Online Writing

Start Online Writing
As earlier mentioned in the previous posts, online writing is a means of making money from home where an individual becomes a professional writer for online clients. You work on different articles or academic papers and get paid on submission (however, the terms of payment depend on different online companies). In any case, you can train as an article writer, academic writer, or both.

Requirements
You need to have access to a machine, computer. This could either be a desktop or laptop. As long as it can run a word processing program and a browser, you are fine!
You also need to have access to internet connection. This could come from your mobile phone when you tether it and provide hot-spot from it or modem by any local service provider or from wifi.
The you also need time, determination, and clear goal in mind that this is professional work, not a joke!

Don't have the above requirements, What to do?
No need to panic in case you are starting out and lack a machine and internet access to work as a professional writer. There are various tricks and tactics you can implement to be able to achieve your goals as you work on procuring the right tools for the task.

1. You could go to the nearby cybercafe and negotiate friendly terms with the attendant. For instance, if you have an 8 page order due in 24 hours and do not have access to a laptop or internet, you could visit the cybercafe, negotiate to work there for 6 hours at most and during that time, instead of the normal pay, they offer a discount of about 30% or more. As a frequent customer at the cybercafe, you should be able to strike a deal that leaves you with a good amount of money on completing each task per day.  If truly focused, in a month or two you should be able to raise some money and procure a nice second-hand machine that will support your work for a long time.
2. The cybercafe charges might not be so friendly to some people, in this case, it would be wise to make friends or with that neighbor who has a machine. If they use it during the day, negotiate a deal to use their machine at night. This way, you are able to work on your orders without interfering with their work.
3. Some other people will suggest using a mobile phone to write up articles and paper. This could work but it can also be a little bit exhausting. This is because the keypad is small, you cannot run two programs at once, and the typing speed is really slow. However, in case this is your last option, you can be working on a file by researching while writing on a paper and later typing everything out in a file, saving it to Google drive and later rushing to cybercafe where you make all formatting requirements needed and forward to the client before the time is up. 

Once you have all the necessary requirements or have made the arrangements to get these tools to support your professional writing career, you then need to get trained/ or train yourself.

Currently, there are so many people who will be willing to take you through the process of becoming an academic writer. While some will ask for a fee, others might do it for free. In case you are unable to do any of these, you could start by searching on the internet and getting information from blogs, ebooks and files that have been published on academic writing.
However, getting someone to train you is the best option as this way, you get to know the do's and dont's and tricks you can use in order to get work done more effectively and efficiently.

I was trained for three days while at the same time working on small orders. The pay was ksh. 200 per day for the three days and I could manage 4 pages from 8-5. After the training session was complete, I then started earning 100/- per page while working for my trainer for three months before I was able to open my first online account.

The money could be little while starting out, but, what most young people forget is that when you are a beginner, you cannot start by making $10 per page like an elite writer. You should learn to start small, learn every trade, skill and trick. This is despite you having to earn as low as 150/- per page. With determination, you can gain the experience, open your own account free and start making more money per page.

Getting Online Accounts
Opening an account is free. After you have been trained, you can work on opening one from a respectable company that has been recommended by a friend or trainer.

Best wishes for all future online writers.

Writing, Listening, Gaming and Surfing Internet...Hobby also Monetized!

It is true that after attaining secondary school or undergraduate education certificates, most of the youth in Kenya today are left at home not knowing what to do next. This is not because they failed or scored poor results, but rather because as per the norm, in most cases, once an individual attains the certificates they need to, they then embark on the journey of looking for a white-collar job. 

However, this situation is never easy on most people. Sometimes even graduates who scored good grades in high school and primary schools end up frustrated and depressed because they cannot get the chances they are searching for. You might be surprised that some give up even before trying for a year because they can see how getting a job can be frustrating, challenging and tiresome for their relatives who have graduated or completed their learning before them. 

However, even in light of these happenings, there is hope for the Kenyan Youth. This is because being passionate and energetic people, the youth can be lead to do just about anything so as to pass time and forget about the frustrations related to job search.

There are several ideas that can be applied so as to curb idleness and jobless situation. Like we mentioned in the previous post, depending on what you love doing or what you are interested in, one can find a way to make money and live a comfortable life. 

Let’s start with those who love to write, listening to anything, playing games and surfing over the internet. There are several ideas we were able to come up with in the Whatsapp group I mentioned earlier in the previous post on Opportunities to Work From Home in Kenya on earning a little bit of cash as one enjoys doing what they love. 

If you would like to join the group, feel free to email me your details, text, or simply follow the following invite link to join on whatsapp (https://chat.whatsapp.com/ExhUcubqc755iQcb2ZytTS).

1.    Transcription

2.    Freelance writing

3.    Survey review e.g Geopoll

4.    Applications review

5.    Game testing

6.    Website testing

7.    Virtual assistant

8.    Films and videos of how to posted on you tube among others

• Transcription mostly involves listening to an audio file then writing it down on paper for reading purposes.
• Freelance writing involves writing about a given subject
• Survey review involves taking numerous surveys for payment purposes
• Application review mostly involves downloading a certain application then getting paid each time you use it. 
• Game testing is downloading unreleased games then playing them while checking for glitches.
• Website testing is usually done before the launching of a new website, this helps in identifying errors and loopholes.
• Virtual assistant is mostly accomplishing daily office activities like sorting email, managing social media and so much more.
• Setting up a YouTube channel while showing how to do different skills of art.

All the above ideas can be helpful and can be done at the comfort of your home. Amazingly, there are people willing to train others on each of these fields. Personally, I can train an individual on transcription and academic writing as I have been doing these two jobs for a while now. If you would like to also get to learn, feel free to reach me via the comments, email, or the whatsapp group. More direct contact details to be added soon.  

 

Opportunities to Work From Home in Kenya

Two years ago I  had to terminate my contract with one of the major corporate organizations in Kenya so  as to go for my maternity leave. I had been promised that I could return once my child turned three months but things did not turn out as I expected. Three months after delivering a bouncing baby boy, I was called in for an interview but no response a week, two weeks or a month later. I remained hopeful but later, a friend told me that I had been replaced and that is when it downed on me, I had to find a way to make money while still at home taking care of my son.

I had a laptop and of course, like any other graduate living in Nairobi, Kenya, I went on to google on job adverts and I applied  for many positions as I could. But no response weeks later. I was disappointed. Very  frustrated.

Then, I recalled that back in 2011, I had been trained as an academic writer. I had worked for individuals and for online companies alike and I had gained adequate experience to continue with academic writing as a means of making money. I talked this out with my husband and he was supportive. With a laptop and enough Safaricom data bundles, I got started.

It was tough  since I had to wait for my son to fall asleep so that I could take order and work on them. But I soldiered on...I was not going to give up. The first few months I could only make $50 in two weeks.

Many mums, pregnant women and even freshly graduated individuals in Kenya find themselves in a situation similar to mine.

Unlike me, most have no idea that they can work from their houses and still be able to bring food to their tables and much more...

Here, I will discuss a few activities one can engage themselves in while at home and still be able to make money.

Do you have to have an official job where you work from 8-5 to be able to put food on your table, cloth your kids, drive a nice car, and live comfortably? I do not think so. No disrespect to all those working class ( I was raised by a nurse and a teacher. I have total respect to them and others like them because if it were not for their dedication to work hard and maintain their jobs, I would not be who I am today).  But what do you do when you cannot get the a position in a government institution, or a private organization?  Well, you could try some of these options

1. Online writing :- academic and article writing
2. Transcription
3. Making Shaggy mats
4. Baking cakes
5. Catering
6. Making fabric softeners, jik, and soap
7. Making decorating stuff
8. Selling Mitumba clothes online etc

There are many more activities you can carry out in the current times in Kenya while at home. It all depends on how determined you are to put food on the table and your interests...

In subsequent posts, I will discuss more similar options we can implement at home. Some of them I learned from a group of determined women helping each other grow in a Whatsapp Group.