Here are some of the lesser-known work-from-home jobs that are still very flexible. We hope you find at least a few new ideas here (even though we’ll recap the usual suspects at the bottom) and show you how they fit into our system and philosophy here at 3MM.
Flexible work-at-home jobs that allow you to set your own hours and choose what projects you take on.
Now, if you’ve poked around this site, you know we’re after a very specific goal: To create a home-based business that you can run in three months per year that is worth at least one million dollars. We are all about flexibility. I mean, who wouldn’t want nine months of flexibility?
If you’re new to this site, that might sound a little crazy. We know. But by following our business management, productivity, and investment philosophies, it is very possible.
Want to see how? Stick around after this rundown and we’ll give you some quick examples using some of the jobs on this list.
So without further ado…
Amazon FBA Seller
Full Disclosure, we are a little biased about this one. This is how we built our first 3MM business. Our store is so efficient, it runs on just a few hours of work per year. It doesn’t get much more flexible than that.
And while you might see this on some of those other lists, the way we run this business is truly unique.
By mixing it with our unusual business structure and our powerful productivity system, we took our Amazon FBA storefront from run-of-the-mill to truly exceptional.
Because we only work for a few hours, then let Amazon sell off our inventory all year long, our dollars-per-hour is huge.
Dollars per hour: $200+
Investing
We follow a very specific, safe investment plan. We don’t speculate and we don’t chase meme stocks. When we buy an investment, we are focused on the eventual earnings it will produce for us. That is, we want to buy an investment that will pay us over and over again without time or effort on our part.
Because these take no time to maintain (even less than our FBA business) our dollars per hour are, again, insane (even more than our FBA business).
Dollars per hour: $300+
Bonus!
Combine the two!
The real magic happens when you combine our first two recommendations. Our FBA business grew so fast that we quickly ended up with more profit than we could reinvest in the business.
So we started investing outside the business.
And then, the power of compounding took over and we’ve been growing at least 15% per year.
That’s how you run a million-dollar business with less than 3-months of work per year.
These two are our top recommendations if you want a full-time income from part-time, flexible work. They are far and away our best earners. It is how we built this business.
Also, combining our investment philosophy with the ‘usual’ work-from-home suggestions you see around the web will still yield incredible results.
Blogging
Again, we’re biased. Blogging has some of the highest potential for both income and flexibility in the work-from-home sphere. And don’t think you need to love writing or be an incredible writer. Many bloggers outsource their writing to freelancers, allowing even more flexibility.
Keep in mind, there is a considerable delay before you start to make money blogging. R.J. Weiss over at The Ways to Wealth says to expect a 9-month dry spell before the blog starts to take off and make some money.
According to Ryan Robison, a blog in its third year (in a profitable niche) can earn $100,000. Assuming full-time effort, that is 40 hours per week) that amounts to…
Dollars per Hour: $50
Freelance Writer
Speaking of Freelance… Freelance Writing is an excellent option for those who enjoy creating content. There are plenty of opportunities to write online, so you can start earning money right away. Build a career or work part-time, it’s up to you!
Yes, you’ve probably seen this one on other lists. It is a very common recommendation, after all. But Freelancing and Blogging are a sort of Yin-and-Yang type deal. Learning one makes you better at the other. So we wanted to include it because the synergistic effects of both are better than most of these lists would make it seem.
Independent Educational Consultant
Here’s one you don’t often see, and it’s one I’ve explored personally. There is a fair up-front time and cost commitment to getting certified, but once you do, you are part of a fast-growing, extremely in-demand field.
So what is it?
Basically, you are a college counselor (and, in fact, you can also work as a college counselor at a school district with this certification. It’s just not very flexible). The only difference is that you work one-on-one with students to find the right schools for them.
Think about it: how many of us went to a big high school that had one college counselor for every 50-60 kids? How to make sure your kid isn’t just applying to the same schools as everyone else?
So as an IEC, you help find schools for kids based on personal elements. Is the student shy? Outgoing? Do they need a specific sort of educational support? You can even help with test prep/tutoring for the SAT and ACT.
According to Glassdoor IECs make around $68,000 to $120,000 per year working full-time. But, you also have the option to choose your clients and which services you offer. So you have a great chance to increase your flexibility.
Graphic Designer
Designing graphics is another popular choice for people who enjoy creative work. Many companies offer freelance graphic design services, so there are lots of options to explore. You can also function as a freelance designer as well to maximize your flexibility.
This one has often been left out because it is usually a full-time job, but with the right skills, you can take work when you want and live contract to contract. So there is a lot of potential for flexibility here.
Consultancy / Education / Mentorship
Use what you already know! Think about the work experience you already have. How many people out there would love to pick your brain?
There are two very flexible ways to go about this, depending on the type of flexibility you want
- In-person mentorship. You offer to share your expertise with people who need it. I know, this isn’t technically a work-at-home job, but It’s worth mentioning because this might be the kind of flexibility you’re actually after.
Here’s an example. I know a farmer who gained a lot of experience in animal nutrition. Now he travels around (which he loves) and connects with farmers and talks about feed options and shares his experience. He’s often paid cash on the spot for his time and sometimes he sets up repeat visits for farms undergoing change. It’s not technically a work-at-home job, but definitely a do-what-you-love job. - Now imagine the same guy with the same expertise, but he wants to stay home all day and read books. He makes an online course with Thinkific and sells it online. He only needed to make it once, but he sells it over and over again. He gets paid while he does what he loves.
Both are flexible to be sure. The secret to this sort of thing is to create a high-ticket, high-value item. Expensive course material sells at about the same rate as cheap material (and it gives you room to offer affiliate programs). Just make sure you provide more value than you get!
This is one of our favorites because one of our core Business Tenents is “We Make It Once, Then Sell it Forever“.
3MM Example
OK, I promised I would show you how some of these work in the context of our 3MM system. Remember the goal is to build a million-dollar business that you can run in three months per year or less.
That means you need flexibility. And it means that you probably want to work from home (so you don’t have massive overhead bills).
Let’s look at that blogger example.
Remember, Ryan Robinson said that a blog in a profitable niche can reasonably expect to make $100,000 in its second year.
But that was for full-time work. With only three months of work time available to us, we can only expect 1/4th of that amount. $25,000, right?
But what if you could accomplish a full year’s worth of work in those same three months? That’s what our productivity systems will help you achieve.
By throwing out everything that is not absolutely increasing your key performance indicators, and focusing efforts on the right tasks at the right time, we can accomplish in three months what the average blogger accomplishes in the whole year.
That’s not even using our outsourcing strategies.
Ok, fine. So we could have a $100,000 income blog and it could only take three months to run. But this isn’t Three Month One-hundred-thousandaire. How do we get that thing worth one million dollars?
That’s where our investing strategies come in. By reinvesting in smart, safe passive income streams, we start to compound our earnings without adding time to our workload.
There is some complicated math going on behind the scenes here, but here’s a quick and dirty example. A blog that makes a steady $50,000 per year (assuming half of the revenue goes to pay for you and your bills) is intrinsically valued at around $500,000.
But a blog that has an operating income of $50,000 and $5,000 income from money reinvested the 3MM way is intrinsically valued at just over $1,000,000.
Why? Because we reinvest heavily to increase earnings. We aim for 15% growth per year, mostly from investments. That internal compounding is like magic.
Remember, the more your earnings can be expected to grow, the more valuable your business is.
Some other common flexible work-from-home-jobs
These are the usual contenders. There is nothing wrong with any of these by any means, but the purpose of this list was to give you some fresh ideas.
Still, I’ll leave these here for your consideration. Could they work for the 3MM system? Absolutely. I just haven’t tried any of them personally.
Happy hunting!
Customer Service Representative – Work when you want to work. It also offers flexibility because you can do it from anywhere. Pay can be very competitive.
Virtual Assistant – Set your own hours and choose when to work. You’ll need to be organized, detail-oriented, and possess strong communication skills. Think of administrative-type tasks for businesses and individuals. Things like scheduling appointments, booking travel arrangements and managing email or other communication.
Social Media Manager – Managing social media accounts is one of the fastest-growing careers today. Companies hire social media managers to help them manage their brands across multiple platforms.
Online Tutor – Teaching others how to use technology is a great way to make money online. You can tutor students through sites like WyzAnt, Udemy, and Teachable.
Transcriptionist – Transcribers transcribe audio recordings into text documents. These documents can then be edited and published online.
Data Entry Clerk – Data entry clerks enter data into databases using computers. They often do this remotely, so they may not see clients face-to-face.
Web Developer – Web developers create websites using HTML, CSS, JavaScript, or other technologies. They usually work as part of a team, creating pages based on client specifications. But again, you can work freelance or piece work to increase your flexibility.
Closing Thoughts
I hope we’ve given you some new ideas for flexible work-from-home jobs.
Here at 3MM we are all about freedom and flexibility. And to help you achieve that we have put together some guides that will help you take back your time and your life.
(Remember, the goal here is to build a million-dollar business that you can run in three months or less per year)
Whether you want to start your own business or choose a more conventional job, these resources will help you take it to the next level and get closer to the 3MM dream:
- Our Ultimate Guide to Building a Business
- Our Ultimate Productivity Guide
- Our Ultimate Guide to Investing
- Our Income Reports
We also publish unbiased reviews of business tools and software. To see some of our top review posts, Check out:
- Our reviews of the Best Online Course Creation Software
- Our reviews of the Best Books For Following the Three Month Millionaire Journey
- Our reviews of the Best Business Tools No One Ever Told Us About
- Our reviews of the Best Social Media Management Tools
