Earn More (At Home) with These 3 Career Paths for Parents

We are excited to have our second guest blog post from Laura Pearson of Edutude.net. The pandemic has shifted so much of our lives. Women, especially have had to make major career adjustments. Whether you are a SAHM looking to augment your family’s income or you had to leave your job to monitor virtual schooling, Laura offers great advice below.

Laura writes:

Working from home is the new normal – but for parents, there are unique challenges to keep in mind. If you’re exploring ways to make extra money while staying home with your children, there are countless solutions.

Take The First Steps

If you’re looking for flexible work, look no further than starting your own business. As an entrepreneur, you can schedule your hours, handle your business operations and workloads, and create a routine that best suits your lifestyle needs. There are many types of businesses you can start and operate at home. (See below!)

When you’ve decided to start your own business, you have a few options to choose from including sole proprietorship, partnership, and LLC. We recommend filing for a Maryland LLC because of the legal protection it’ll offer you in case of a lawsuit since it separates your personal and business assets. But first, of course, you have to decide which path to travel. 

3 Best Career Options for Stay-at-Home Parents

Consider these options for stay-at-home parents to take toward lucrative earnings (and plenty of room for growth).

Dive into Ecommerce

Ecommerce is growing at a staggering rate, confirms Statista, despite recent changes in the economy. People want to shop from home – so exploring resources for setting up an ecommerce shop is an excellent option.

Before you head online to open a store, consider that you will need quick internet speeds to manage site building, customer communications, and sales software. Then, it’s time to outline your branding goals, product list, and how you’ll cater to consumer needs. Determining what type of product to sell is a crucial step before you begin. A dropshipping model may be ideal for you if you’d prefer to earn more passive income. Plus, you won’t need to store products at home if you set up a dropship model.

Go Freelance on Your Own

Another option for working from home is freelancing. With this model, you offer services to clients or companies, and you won’t have inventory to organize or products to restock. Freelancing covers countless niches – from writing (fun fact: Sharon used to fund her pedicure habit by writing a column for a sailing magazine!) to virtual assisting to graphic design.

Consider your talents and how they may translate to the gig economy. Writing skills, bilingual abilities, a talent for art, or just a passion and penchant for organization could be enough to secure your next gig.

Whatever angle you approach freelancing from, developing a website to showcase your services is a solid first step. How you attract clients will depend on your niche and existing networking connections, but there are countless ways to source new gigs.

For example, you can send cold pitches to companies you’d like to work with. Or, you can use social media to advertise your services (whether via networking or paid ads).

Offer Pet- and Baby-Sitting

For parents who prefer more active professions, even when working from home, pet-sitting or operating a daycare may be excellent options. If you’re passionate about animals, dog walking and pet-sitting can prove both enjoyable and lucrative. You may visit clients’ homes – a great opportunity to get your own children out and about – or have them bring pets to you.

With childcare, you can establish a formal daycare with a business license and certifications. Or, you can babysit for one or two families. If you’re not pursuing a license, learning the ins and outs of childcare safety may be enough for you to get started.

Finding a way to support your family when you’re a stay-at-home parent can feel daunting. But embarking on one of these career paths can boost your household income while allowing you to handle responsibilities at home. All it takes is the inspiration and right idea to get started.