Working from home has its challenges like any other job, but I think at times some of the challenges are just a bit different! I’m not talking about my Internet going down, or my phone like acting up on occasion to fulfill my requirements. Work at Home doesn’t mean easy it just means different!

I contract with Liveops, and have been there since July 2007. I have to admit I never in a million years thought I would grow up, and be an infomercial operator! At times it can be a very nice experience, but at others times I have to admit kicking the file cabinet in frustration. Its not the company that frustrates me its generally the people on the phone! You do need a bit of thick skin at times, and not take offense to people that go out of their way to be downright rude! Learning to keep things in prospective at times is just MUST in this job! If you get offended easily, or get defensive quickly this job just isn’t for you!

The first thing people tell me when I tell them about my job is that they can’t sell for nothing! YES it is a job that sells, but I wasn’t the best salesperson in the world either! I’m not going to tell you I’m stellar at this point, but I sure have come a long way! I was actually shocked when I hit the top 10 percent of the company in certain lines of products. I never saw myself as a salesperson, and I think most of it was just plain being nice to people! There are some I’m sure that are way more pushy than I am, and I have to be honest I don’t think that will ever be part of my selling personality! If you think you must have that I will tell you right now YOUR WRONG! I will keep my top 10% seat for a while, and then I will dip and go back up. In other products lines I may never get above average! It’s a roller coaster for me, and I’m fine with that! I see to many people getting all stressed out over what I call…LIFE! I will never be the salesperson that can sell ice to the Eskimo, and quite frankly I don’t want to be either! I do my best, and there are times I can’t sell anything. I do get disappointed, but I also have to remember tomorrow is another day! If I can’t keep that mindset I will drown!

Everyone starts at the bottom, and you have to work your way up! I get the impression people feel having a work from home job you aren’t required to place as much effort into things. I wish that were true, but its quite the opposite! I read up the products, and I practice the scripts. If they have an interactive training on a product, and there is time in my calendar for the day I will do my best to get there! I also read how other agents handle things, and I have picked up quite a few very nice tips! I’m lucky to have a facilitator I can talk to, and she also helps me over quite a few humps I never thought I could have dealt with! In other words, I do my homework when time is available! I also take those tips I have learned, and push myself past my comfort zone at times. I’m pretty laid back person most of the time, and just adding that extra ‘chipper’ in my voice at times is a challenge! After a while it just came without any effort at all pretty much!

Liveops I can get hours anytime during the day or night. There are periods of time in which I do have to work during family time, but our commits are ½ hour long so it’s not like a huge chuck of time here. I have spoke to quite a few stay at home moms, and really needed some extra cash that speak to me. There are times in which they tell me they are AREN’T sure when they can do this. I have to wonder at times WHY they ask about it then! The job is there 24/7, and you will have to modify the family schedule! We have a couple of mom’s that work during the time their children sleep, and sleep while they are at school! We have homeschooler mom’s that have trained their kids that death will come early if noise happens when the phone rings! We have single parents, retired, disabled people all finding ways of working the schedule! Work at home doesn’t mean anything different than a ‘real job’, and you have to find ways of making that happen! You have to place time and effort into the training all the time. Work at home doesn’t mean easier it means DIFFERENT! If work at home meant easy money with little effort we wouldn’t have the big homeless problem! MOST people would be at home, and others would have YOUR job! I guess I also like sarcasm at times!

I think one of the bigger challeges is people getting out of the employee mindset, and into the independent contractor one! The company doesn’t have to hand you anything! What you are handed is gravy! They aren’t going to tell you what hours to work, and they aren’t going to tell you how you must do it. They will tell you what they feel must be required at times, because if they didn’t they wouldn’t need you! They contracted with you, and told you what their customers need and you agreed to deliver! Times change, requirements change and you don’t have to continue to contract if you feel you can’t do it! You can walk away at anytime! When I started I know my sales volume was in the dumps! I didn’t whine about it I found ways of changing that! If I didn’t adapt my home business wasn’t going to go anywhere. Why would the contractor for my services adapt what their customer requires over my debit? That makes no sense!

If you place yourself in the position to work at home you will get people that have all kinds of ideas about how you have it made! It works for a lot of people, and it’s the best thing for others! Its not some get rich scheme that you only need to place a small bit of effort into! You will have to have self-discipline, and it will be a commitment! You will have one customer screaming their head off over really dumb things, and then the next one loves you to death! If you don’t think you will have to push yourself to hard at times you are better off looking at other avenues! The flexible is awesome at times, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t a set of ugliness you don’t have to live with!

Working at homes doesn’t mean easy….it means different! Read more...

I think we all have reasons as to WHY we would want to, or why we need to 'work at home'. It could be availability for our children, or extra income due to disability, or maybe even knowing you need to do something temporarily because your industry is going to take hit soon!

Goodness knows there are plenty of sites out there that are willing to take your cash, and give you a helping hand! To be honest you really don't need those companies, because there are plenty of people willing to give that to you for free!

There are tons more sites that are ripoffs and con artists! I would say more of those than anything else. If you are one of those types that tend to trust a little to freely than find a friend to give you a second opinion. I'm NOT talking one that doesn't trust anything okay?! There was a time years ago I myself fell for some of these scams, and believe me after that you do you tend to be able to SNIFF them out!

1) If a company you are seeking is promising you HUGE amounts of cash, and hardly any effort from you? RED FLAGS are waving in the wind! The chances of that happening to you are about as good as you winning the lotto!

2) Keep in mind companies are going to highlight the top producers of their companies. Just because they show you a work at home mom, retired or disabled person, teenager or whatever they are trying impress you with doesn't mean they weren't go getters! Doesn't mean they didn't have tons of support, and help in alot of areas! Could be they are downright genius! LOL Could just have been lucky as well! Keep in mind your chances of that type of income isn't coming your way anytime soon! Even if you have all the skills to make it happen. Starting a business or any job takes time, patience and a lot of bottlenecks to deal with! Count on making less, and staying in that 'less' category for a while!

3) Check out refund policies! At times companies want you to buy equipment, or items that are supplied by them. Make sure its something you can afford to eat if they aren't going to refund you. Check out Ebay to see if you can find used ones that others are trying to sell off, or keep that in mind if you decide to do the same!

4) Do your research on this company! Google is a great tool for that! My first work at home job was Liveops, and I did a search for them and read everything I could get my hands on! I had a pretty darn good idea what I was getting into when I decided to go ahead, and do that 'work at home career'! Remember that NOT everyone is going to do well at these companies, and you will find some whiners! They didn't make the cut or what have you and it HAS to be a ripoff! Not so - read between the lines!

5) I don't know how many sites I came across that gave you high pressure sales speech, and gave you limited time to OPT in to their wonderful product! Chances are something smells there, and you need to stay clear!

6) I have found more places that told you that you could place up their items on some webpage, or have a website (that they would more than happy to supply to you) that will help them and YOU make money! I never understood that concept! How are you going to make money when you have 20,000 other websites that pretty much look the same? To me you brought some major competition!

7) Check out if there are extras that you may have to purchase! Do you have to buy ad space, signs, etc? You really love that product enough to invest the extra cash? How are going to get leads? If they are supplied how qualified are they?

8) Be aware of legal issues. Some types of work require licenses or certification and cannot be done at home. Check with your state and local offices. Look for the nearest U.S. Department of Labor in the government listings of your phone book.

This list is just the beginning! Do you have things you think we should add to the list? Read more...

Vip Desk contacted us telling us they looking for what they call, 'Brand Ambassadors' currently!

Here is a quote from the website as to what they are looking for:

VIPdesk Connect attracts the most experienced, best equipped customer service representatives in the call center industry. The "Brand Ambassador" title of our independent contractors reflects our laser-like focus on client brand reputation. We believe that Brand Ambassadors, representing leading products and services from around the globe, are selected to provide an unparalleled customer experience for our clients. VIPdesk doesn’t just take calls; we create a remarkable experience that can only be provided by remarkable people.

While VIPdesk demands the very best from our Brand Ambassadors, we also provide them with the opportunities to represent top, premium brands and offer continued opportunities for growth. By teaming with VIPdesk, you can expect to represent products and services that you would be proud to call your own while working with first-rate professionals that you cannot find anywhere else.

Do you have excellent customer service skills?

Does no commuting time or expense, flexible work schedule allowing you greater control of your work/life balance, reduced cost of dry cleaning and work attire, and many more sound good to you?

VIP Desk is looking for you NOW! Check out the link about VIP Brand Ambassadors, and get started with your work at home career today!

Below is a Interview with the CEO of VIPdesk!

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