I have been receiving child
support payments and back-child support payments for over twenty years. I cannot begin to tell you how the child
support checks have helped me provide for my daughter. I used a portion of my child support funds to
make more money in an effort to provide a better life for my child. If you really give it some thought I am sure
you too can come up with a home-based business idea that will help you provide
for your family. I created a home-based business
because I could not afford to take on a second job day care was just too
costly.
These are difficult economic times for all parents but particularly for
parents who have only one income. I am a
firm believer that single parents must have several streams of income and
operating a home-based business is one way to increase your income stream.
<>
<>Consider operating one of the 10 home-based businesses. None involve a lot of start-up money and
although they won’t make you a millionaire, they will allow you to provide for
the additional needs of your family.
- Homework Tutor
<>Do you like to
listen to your children read? Are you
patient and caring? Do you visit the
teacher’s store in your area buying little books that can help your own children read, write
or do basic math? Would you like to help
another child in your
neighborhood? If you think you might be
interested in helping children with their
homework, become a homework tutor. There
are busy parents who do not have the time
to help their own children and would appreciate someone making sure their children
understand and complete their homework.
Remember parents are not only paying
for your willingness to review their child’s home work, they are paying for
your time and expertise. Make sure you
provide parents with a weekly progress report and ask them to let their child’s teacher know they are working
with a homework tutor, so your efforts will not be in vain.
- Letter Writing Service
<>Several hundred
years ago only clergymen and professionals were literate. Today even literate
individuals need help writing letters, particularly written complaint letters and letters
seeking a resolution or response to a concern.
If you enjoy the research involved in
helping to resolve everyday problems this may be the home-based business for
you. There
is little doubt that you will encounter a wide variety of needs as a
professional letter writer and your goal
is not to solve a problem but to write in such a way that you bring the problem to light. Think carefully about who might need your
services and why and remember there
is power in the pen or in the keyboard.
- Mystery Shopper
<>Can you shop till you drop? Would you like to get paid to shop? This
may be the home-based business that fits your schedule and fore fills your need
to make extra money. Mystery shoppers,
also known as secret shoppers have been around for many years. Their purpose is to complete service checks,
performance evaluations and frontline evaluations along with other checks and
balances requested by the company employing the mystery shopper. Mystery shoppers enable trained researchers
to take a “birds-eye-view" of a shopper’s experience. It also allows management the opportunity to
quickly and efficiently evaluate their business practices, deliverables, and
employees from the perspective of a non-bias consumer. If you would like to learn more about
becoming a mystery shopper visit: www.nationalshoppingservice.com
- Personal Cook
Do you have a food specialty? Is
there a dish you prepare that is always a family favorite? Have you ever tried to sell your special
cheesecake or gumbo? Today everyone
seems to be consumed with thoughts of food, and why not since most of us have
little time to cook or even think about cooking. The old adage “I owe, I owe, so off to work I
go" is more true today than ever before.
Take a look around your community and visit bakeries and cafes, is
something missing? Is there a café that would benefit from your double fudge
pecan cluster ice cream or those lovely black currant scones? You may want to start small and deliver a few
goodies to a local eatery in your area.
You may want to sell your recipe to a local bakery or become a recipe
developer for a number of restaurants in your area. Are you into recipe contest? Commercial food companies are always looking
for a new original recipe and they are willing to pay. What have you got to lose?
- Teach Your Talent
Few people know that according to the No Child Left Behind legislation
all school districts should be offering parent involvement opportunities to
participating Title I parents. These
opportunities may be in the form of parent enrichment seminars/workshops. You can teach your talent and get paid for
it. All Title I eligible schools have
parent involvement funds that can only be used to provide parents information
that will assist them in helping their child achieve in school. Children cannot achieve when parents are
homeless, jobless, illiterate and lack the skills to help their child do well
in school. There are many people who
have the skill and ability to teach resume writing, how to budget, or how to
clean up your credit. If you think you
could present this type of material in a professional manner, create a proposal
and submit it to schools in your district.
The funds available to provide these services to parents must be used or
school districts will be penalized. This
is a great way to make a real difference in your community.
- Virtual Receptionist (Home-based answering
service)
The idea of a virtual office was created when a neighbor decided to
offer phone support to a former employer after leaving to become a stay-at-home
mom. This is not the type of job that
will work well with all employers but for someone, it may be a good thing. If you are a great organizer, have a pleasant
telephone voice and enjoy answering the telephone this may be the job for
you. A virtual receptionist answers the
telephone messages for busy sales representatives, attorneys and other
professionals who may themselves work out of their homes. You gather information, organize and
prioritize it and address the issues with your employer either by email, fax,
phone or a video conference all while being at home. The woman I interviewed worked as a virtual
receptionist for a pharmaceutical salesman she had worked with in the
past. She has just recently taken on
another sales rep in the same field. She
works five days a week and job shares with another virtual receptionist two
blocks from her home when she wants to take a vacation. The initial set up was under $1000.00 and she
now includes, completing sales reports and faxing information as needed. Her boss, a six-figure man appreciates the
extra assistance and has reduced his “homework" by at least seventy-five
percent.
<>
- Cake Decorating
There are many freelance, starving artists out there who never thought
about trying their hand at cake decorating. Now is the time to give this craft
serious consideration. Yes we are low
carb crazy and everyone appears to be watching their weight, at least in
theory, but when we want to pull out all the stops and party hardy, we want
more than a tasty Little Debbie, we want cake, the real, butter rich, down
right divine masterpieces like those of Jill Adams of New York’s “Cake Studio"
or anything designed by the great Sylvia Weinstock. Start slow and easy and create little cup
cake masterpieces. Cake decorating
classes for beginners are affordable starting at $40 and often include
supplies. If you already have a creative
hand and eye, go for it. Today, everyone
is developing a discriminating palate and tomorrow even more folks will have a
deep appreciation for finely decorated cakes, so do what you do, and do it
well.
- Hair Braiding
<>
African hair braiding is an ancient art handed down from generation to
generation in Africa. There are many African and African American
women who are gifted at braiding hair and should consider providing this unique
service to the public. The origins of the art form can be traced to Egypt as far back as
3500 BC and each region of Africa has its own
traditional styles.
You will need to check with public health officials in your area to see
if there are special licenses needed.
This is truly a vocation based on skill and in some places around the United States having your hair
professionally braided can cost upwards of $300 or $400, and sometimes even
more. Hair braiding is an immensely time
consuming activity and some styles can take a whole day or more to create. In
the past twenty years, braiding salons have sprung up in many urban areas
throughout the United States, however if there is no such salon in your area
and there is a need, you may want to consider passing out flyers and introducing
your community to the fine art of African Hair Braiding.
- Turning Junk to Jewels
One man’s junk is another man’s treasure has never been more true than
today. The onset of cable programs like
Clean Sweep and Clean House prompted me to think about all that stuff that is
being placed on trucks and given to good will agencies. What would happen if you decided to pick up
junk and go through it to salvage items that could be reworked, repaired and
sold at a resell shop, garage sell or Ebay?
Do you have a good eye for decorating and redesigning junk? Turn a black linen shirt into linen napkins,
turn cotton baby pajamas into a lovely baby quilt or a quilted stuffed
bear. I can’t believe that all the stuff
given away to charitable agencies could not be repurposed and sold, creating a
great part-time, or full time job for some creative soul.
- Girl/Guy Friday
Everyone needs a helping hand at some point in their life and being a
girl or guy Friday is noble and enjoyable.
Do you enjoy doing for others and getting paid for it? If the answer is yes then consider being a
personal concierge. You can offer your
services to a law firm, or any professional group practice, i.e. Doctors,
Dentist, Accounts, Computer Programmers etc. You will need reliable
transportation, however the start up cost is relatively low. No inventory is required, and there are no
major equipment expenditures. This is
primarily a cash business with very little account receivables. Your Girl/Guy Friday service can operate from
a small home office or in your basement and gives you the opportunity to direct
your life and be as successful as you want. Will your focus be picking up
laundry, dropping off reports, visiting caterers and purchasing special wines
for an important dinner? You decide with your client how you will assist them. Set up a quarterly or yearly contract and keep
your services pure and professional. A
personal concierge will charge between $30 and $50 per hour and work Monday
through Friday, from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. You may offer additional services but charge
accordingly and make sure you are a member of your local Chamber of Commerce
and Convention and Visitor’s Bureau.
There are so many service centered opportunities available, and all you
have to do is decide what you really enjoy doing. Do you like cleaning? Provide a car detailing
service on wheels, everyone needs the inside of their car detailed at some
point. It’s no secret that today we all
could benefit from having more than one stream of income, that’s why it’s
important to learn a skill. If all you
know is the skills needed to perform your 9
to 5 job you are headed for a real wake up call.
Take a class at a craft store and learn cake decorating or enroll in a
class at the home improvement store and learn to paint, lay tile or change
locks on a door. Your future and the
future of your family lies in your hands and when things don’t turn out as they
should don’t play the blame game, take control and learn to change your own
life path. You are strong, you are
bright, you can learn, like Nike…just do it.
DETRA D. DAVIS is a writer with more than 20 years experience in
business-to-business, business-to-consumer copywriting. She creates instructional, operational and
how to manuals for business and industry, currently working with J. Davis &
Associates, http://www.jdavisassociates.com
Visit her website at http://www.supportingourchildren.com
Email: detra_davis@supportingourchildren.com
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