Find a Second Job

Tory Johnson

To make ends meet in a challenging economy, Americans have been seen working two jobs or taking on part-time work when full-time positions are harder to land.

Here are some specific ideas and resources to make it happen for yourself that come from our brand new book on making money from home: Will Work From Home: Earn the Cash Without the Commute, which is available on BarnesandNoble.com and Amazon.com or at your local book stores. (If you purchase the book online, email your e-receipt to book@womenforhire.com and we’ll upgrade you for free to a premium membership ($38 value) to the Women For Hire Network.

Work from home opportunities: We have an entire section devoted to this type of work.

Pursue direct sales: Direct sales allow millions of people to realistically bring in a couple hundred dollars a month. The Direct Selling Association is a good resource to start.

Connect with a global marketplace: oDesk and Elance offer a combined 20,000 opportunities per month for talented professionals to connect with businesses of all sizes in need of services ranging from writing and editing to software development and graphic design.

Scour Craigslist: For odd jobs, temp work and assorted other opportunities, Craigslist always has a wide range of stuff listed, so check your local listings on the site.

Hourly and part-time work: SnagaJob is great resource for finding hourly and part-time opportunities. Also, be sure to look at your local newspaper’s online job board. For example, in New York, the online job board of the New York Times website has better local opportunities than the largest national job boards, HotJobs, Monster and CareerBuilder.

Turn crafts into cash: If you make something by hand, you should be selling on Etsy. Whether it’s jewelry, clothing, illustrations, ceramics or edibles and more, this is the site for you.

Online tutoring: If you’re interested in tutoring, but unable to drum up your own clients, consider working through Tutor.com , TutorVista, Tutorzilla or TutorNation, among others. (Each site operates differently, so do your research before deciding on the right fit for you.)

Provide care-giving services: There’s big demand among kids, seniors and pets for care-giving services. Fetch, Sitter City, Care, Senior Helpers, and Home Instead are among the sites to explore for immediate work.

To make your availability known within your community, don’t be shy about talking to everyone about the services you offer. Make flyers or business cards that clearly explain what you offer and how to reach you. As long as it doesn’t jeopardize your employment, talk to people in your day job about what you do on the side. An office manager who moonlights as a photographer can often land new customers for parties and portraits through her co-workers. A teacher usually can’t tutor her own students, but her peers can refer families for extra help. Be sure that it’s not against company policy for you to work on the side.

For more ways to make money from home as a full-time or supplemental income, check out our new book,Will Work From Home: Earn the Cash Without the Commute.

Advice for Students and Recent Grads

Tory Johnson

Resources for Seniors

Tory Johnson

Even though job searching gets harder with age—somehow you’d think it would get easier with practice, but it doesn’t—there are jobs available for every generation.

Start close to home and start small. Who’s hiring in your area? Local businesses are a leading source of job opportunities, and 97% of companies have fewer than 100 employees. So think about how your services can benefit someone small right in your neighborhood. This is a great way to familiarize yourself with a career field in the modern world without overwhelming your senses in a big company at a far commute.

• Call the Chamber of Commerce to ask for leads of local businesses that may have openings.
• Connect with the local branch of SCORE in your area to ask about opportunities to work for entrepreneurs.
• Ask friends and neighbors to keep their eyes and ears open for you among their circles of influence.
• Talk to your doctors, dentists and service providers. These are well-connected people who can often make introductions and referrals.
• Make it known to your favorite stores and businesses that you’re looking for an opportunity and you’d appreciate their consideration or their referrals.

Consider working for care-giving services. Organizations are working overtime to recruit 50+ workers because they excel as personal and home care aides. It’s become the second-fastest growing occupation, focused on non-medical care: providing companionship, running errands, accompanying clients on doctor’s appointments, and preparing meals, especially when a family member isn’t available to do this stuff.

Pay ranges from $8 to $15 an hour. Some opportunities are available as an employee with benefits and others are for independent contractors. Check with various companies in your area to determine their needs and your availability.

Among the resources to pursue for this type of work:

• Senior Helpers
• Comfort Keepers
• Visiting Angels

Become a pet sitter. Maybe you don’t want to care for people, but you’d love to tend to their pets. Fetch! Pet Care, a nationwide provider of pet sitting and dog-walking services, says the company plans to add 2,400 sitters to its roster by the end of the year. Company CEO Paul Mann says, “Sitters typically earn 50% of the retail price that we charge our clients. For example, if they board a dog in their home overnight they will get half of the $55 per night fee. Two dogs boarded overnight for one week would produce $385 in added income. Sitters choose which assignments they wish to take based on their availability and comfort level with an assignment. Sitters who wish to take on a lot of assignments can easily generate $1,000 to $2,000 or more per month in income. The demand for sitters who can board pets in their home is extremely high so we find that seniors can really increase their income and have lots of assignments through this avenue. They can also do private walks, daycare or visit cats and other small pets.”

• Fetch! Pet Care
• Care.com
• Sittercity.com

Explore temporary staffing options. Finance, accounting, administrative support and legal are some of the areas were temporary help is needed right now, which is good news for seniors. These roles are filled through national staffing firms like OfficeTeam, RobertHalf, Manpower and Kelly.

There are also staffing firms that understand the specific needs and strengths of older workers. Working with a staffing firm, especially with a qualified recruiter, is great because you get the added benefit of someone who can be your advocate, which is helpful at any age.

• OfficeTeam
• Manpower
• RobertHalf
• Kelly Services
• Adecco

Take a job in retail sales: bookstores, drugstores and specialty chains. Retailers like seniors because they’re typically more patient with customers and provide a higher quality of service than teenagers who also look for retail positions. Seniors are also more likely to stay, which lessens the cost of high turnover. Stores like Borders, CVS, Crate & Barrel and Target like to hire people who know their merchandise, so apply to places you like to shop. Apply at in-store kiosks or online.

Consider a job in medical transcription. MedQuist, one of the largest medical transcription companies in the country, say there’s a shortage of talent in this industry. If you’re looking for something you can count on for the next five, 10, or even 20 years, this is a smart field to consider. You have to invest in training, which can take six to nine months, but there’s ample opportunity if you are skilled in this arena.

• MedQuist
• Training information from MedQuist and Career Step

Teaching aides are another job alternative. Contact the local public school districts and private schools in your area now to ask about their staffing needs for the upcoming school year. Many hiring decisions are made six to eight months in advance.

Seek services catering to mature workers.

There are now Web sites and a range of local and national programs supported by direct employers and non-profit organizations that can connect mature workers with qualified leads and opportunities.

• AARP has identified opportunities and advice for 50+ workers.
• Experience Works is a national nonprofit, community-based organization that helps low-income older people get training and find jobs.
• RetirementJobs.com is a job board with positions posted by “age-friendly” employers
• Principal Financial offers a “Happy Returns” program.
• CVS sponsors a seniors program.
• For resources on working from home, click here.
• For tips on avoiding scams, click here.

If you’d like to suggest valuable resources that we should consider adding to this page, please send us an email with details.

Externships

Tory Johnson

Think of an externship as an internship for people who are no longer students. Even though it will likely be unpaid (or you may negotiate a small stipend) this is a chance to gain current experience, which ultimately can be leveraged for a new paid position. Benefits of an externship include:

• Exposure to another profession along with first-hand access to the realities (highs and lows) of a variety of specific positions;

• The ability to develop new skills and build your existing skills by contributing to daily tasks and special projects;

• Current experience to include on your resume, which can be leveraged when applying for your next paid position;

• Access to new contacts to form and nurture professional relationships in your field;

• Long-term value derived from a short-term time commitment.

These benefits are especially valuable to someone who is focused on closing a gap in work history, gaining new skills, or switching fields entirely. Externships may range from three to six months, during which time you can work in one department or propose a rotation. (While you can certainly propose less than three months, many employers will frown on the idea of investing in getting to know you, training you and involving you in projects if you’re only there for a few weeks.)

When I Google the phrase ‘externship resources’, I get more than 100,000 hits, most of which are connected to university programs. Do your own search and visit the sites that pop up to find companies and government agencies with programs already in place. In absence of a formal program, you can pitch yourself as an extern, which is likely to have a better reception among small and medium sized employers. There is less bureaucracy in a smaller shop than in a giant corporation, which is a good thing since you’re probably looking for a quick turnaround on this proposal.

Just as you’re applying to several jobs at any one time, you should pitch an externship to multiple employers at once as well. Use your networks to find prospective employers, and cold call or contact the employers on your wish list. Since you don’t know who’ll accept your proposal, you must have lots of feelers out there.

Women For Hire’s Externship Proposal Template

Date: [Today’s date]
To: [Prospective employer]
From: [You]

I respectfully request your consideration to create an externship opportunity for me to contribute to the [department] at [employer]. This would create a win–win for both of us: You’d benefit from three months [specify your desired length of service] of my service at no cost and no obligation to you, and in return I’d gain valuable hands-on experience, which would aide my professional development.

Please think of an externship similar to a traditional internship, except instead of accepting a college student, you’d be agreeing to take on a professional who is out of school and can focus total attention on the position for career advancement purposes.

In addition to a great degree of enthusiasm and a commitment to excellence, I’d bring you [name the specific knowledge, skills and abilities you possess], which I am confident would benefit your organization.

Because I know this is a relatively new concept and not something that’s in practice now at your organization, I’ve taken the liberty to propose the suggested terms and conditions of such an opportunity for your review. This is just a starting point and I’m open to discussing changes in these terms to serve both of our needs and interests.

Duration of externship: [Start date] to [End date]
Anticipated hours per week: [Number and times]
Desired department(s) for assignment: [Where you want to work and why]

I agree that during this time I will not be an employee of [company], and my externship activities are subject to termination at any time for any reason. Further, I also agree that I am not entitled to compensation during the externship, nor am I entitled to a job at the conclusion of the externship. [If you’d like to propose a stipend to cover travel and lunch expenses, for example, this is the place to do it.] The purpose of this externship training is equivalent to the work experience for a vocational school or professional degree program and is merely an adjunct to such studies. [The purpose of this statement is to make it clear that you’re not technically working for free, which can be challenged by law. Instead, you’re receiving valuable training and experience in lieu of a salary. This minimizes an employer’s liability for allowing you to serve as an extern.]

You have nothing to lose, and we both have so much to gain if you’d entertain this three-month proposal. I’d bring you my skills and determination and I know I’d walk away with great insights and experience from my time with your organization. I’d be happy to discuss this in depth at your convenience. Thank you very much for your time and consideration.

Career Resources

Tory Johnson

In this section, learn about some of our partner organizations that are ready to train and hire women of the workforce. Additionally, visit our sections for seniors, students and recent grads for help with transitional occupations. Help is also available when you’re looking to add a second job to your busy schedule and when you want to launch an entirely new career from scratch.
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