Paying for Renos with Freelance Jobs

If you’ve been following along you know that we’re currently financing the renovation of our garage. You’ll also know that I’ve managed to keep it all under budget – somehow.

But when I was surfing online for ideas and inspiration there were a few ‘extras’ I’d hoped to pick up to make that garage even better. It’s probably no surprise to you then that I enjoy shopping in the country store – for the cheapest deals.

Sally – my expert on garage renos and excellent friend – asked me how I was paying for it all, since she’s never seen me actually work. Which brought me to an hour long discussion on what I actually do for a living – since there’s little chance farming is bringing in the extra money!

Making Money from Home

I started, hmmm, over 10 years ago now, freelancing online. Back when the internet was still a relative infant and before a person could pick up a lot of jobs here and there, just by surfing for them. By the way there’s an excellent guide to freelancing selling for just $7 here.

The truth is I seldom freelance anymore. Mostly I manage my websites and collect residuals from a business opportunity I’m involved in. I’ll tell you all about that some other day, but for the person who is interested in freelancing online for cash, I’ll continue the lesson…

Freelancing, at the time, allowed me the freedom to raise my daughter. As a single mom in a strange town I knew that finding a job, finding a babysitter and driving the wintry country roads here were not an option to a joyful life. I wanted to be my own boss, but I didn’t know what kind of business to start. I needed my own hours, but I didn’t know what to fill those hours with – that would pay.

For years I loved freelancing. I worked in my sweats and pyjamas, I could stop working and attend to my daughter when necessary, and after a few months at it, I started to set my own rates.

Is Freelancing from Home right for You?

Let’s be clear about one trap of freelancing that most people fall into. Being able to make your own hours does not mean loafing in front of the television all day – then trying to cram a few hours in at night when you’re too tired to think straight. It takes a lot of motivation and discipline to ensure you get hours of work done each day, or at least meet your deadline. Can you be your own boss? You bet you can, but you have to be tough on yourself. Don’t work, don’t get paid.

It all started when I decided I didn’t want to live and raise my daughter in downtown Toronto. Freelancing gave me the freedom to take off with her and live wherever. We came to rural Ontario, but in reality we could have gone anywhere. All that was needed was a phone, a computer, and an internet connection.

If you think this lifestyle might work for you, if you think you’d like to freelance from home, and if you think you can motivate yourself to complete the tasks assigned on time, at your own rate, you should consider it. However, do not quit your day job immediately and hope to make $10,000 next month. Better yet to start slow, work your way through to replacing your current salary and then make the decision to freelance full time. If you work hard for a few weeks at this it all happens rather quickly, so don’t be discouraged. Jobs online abound. The potential for great money is real. (Just please don’t get sucked into those envelope stuffing, survey-answering, jewelry-making, scams while you research this! Better if you just invest the $7 in yourself and pick up that freelancing ebook.)

The market for freelancers is growing in leaps and bounds.

Paying for the Renovations with Freelance Income

Do I need a little extra cash to buy the extras I want for my garage? Yes I do and I’ll earn it with a freelance assignment and have the money in hand next week. It’s freedom beyond imagination. It is, in my opinion, the only ‘fun’ way to ‘work’.