you. Then, hanap pa ng isang job. Malaking bagay yung dalawa or tatlo ang work, dahil MAHAL ANG BIGAS!!! :)
Lastly, nakaugalian ko ng i check kung Payment Verified si employer, how much they already spent since they become an employer in Upwork, and the reviews they give to their previous employees. Duon palang mage gauge mo na kung OK ba yung employer! Cheers! :)
Oh, tapos na itong NOBELA, sana may natutunan kayo. Sana nakatulong kahit papaano. Meron na akong gagawing tasks. Pasensya na kung may mga mispelled or maling grammar, I'm just doing this para makatulong sa mga kaibigan natin na gustong mag try mag homebased or work from home.
Malaki ang utang na loob ko sa mga kaibigan kong sila Gle Na, Mis Andie Stood, Chermalyn Espiritu-Peralta for helping me and encouraging me, lalo na kay La Schtroumpfette na nagsilbing MENTOR ko at nagpasok sa akin sa unang work from home ko, dahil sa kanila, nakapag work na ako sa bahay! Hehehehe! Until next time! WORK MUNA AKO. BRB! :) #UPWORK#Homebased #WorkFromHome #WFH
"It's never too late to start over. If you weren't happy with yesterday, try something different today. Don't stay stuck. Do better."
See original post here JoMi Dasmariñas
September 12, 2016 at 12:13 PM
I really believe that Upwork is, one of the most reliable, or should I say THE MOST, reliable source of freelance jobs.. but the fees are way too high, and the competition has become very stiff... there are other sources now to find freelance or homebased jobs.. Freelancer Philippines