Have you ever wanted a work from home job?

Have you ever wanted a job where you can work from home, a coffee shop, or the beach? If so, you’re not alone. In just the past two years, searches for remote jobs have grown considerably.

Below is a graph that represents the growth in searches for work from home jobs on job website Indeed.com. As you can see, interest is going up fast.

This is great news, for both the job seeker and the company. Remote working allows the job seeker to do their job from any environment that works for them. It can be helpful for parents with small children, people who want to live in a specific area (where certain jobs may not exist), and for those whose spouse must relocate frequently for work.

Hiring remote workers allows the employer to have a broader base of applicants. And, if done right, the employer can save money on things such as office space.

I hope that in time, more and more remote jobs will be created. Very often, deciding whether or not to move to a new job’s new location is the biggest struggle the job seeker faces. Just think of how many more jobs you might be interested in if you didn’t have to move.

With that said, the question becomes — How do I find a remote job?

The honest answer is, there isn’t a perfect solution to this issue — yet. There are still many job postings out there listed as “remote” that aren’t as legitimate as you’d assume they are. Whatever you do, be sure to do your homework when it comes to remote jobs. You want to know as much as possible about the company in advance.

To find remote opportunities, search on sites like Indeed.com for jobs located in “remote” or “work from home.” This is what I mean:

Another option is to do research on companies that have entire departments that are remote. Some companies, including Bank of America, have entire departments that have employees working from home. This is a great situation, because you won’t be the odd man out when the entire department works remotely.

The last option (which is rarely thought of) is to pitch your current employer on the idea of you working remotely. Now, you do need to be careful with this option. You don’t want to give the impression that if the company doesn’t go along with your request, you’ll leave. But, I have seen multiple highly respected employees gain permission to work remotely at their current job. It allows the employee to relocate to another area, and to work from home. In the cases where it works, the employer is able to retain a great employee. And, the employee is able to have the personal flexibility they’re seeking.

If working from home is on your goal list, don’t stop looking. These jobs will continue to grow in the future. But, as I mentioned before, do your homework! It can be harder to tell a legitimate company from others in a remote environment.

I hope these tips have helped you. Visit CopelandCoaching.com to find more tips to improve your job search. If I can be of assistance to you, don’t hesitate to reach out to me here.

Happy hunting!

Angela Copeland
@CopelandCoach