When you make the decision to work from home, one of the first things you should do is set an hourly wage - whether you’re telecommuting as a regular employee, working as a contractor, or running your own business.
First, determine what your work at home expenses will be. Most likely, you’ll be able to cut out some expenses that go along with working outside the home, like transportation expenses, lunches, business clothes, dry cleaning and childcare. You may even be able to trade in your vehicle for one that is less expensive once your daily commute is eliminated.
Keep in mind that working from home may add new expenses, including office supplies and business marketing and startup expenses. You’ll also be using more food, heat, electricity and utilities by being at home all day. You may also choose to pay for part-time childcare and children's activities.
Next, add those expenses to the income that you need to make. It may be difficult to find at-home work that pays as much as a full-time job, especially if much of your time is devoted to childcare and household management. Decide whether you can cut back on some of your current expenses and set a budget to allow you to work from home. Remember to budget for emergency expenses and business growth, as detailed in Why You Should Pay Yourself First When You Work From Home .
Add up the amount of hours each week that you’ll have available to work. Keep in mind that when you have young children, it may be hard to get a lot of work done during the day, so don’t overextend yourself. Divide the amount of money you need to make by the number of hours you have available to determine your hourly wage.
If you are a telecommuter, this number will give you a tool that you can use in negotiations with your employer. If you’re a consultant who bills for hours worked, it will determine your hourly rate. If you’re a contractor or run your own business, it will help you decide what types of jobs you are able to take. When you provide content or other services that are billed by the job and not the hour, you’ll have to carefully analyze each job to determine whether it meets your hourly requirement. For example, if you write content, a low paying job might not seem like a good opportunity. However, when looked at in more detail, a job that will only take a short amount of time to complete might actually fit into your hourly goal. At the same time, high paying jobs that seem like good opportunities may actually take a lot more time than you expect them to.
It may take some time to work out a system that meets your needs. Once you have more experience and learn how to manage your time, you’ll get a better feel for what types of jobs to take. You can also supplement your income with additional income, like an occasional high paying job or passive income streams like affiliate marketing or selling your own work.
