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Saying Good-Bye to the 9 to 5 Grind
I quit my part-time office administrative job eight years ago during my junior year in college. With classes scheduled at different times of the day, and a hectic course load, it was too much to handle and I needed time to sleep and study. Then again, I also needed cash. I didn’t have a lot of bills. Still, there was a monthly car payment, cell phone bill, fuel expense, and a credit card payment. In an effort to also escape the daily grind, my mother opened a daycare center in our home, and with a little nepotism, I had my first work at home job. It was perfect. I would wake-up, come downstairs, work a few hours, and get paid. Of course, the job entailed running behind little kid’s all day - but the freedom was amazing. After running on empty for three years - go to school from 8 a.m. to noon; work from 12:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.; and then come home and try to concentrate on an assignment - my schedule needed a little tweaking.
This experience sort of spoiled me. Once I finished school, I signed on with a temp agency full-time and waited for a Journalism or Communications job to become available. By this time, I had worked at home for nearly two years. I enjoyed a flexible schedule, frequent breaks throughout the day, and the best perk - I could vacation or take-off whenever I wanted. After getting a taste of the good life, I couldn’t go back in time. I quit the temp agency, when back to the daycare, and focused on starting a freelance writing business.
With any new venture it takes time, and I second-guessed my decision on many occasions. There were months when the writing assignments would pour in, and I had more work than I could handle. Then with the flick of a switch, all offers would stop.
Saying goodbye to a steady paycheck is scary, which is why many are afraid to take the leap. With all negatively put aside, think of the benefits - Freedom, Flexibility, MORE MONEY!
Anything that can fulfill three of life’s little wishes is worth exploring.
Technorati Tags: work at home, freelance, telecommute


Welcome to the team. What an interesting story. Mine is similar. During my junior year I quit my job because I couldn’t work from 12am-7am anymore. The first two years I was fine but I guess it caught up with me. I started doing little web projects and by the time I graduated I moved on to freelance writing for corporations. After awhile I grew tired of it so I’m back to web based projects with a little writing thrown in on the side when I feel like it.