Guest Post: Ramblings of an Online Worker

Today’s guest post is by an old friend and classmate! Shy was my classmate in high school and we haven’t seen each other since. Thank God for Facebook because that’s where I found out that she’s been a freelancer for a while now, so I asked her to share her story. Yay! Thanks, Shy!

– – – – –

Hello, passionate readers of Lei’s blog. I’m very happy that Lei invited me here; it’s nice to write for a good friend and classmate in high school. Yes, Lei and I were high school classmates and we shared some good memories together. We actually haven’t seen each other yet since we graduated (that’s like oh so many years ago, you guess..) but I’m glad we’re able to reconnect through this amazing world where we both thrive in – the Internet. Like Lei, I am a freelancer who struggles to make things happen online. Lei requested me to share my story of how I ended up as an online worker and I feel lucky to be sharing this with all of you.

I started as a content writer for a friend who had writing projects from an employer abroad. Since she handled different kinds of online jobs, there were times when she cannot do her writing assignments so she gave me the opportunity to carry out some of her tasks. I have always been passionate about writing and although I didn’t have much writing experience, I took the job because I wanted to test my capacity. I realized how much I loved writing and that I want to pursue a career in it. So later on, I applied and got accepted for a writing job through Craigslist. I have to admit; I was victimized by a few scam employers who hired me for writing jobs but didn’t pay me at all. That’s a risk that any online job seeker takes, particularly in sites like the one I mentioned a while ago. But I was fortunate because I found a nice American employer who owned a small SEO (Search Engine Optimization) company that offers writing services to its clients. I was assigned to writing travel articles and that was the official start of my writing journey in the online world.

Late last year, my online portfolio has allowed me to find greater opportunities which I just can’t bypass. But I had a day job and the few hours left at the end of the day were no longer enough for me to work on my writing tasks and still get enough time to rest. I came to a point where it was already hard for me to handle 2 different jobs at the same time – it was draining me mentally and physically. I knew I had to give up one of them and after many times of reflection and consultation, I decided to quit my regular job of 5 years. Many people, especially my officemates, thought I was crazy to give up a stable job for an online career that had no guarantees of continuity. My office job was a good one – I earned a decent income, enjoyed lots of perks and benefits, and I was able to provide well for the needs of my family. But there was one thing I yearned for which my day job often restricted, and that was more time with my children. I never got the chance to nurse my 2 kids longer since I had to go back to work a few weeks after delivery. When my eldest started going to school, the more I felt the need to be with them during their growing up years. It was not just my passion for writing that brought me to freelance life, but it was more of a call to motherhood. True enough, I’m now able to spend more time with my little ones. But don’t get me wrong; I’m just as busy with my freelance job as I was with my day job. The big difference is the flexibility of my time now. With my online job, I get to choose when I work so I can prioritize the time for my family. I usually start working at 4 am; I like to start early so that I can end my work around noon time and dedicate the rest of my day for my kids. This is my daily routine now and I’m loving it.

I started my online career as a writer but soon I found myself being involved in the amazing world of SEO. My current employer owns various websites and aside from writing content, I also work as an internet marketer – doing linkbuilding and optimizing the pages of his websites to get to the top of the search engine results. SEO is more challenging for me but I take it as an opportunity to learn new things online.

If you’re thinking of joining us as freelancers, I tell you, the online world has so much room for more! Once you start working, you’ll be amazed at how much opportunity the Internet can offer in terms of income generation and career development. Before you take the plunge, make sure that you think about it over and over again. Shifting careers can be tough especially if you come unprepared. But with the right attitude and self-discipline, anyone can be successful online. You can be. We all can be.

Shyxter Tagapulot is a writer and internet marketer. In between her 2 jobs, she writes on her lifestyle blog and shares her experiences and thoughts on just about anything under the sun.