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Living with chronic illness looking to start an online business

Discussion in 'General Business' started by Movingforward, Jan 10, 2018.

  1. #1
    hi I hope someone can give me advice and honest replies please. I worked as a beauty therapist and enjoyed it a lot. Unfortunately I became very ill and for the past 12 years Iv not worked due to a chronic illness I have. Iv found it so hard because I was always so ambitious and this illness has taken away and stopped so much of my life. My two young children are at school and I spend my days either feeling quite well and having nothing to do but sit indoors on my own or I’m feeling really ill in bed.

    I’m desperately wanting to work again and trying to think of ways I could do this. My condition causes me to at short notice get very poorly where I can become bedbound for a day or a couple of weeks,but I also have phases where I can do quite normal things aslong as I don’t over do it.

    due to the unpredictable nature of my illness I just decided I couldn’t work again yes there are lots of days I physically can’t work but I know I also have a lot of fear now stopping me, as I worry all I’ll do is let people down.

    However I really want to get some quality of life back i would love to work doing clients and being social again but I’m trying to think of a way I could work giving the nature of my illness

    I have been really thinking about online ideas, and I have come up with an idea for an App which I feel could be really good. However I am very untechnical and have no idea where to start in creating an app, can anyone here please give me some advise.

    I was also thing about creating a website and/ or a blog but again I do not know how I go about creating these so again any advice would be greatly aprecuated.

    I was also thinking that I could potebtuinally work as a therapist again and do something like having some kind of system where I could contact clients( once they are built up) on the day I’m feeling well, offering discounted treatments if they can attend that day, or If i booked someone in and had to cancel on them then I could offer something for their inconvenience.

    Sorry for the long message I just hope someone can help I’m 34 and just don’t want to spend the rest of my life this way Many thanks
     
    Movingforward, Jan 10, 2018 IP
  2. sarahk

    sarahk iTamer Staff

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    #2
    Oh boy, what a shit hand of cards you've been dealt but well done on making this far and even having a family!

    There are loads of things you can do but initially, you'll want to focus on the little jobs that you can take and complete quickly.

    Start by looking at the skills that you think might be interesting to acquire and the time/funds you can put into your upskilling.

    If you're arty there are sites where you can submit logo designs or bid for small design contracts. As you get more experienced the money gets better. You'll need a computer, software and decent training. It takes more than just being proficient, you have to understand the client's business, their customers and how they plan to use the design. We've got design services and design contest sections here. Wander over and take a look, but we're not the only site to offer it and some specialise.

    If you like the idea of photography and have some space you could take a punt on selling images. https://www.gettyimages.co.nz/photos/water-splashing-fruit Someone gets paid when those images get used. There's no reason why you couldn't be doing something like that and getting paid too.

    If you think you could learn to program (it's totally possible) you could design and create website themes to sell at sites like this one or https://market.envato.com/ or one of the many others. The pay per design is low but if they're good and you sell enough...

    There's also the whole affiliate sales thing but that takes a lot of consistent work for an uncertain return and doesn't give you the opportunity to say "look what I've done" and I suspect that you'd benefit from being able to show friends and family what you're achieving.

    The good thing about all of these is that you're working within your own timeframes and capabilities. There's no instant win but you're getting skills to build a career. If you're feeling up to it today you work, if you're sick you don't and you're not letting anyone down.

    Good luck and stay in touch.
     
    sarahk, Jan 10, 2018 IP
  3. Movingforward

    Movingforward Peon

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    #3
    Hi thanks for your detailed reply that’s much appreciated! Those things I’ve never heard of before so those are potential things I could look into so thanks!

    I wondered if you New how to create an App, I have an idea that I think could work quite well but I’m not sure how I go about doing this. Where I even begin with something like that

    Also Iv read about blogging and how you can rate products etc and I thought I could try this and tie it in with my beauty therapy priducts and even stuff to do with my illness. But again I have no idea how you set up a website or a blog to even do this.

    Many thanks
     
    Movingforward, Jan 10, 2018 IP
  4. sarahk

    sarahk iTamer Staff

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    #4
    Beauty bloggers abound and they tend to be young and perfect and beautiful and have rich parents (judging from the size of their bedrooms) - it's a really tough niche. Download a template for a business plan and see if you can find your own niche within the niche but be aware that many of the bloggers are happy to do it for the free samples, there's a new batch of flawless teens turning up every year. [see this too]

    Blogging about products is the affiliate side of things and sites like those abound. You can certainly join their ranks but you're relying on getting traffic and that is hard. You might be up for it, but don't underestimate the efforts. Be careful about guides and programs that cost money, read as much as you can that is free - be mindful of the publish date, information gets out of date very quickly.

    The main problem affiliate sites have is that they haven't actually accessed the product. Guys like Dave Taylor get sent samples. Most don't, they just regurgitate other people's reviews and their opinions are, therefore, worthless. If you have access to even the narrowest niche of products prior to release then seize that and stick to that.

    Let's say you have a friend works in product development at OPI. They bring out new colours all the time. Ask for samples and promise that you won't blab - but come the release day you'll be ready with opinion, video and photos. Now, a company like OPI, probably doesn't have an affiliate program but Amazon do and Amazon sell OPI https://www.amazon.com/Beauty-Personal-Care-OPI/

    Unfortunately, most of us don't have a friend with a job like that, but if there's an edge that you can exploit without ruining your friendship then go for it.
     
    sarahk, Jan 10, 2018 IP
  5. Bella Lopez

    Bella Lopez Greenhorn

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    #5
    Creating your blog is a feasible idea but yes it doesn't monetize quickly. For your app, you can either find someone else to create the app for you or learn online. There are many youtube tutorials for that.

    You can also set up your own store in Wordpress and import products from AliExpress. The supplier will ship and pack for you in dropshipping. So, you don't have to go anywhere. Just get a plugin like AliDropship or WooDropship service to automate the store and focus on Social media for your store. If you'll give only 2-3 hours to it daily, you'll definitely succeed.
     
    Bella Lopez, Jan 11, 2018 IP
  6. usasportstraining

    usasportstraining Notable Member

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    #6
    Would Fiverr work for you? You can limit how many gigs you can take at one time. There are plenty of people that do that as an online business. They have their own site, but do the sales through Fiverr.

    Otherwise, you could set up a few blogs (on different hosts) and then sell guest posts. Lots of people want the backlinks that they provide. You can also schedule your blog posts, so you write a bunch when you feel well, then take a break when you do not.

    I feel for you my friend. I have my ups and downs too.
     
    usasportstraining, Jan 11, 2018 IP
  7. uncia

    uncia Well-Known Member

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    #7
    Hi, I would suggest to start out with selling your skills.
    That doesn’t require any monetary investment and you can start in the next hour. Some examples of such jobs:

    Content writing. This is the simplest one to start with - no special skills required. Besides, there is a big demand for quality, original content. Earnings start from 5$ / 500 words. Reputable freelancing platforms to find clients:
    • Upwork.com
    • PeoplePerHour.com
    • Freelancer.com
    • Fiverr.com
    Micro jobs - doing small tasks - commenting on social media, sharing posts, watching videos, following, liking, writing reviews. These jobs take usually less that 1 min. to finish and earn about 0,10$ per task. Some micro job websites:
    • Amazon Mechanical Turk - mturk.com/worker
    • Microworkers - microworkers.com
    These are pretty simple steps that will get introduced to the world of earning money online.
     
    uncia, Jan 11, 2018 IP
    usasportstraining likes this.