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Since the pandemic, remote work started to become the norm, with many people choosing remote jobs to work from home or as digital nomads. In recent years, there’s been a big push to return to office, but a lot of people are still looking for remote jobs to work remotely from home or anywhere else!
Remote work has allowed so many people to adjust their lifestyles to suit them, from spending more time with family to taking the freedom to travel the world, like me!
If you’re currently not working remotely, but want to, you’ve come to the right place. I’ve put together this guide for you to start working remotely and having more flexibility in your life!
Remote Full Time Jobs
It may seem like every remote worker or digital nomad is an entrepreneur or owns some shady online business, but that’s not the case. Many of us have remote 9-5 jobs as well. While these may be a little more difficult to find with the push to return to office, they’re still out there. It definitely helps if you have a solid amount of experience in your field, especially when seeking remote work.
Some remote 9-5 jobs that are most likely to be remote include:
Software Engineering
This is what I do! Software engineers and developers create, test, and maintain software applications and systems. It’s one of the most remote-friendly careers because of the digital nature of the work and because of how easy it is to collaborate during remote work.
Customer support
I’m sure we’ve all spoken with customer support before – this role involves speaking to customers with inquiries, issues, or feedback about a company’s products or services. This role typically involves responding via email, chat, or phone, which makes it perfect for remote work.
Product Management or Project Management
Product managers oversee the development and launch of new products and ensure alignment with customer needs and business goals, while project managers coordinate tasks, deadlines, and resources for specific initiatives. They both require great communication and organizational skills and are great for remote work, particularly in tech.
UX/UI Design
UX/UI Design – User Experience (UX) and User Interface (UI) designers create intuitive, visually appealing, and user-friendly designs for websites, apps, and software. Like software engineers and product managers, UX and UI designers work in tech, making it easier to find remote work roles.
Human Resources/People Operations
HR and People Operations employees manage employee relations, recruitment, onboarding, benefits, and company culture. Thanks to the rise of remote work, many HR tasks are now handled digitally, from virtual interviews to online training programs, making this field more remote-friendly.
Social media management
Social media managers create and execute content strategies across platforms like Instagram, TikTok, Twitter, and LinkedIn to engage audiences and grow a brand’s online presence. They analyze metrics, schedule posts, and interact with followers, all of which can be done from anywhere with an internet connection. Many companies also hire social media managers as contractors or freelancers, so that’s always an option!
Other Remote Jobs Titles
While this is by no means an exhaustive list, check out some of these other job titles for remote work. Read some job descriptions and see how your expertise, experience, and interests stack up:
Marketing & Content Creation
- Content Marketing Specialist
- SEO Specialist
- Email Marketing Specialist
- Video Editor
Sales and Business Development
- Sales Representative
- Account Manager
- Lead Generation Specialist
Finance and Accounting
- Financial Analyst
- Payroll Specialist
Healthcare and Wellness
- Telehealth Nurse or Medical PRovider
- Mental Health Counselor
Tech Support and IT
- Technical Support Specialist
- IT Administrator
- Cybersecurity Analyst
Creative and Arts
- Illustrator
- Copywriter
- Animator
Data and Analytics
- Data Analyst
- Data Scientist
- Business Analyst
Where to Find A Remote Job
This is probably the question I get the most as a digital nomad. Even people who are just looking for remote work to do from home have some trouble when it comes to looking for a job. It can become even more difficult for those who want to travel globally.
Below are a few of my favorite remote job boards for you to browse through to find your remote job:
We Work Remotely
We Work Remotely is a great place to start your search, with remote jobs in many fields that hire all over the world. This is a popular job board, so a lot of them are pretty competitive.
Built In
If you’re looking for a job at a tech company or startup, Built In is the site for you. While not exclusively for remote jobs, it does include a search option for remote roles. Most of these jobs tend to require you to be in the US, or have permission to work in the US, so keep that in mind.
Tech Jobs For Good
While not primarily a remote job board, Tech Jobs for Good is a job board for tech non-profits and tech roles in non-profits. Some of these companies are remote work, and smaller non-profits tend to be a bit more flexible. This is a great place to start if you want to work for a mission-based company!
Working Nomads
Working Nomads provides a curated list of global-friendly positions since they’re geared towards digital nomads. They have jobs across many different areas and update their job postings every day.
Well Found
Well Found is wear startups find talent. Many startups are remote, and tend to be a bit more flexible when it comes to location. If you’re looking to get in on something in its early stages, definitely check it out.
4 Day Week
While not a remote job board, a lot of the jobs on 4dayweek.io are remote, with the added bonus of being companies with 4 day work weeks. If you’re looking to work remotely to be able to travel more, even having longer weekends can be more conducive to more travel. Who doesn’t want every weekend to be a three day weekend?
More Job Boards
Freelance & Part Time Remote Jobs
Let’s face it – remote full time jobs can be competitive, and with the big push to return to office, hybrid seems to be a more likely option. Sometimes, freelancing or finding a part-time job to gain experience can be a great way to work remotely. Below are a few freelancing gigs and part-time job options to consider if you want to work remotely.
Freelance Writer
If you enjoy writing but don’t want to commit to a large project like a book or your own blog, consider becoming a freelance writer. Freelance writers create written content for blogs, websites, marketing campaigns, or other mediums. You can specialize in areas like copywriting, content writing, or technical writing. While competitive, working as a freelance writer gives you the flexibility to work from anywhere.
Proofreader
Have a knack for grammar and writing? Consider becoming a proofreader! People hire proofreaders to review and edit written content to make sure it’s free from grammatical, spelling, an formatting errors. You’ll need a keen eye for detail and strong language skills. You can proofread from anywhere in the world, as long as you can maintain contact with your clients.
Virtual Assistant
This one is for those of you with great organizational skills. As a virtual assistant, you provide administrative support to businesses or entrepreneurs – ranging from managing emails and calendars to conducting research and data entry. This role is highly flexible and can often be done on a part time/contract basis.
Social Media Manager
This role is ideal for those with strong communication skills, a knack for creating storytelling, and an understanding of social media marketing and branding. Social media managers oversee a brand’s online presence, curating content, scheduling posts, engaging with followers, and analyzing performance metrics. This is a great option if you already know a thing or two about socials.
UGC Creator
If you love creating content but don’t want the hassle of trying to build your own audience, you can create content as a UGC Creator. UGC stands for “User Generated Content,” meaning you can create content for brands to post on their own socials, without having to post it on your own channels. This way, you can work remotely creating content without being an influencer.
Bookkeeper
For those who love numbers and have strong organizational skills, you can help businesses manage financial records, track expenses, and prepare invoices. This can often be done part-time or freelance, so you can have more than one client at a time and work when and where you want.
Web Designer
Web designers create visually appealing and functional websites for clients. They focus on the layout, color schemes, and overall aesthetics of a website, making it an excellent freelance opportunity for creative individuals with technical skills. You can even create templates on websites like WordPress, Shopify, Blogger, and others and sell them.
Graphic Designer
Have a creative streak? Graphic designers develop visuals such as logos, infographics, and advertisements for clients. This freelance-friendly role allows for flexibility and is well-suited to those with a talent for visual storytelling and design software expertise.
Online Tutor
If you’re coming from an education background or have an interest in education, consider becoming an online tutor. You can provide virtual lessons to students of all ages, covering academic subjects, test preparation, or specialized skills like languages or coding. Platforms often connect tutors with students, making it easy to work part-time from anywhere.
More Freelance/Part Time Remote Work Opportunities
Other remote-friendly roles include transcription, translation, digital marketing, SEO consulting, video editing, podcast editing, and data entry. These roles offer the flexibility to choose projects that align with your skills and interests, making them excellent options for remote part-time work.
Where to find remote freelance opportunities
Now that you know what your options are, where do you find these opportunities? The job boards here often have part-time and freelance opportunities, but I’ve outlined some more places you can start looking for a freelance or part-time remote jobs.
Freelance Websites
Here are a few sites to get you started:
- Upwork: For anything from web design to proofreading or working as a virtual assistant
- Behance: Great for designers to show their work and find gigs
- Toptal: Best for software developers, designers, marketing experts, finance experts, product managers, and project managers
- Fiverr: Similar to upwork – large range of job types for any freelancer
- Dribbble: Like Behance, excellent for designers to show their work and find both freelance and full time jobs
Believe it or not, LinkedIn is a great way to start networking and find clients. Build a website with some starter projects, reach out to small businesses and ask to do work for them for a lower fee, and build up a portfolio. You can also use social media to spread the word about your new side hustle.
Building up a side gig as a freelancer is probably your best bet on starting one of these part-time gigs. While there are some part-time jobs out there, they tend to be a lot more competitive. My suggestion is to get some experience under your belt with some clients, and then continue to reach out to clients and grow your business.
Tutoring Platforms
If you want to tutor instead, you can get started on a tutoring platform. Keep in mind that not all tutoring platforms are created equally, and some have better opportunities and pay then others. With that in mind, here are some platforms to get you started:
- If you are interested in tutoring in a foreign language, consider iTalki or Preply. They’re usually full up for the more common languages like English and Spanish, but could be a good option if you’re fluent in another language.
- For more traditional tutoring, you can try one of the following:
- Wyzant: Has generally great reviews by other tutors; allows you to set your own rates and get reviews from students. The better your reviews are, the more likely you are to be booked at your rate.
- Varsity Tutors: Rates with varsity tutor vary per hour, but it is a convenient way to start tutoring and they do it all for you.
- Learner: If you already have at least a year of experience tutoring online, check out Learner. You can earn between $25 and $35 per hour as a tutor depending on the subject you tutor.
- Superprof: Similar to Wyzant, you can set your own rate and hours on Superprof, but you do have to work a little more to get students
More Remote Job Titles
Again, while this is not meant to be an exhaustive list of all the remote job opportunities out there, I’ve provided a few more job titles and freelance jobs you can check out and do some research for below. Keep in mind that almost all the full time roles here can be done as freelance jobs as well.
- Instructional Designer
- Online Course Creator
- Tax Preparer
- Health & Wellness Coach
- Legal Consulant
- Business Consultant
- Career Coach
- E-Commerce Manager
- Amazon/Etsy Seller
- Technical Writer
- Grant Writer
- Ghostwriter
- Copywriter
- Content Strategist
Upskilling to pivot into a remote job
If you want to learn new skills to be able to pivot into a remote job, there are several ways to do this, and it all depends on what you want to do. First things first, think about what skills you already have that may be transferrable to the role or roles you want. Make sure to do some research and look up job descriptions for the types of roles you’re going after, and make a note of the skills you see come up the most. Those are the skills you should focus on. So, where do you learn the skills?
Coursera
Coursera offers courses from universities and institutions. You can choose to audit courses for free, or pay a fee to earn yoru certification or even a degree. Topics range across data science, business, IT, the arts, computer science, and more!
edX
This platform offers university-level courses from top institutions like MIT and Harvard. You can earn professional certificates, MicroMasters, and degrees in topics like business, computer science, accounting, finance, and more.
Udemy
Udemy offers courses taught by professionals in a large range of topics including design, programming, writing, proofreading, and more. Since this platform allows anyone to create and offer courses, be sure to read the reviews and ratings before making a purchase. There are thousands of courses on virtually any topic and is great for self-paced learning.
LinkedIn Learning
If you’re not on LinkedIn, make sure to get on there and get started with LinkedIn Learning. You can take courses linked to industry skills and show your certifications off on your LinkedIn profile. Explore topics in business, creative skills, tech, and even soft skills to show how great you are to work with!
Skillshare
Skillshare is a subscription-based platform where you can take courses by professionals in creative and professional skills in topics like design, writing, marketing, and more. You’ll get a certificate to celebrate your accomplishment, and you can get your first month free!
Setting up your remote work space
You got the job and/or you started the business, and now you need to get yourself set up for success! If you’re used to working in an office environment, or generally in person, working remotely might feel a little weird at first. Getting yourself set up to be productive and focused is key for making sure that you don’t end up WFB (working from bed) every day, and that you actually enjoy the freedom and flexibility that comes with remote work.
Work from home setup
If you’re going to be working from home, you can get yourself set up comfortably to work from home. Some things you might want to consider when working from home are:
- Your office space – try your best to have a separate space for you to do your work, even if it’s just a desk. Having a designated work space will help you separate work from your regular life, instead of having it all blend to together.
- Using a coworking space – I know, I know, you decided to work remotely because you don’t want to commute to an office. But, being able to choose your office, how many days you go, and who you speak to (if anyone) can make you actually want to get out some days and work from anther environment.
- Setting up your space comfortably – What do you need to do your best work? Get yourself a comfortable, ergonomic chair, a nice desk, a laptop stand, a second monitor, maybe even a standing desk and/or walking pad to make sure you get your steps in. The world is your oyster, and you can set yourself and your space up in whatever way makes you happy!
Digital nomad setup
So, you’ve decided you’ll actually work from anywhere? While this seems like the more glamorous option, it comes with its own set of challenges.
Things to consider
First, you have to figure out the minimum equipment you need to be comfortable, since you don’t want to slug around a bunch of extra stuff everywhere you go.
Second, make sure that wherever your accommodations are, you have solid WiFi. Whether you’re staying at a hostel, hotel, or AirBnB, make sure to read those reviews.
Third, check out some coworking spaces or coworking cafes in the area. It’s a great way to meet other nomads and remote workers and network. It also gets you out of your accommodation and into the city you’re exploring!
Fourth, consider staying at a coliving space designed for nomads. This way, you can have everything in one place – a comfortable place to stay, a reliable place to work, a community to be a part of, and the amenities you’ll need to feel at home.
Copy my set up
- Laptop: I’m thankfully able to use my personal laptop for my 9-5, but if you’re working a full time remote job, you might need to carry a company laptop
- Laptop stand: I use one at home as well so I’m not always bending my neck to see my screen.
- Keyboard and mouse: Since my laptop is at an angle, I use a small keyboard and a mouse so that I’m not struggling with my laptop’s keyboard and trackpad
- iPad as a second monitor: I like the convenience of two monitors, but since I don’t want to bring extra tech with me, I use my iPad as a second monitor. The screen isn’t huge, so it’s not the most ideal setup, but it works.
- Tablet stand: To keep my iPad screen level with my laptop screen, i also bought a foldable tablet stand for my iPad screen. This way, I can keep my screens at eye-level without having to bend my neck.
Final Thoughts
I hope that this guide was helpful to get you started on your remote work journey. The jobs and resources listed here are by no means exhausted, and there will be more work that needs to be done on your part to get the remote job you want. Just know that it can be done, even if it might not be exactly the way you pictured it. Make sure to follow me on instagram for more tips and my own personal journey as a digital nomad. Good luck!
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