We've scoured the internet to find work at home opportunities that are legitimate and creative at the same time. You might have heard of offers to stuff envelopes and earn a thousand dollars a week but at the risk of sounding clich'd; if it sounds too good to be true, it usually is. "Watch TV and earn twenty dollars an hour" seems like a really good work at home idea, but if such jobs really existed, why would the majority of the population endure long commutes, office politics, and mean bosses. This does not mean that there isn't any legitimate work at home opportunity out there: it just means you need to research the offer and find something which matches you skill set.

What Are You Good At?

If you are artistically inclined, then perhaps painting murals on children's bedroom walls might be a good work at home opportunity. You can start by doing friends' rooms for free or at a steep discount and create your portfolio. If you are a wordsmith, then you might like to help a new business with their flyers and brochures and start getting clientele by word-of-mouth. There are scores of profitable home based businesses listed on websites; however tread with caution. If writing and editing is your forte, then it might be a good idea to subscribe to a freelance job mailing list and see if you can score an assignment or two. Many people use their street-smart abilities to make money by turning their trash into someone else's treasure with the help of auction sites like eBay and Amazon. Some people even offer friends and family members to sell their unwanted stuff and charge a particular commission. Whether you charge a percentage or flat fee, exhausted new parents or time deprived professionals might not mind paying you a little to get rid of their stuff since they don't have time for garage sales or posting ads in the local paper. If you're tech savvy, you could earn a decent living by creating software packages and programs such as a database system for your local video store, a website for your apartment building, or an inventory system for your friend's gift basket business. Despite people spending big bucks on advertising and publicity, it is usually the word of mouth referrals that really land you the jobs.

The Downside of Being Your Own Boss

The important thing about work at home opportunities in whatever field there may be is not to have unrealistic expectations. Don't quit your day job thinking that you'll be paying all your bills by working a few hours a day. Always factor in the fact that by working at home, you're most probably going to be self-employed so you'll have to arrange for your own health insurance and you won't get paid time off. The day you don't work, you don't get paid.

You're also responsible for your own taxes which unlike when you work for a company, are deducted at source. You don't need a college degree to succeed at a work at home opportunity but you do need the self-discipline to be able to work without a boss breathing down your neck. You need to be motivated enough to not watch TV all morning long or have a two hour lunch break just because you have the luxury of working in your pajamas.

However, work at home opportunities are only limited to your imagination and creativity. Make jewelry, make scrapbook layouts or make lasagna in cooking classes. Be a dog sitter or be a baby sitter. Design clothes or design websites; organize files or organize lives ? the sky is really the limit. Good Luck!