When you can’t beat them, join them.

As we see a global push towards digitalization there remain various opportunities for a comfortable life.

As all businesses are now online, this really means any business or choice of job can be found online.

However, a few remain that are particularly attractive, easy to start and allow a work-life balance of around 5 hours per day. Online jobs are plentiful.

  • Teaching English is a favorite among the traveler and those living abroad. Being an online English teacher allows the possibility of a good life-work balance. As you are reading this in English, chances are this is a job you can do. In most cases even when you are not a native speaker this remains a job you can excel at. Native speakers often struggle to teach grammar something that for non-natives is easier. The role is usually teaching Asian students. Most days appear to be fun and simply having a chat with our Asian counterparts. Typically all that is needed is a cheap laptop with a webcam. This can bring in between $1000-$2000 per month or more. With many destinations being around 5 times cheaper than most English speaking countries this allows a great quality of life.
  • Selling on Amazon, eBay & Other Marketplaces. An online e-commerce business that has been booming now for over 2 decades. If keen on pursuing this option it may be wise to think small not big. Although big business is certainly possible on these platforms the robots and difficult individuals you encounter in these corporations make it hardly worth it. But if you are looking for a decent wage for 20 hours a week and interested in technology and commerce then this is certainly an attractive proposition. If you want to go big, knuckle down, and focus as the marketplaces can present an interesting opportunity too.
  • Upwork is the main online recruiter. Their system can be buggy but it works. Any admin job you can do in an office you can do from Upwork. Depending on your home location, your wages could be even better than in an office. You have people making $5, $10 per hour. Then others working as contractors making over $100 an hour and even some turning over millions.
  • Software Development. In an AI age, you can become a real creator with little to no capital. Digital technologies allow the creation of the most advanced businesses and can be created from the armchair. Though be warned, development is a sacrifice. It is necessary to plug into what you are coding, just as you would writing a book. The intelligence for coding is interesting as it is not always the smartest who excel. Though if you can code to a medium or high level (not everyone can) then the world is your oyster. Make $150 a day in Eastern Europe or over $1000 a day in financial sectors, like London, California, etc. You can get started easily and learn with a variety of apps for both Android and Apple. These can be found for free in their respective stores. Python is a good one to go with.
  • Create an Editorial (Blog) The favorite of many. Setting up your own professional website can be super cheap or free with a great tool like WordPress. Write on a topic you love. Make it the best information out there and then add Google Adsense or Bespoke ads.  You can market it and advertise it for free in social media, forums etc. Though be careful to make sure not to break any rules. With many websites, this can be tricky. If you put your heart in this business it can become a rewarding revenue or side revenue stream.
  • Online Artist Art can be digital too. Everything you can do with a brush or pencil you can do from a laptop also. Mobile phones are not quite powerful enough for design but a cheap tablet or laptop can do the trick. You don’t need the expensive programs from Adobe or Corel, check out the free Gimp Image Design program. Or for somewhere advanced and in the middle there is Affinity that is currently retailing for around $50. Masses of free online and written tutorials allow for a step by step route to becoming pro. Once skills are at the desired level, you could try freelance or even creating your own masterpieces for bespoke design and sale.