What kind of jobs could I do remotely?
December 17, 2012 3:32 PM   Subscribe

In the next year, me and mr. desjardins are embarking on a nomadic lifestyle (in the U.S.). Given my skillset, what kinds of jobs could I do remotely? Or what kinds of temp work could I pick up while we stay someplace for 2-3 months?

I have intermediate experience in a lot of things but I haven't had years-long experience in any one thing. I do have a master's degree (in Urban Planning), but I've never heard of a planning job you can do remotely. I also have a certificate in GIS, which is the more employable field of the two, but I haven't seen anything as of yet.

In general, I love solving problems and figuring out how to do things. I like communicating complex information in simple ways. I like working alone, but I play well with others too.

Skills and interests:

ArcGIS
Statistics/data analysis
Research
Copy editing
Photoshop
Web/print layout
SharePoint development
Access (and more generally, SQL)
All Microsoft Office products
Some project management

I have at least a passing acquaintance with the following items, but I would love learn more about them.

Open source GIS
Python
JavaScript
SQL server
Photography
Adobe Illustrator
Graphic design
French (I'm at a basic-to-intermediate level)

My one restriction is that it cannot involve a significant amount of time on the phone or otherwise require advanced hearing and speaking skills (e.g., transcription). I can talk on the phone, so interviews and meetings are fine, but I couldn't do a phone sales or call center job due to my hearing impairment.
posted by desjardins to Work & Money (8 answers total) 12 users marked this as a favorite
 
Could you do freelance information architect work? Lots of calls interviewing stakeholders, but the bulk of your work is thinking about stuff and drawing wireframe diagrams.
posted by jenkinsEar at 3:40 PM on December 17, 2012


As a former nomad copy editing is the only one of those skills that looks remotely appropriate. And it doesn't pay super well.
posted by fshgrl at 4:16 PM on December 17, 2012 [2 favorites]


Check your gmail - j
posted by j_curiouser at 4:30 PM on December 17, 2012


Language editing, which is like copy editing but your job is to make sure it sounds fluent. It's very valuable for research companies or universities who want to get a paper published in a technical journal, and it sounds like you have the technical background for it.

Photo retouching could work, and graphic design and web design are both classics of digital nomads.
posted by danceswithlight at 8:12 PM on December 17, 2012 [1 favorite]


Check your MeMail.
posted by carmicha at 9:09 PM on December 17, 2012


If you're good at GIS, and have a copy of good mapping software, you could probably do consulting work doing charts & maps. It's a specific skill & knowledge set with a lot of applications. I don't know how you find this work, but your school should have some placement assistance.
posted by theora55 at 9:28 PM on December 17, 2012


Check out uTest, which crowdsources software testing (and pays its testers). I have not done any work through uTest but I've heard about people that have done it. I don't know if you could rely on it for steady income, though.
posted by Currer Belfry at 6:07 AM on December 18, 2012


Are there specific places where people with GIS skills can look for freelance work?
posted by stratastar at 11:50 PM on December 20, 2012


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