OUR INTERVIEW WITH HOLLY REISEM HANNA
- THE WORK AT HOME WOMAN

Want to be the work at home woman?  Now is your chance to learn tips to do just that from Holly Reisem Hanna, a recognized leader in finding new careers at home for women.

You have heard of her and the resources she provides to women to reach their objective of working at home. Now you can read her comments on numerous career issues right here.

Holly Reisem Hanna (Photo Courtesy of Holly)

Holly Reisem Hanna is the successful founder and publisher of the website “The Work at Home Woman”.  Since 2009, Holly has been finding remote businesses and careers for women. Having had various work experiences, she can convey her perspective of the issues that address women in the workplace today.

She has been published in a number of websites such as:

• Woman’s Day Magazine
• MSN Money
• CNN
• Huffington Post
• Forbes
  

In fact, Forbes has placed her website in the “Top 100 Websites for Your Career”.

She enjoys traveling, reading and yoga in Austin, Texas where she resides with her husband and daughter.

THE WORK AT HOME WOMAN - HOLLY REISEM HANNA - Q&A

We appreciate Holly for agreeing to this interview.  Here are our questions:

Q1: Hi Holly, I appreciate you taking the time for this interview. As a business specifically set up to help women, how have you seen the opportunities for women to work at home change since you started your blog in 2009? What has been the major factor?


Holly:  Back in 2009, there were far fewer opportunities than there are today, and the reason for this is three-fold.

• First, technology has evolved exponentially so more and more jobs can now be done from home.
  
• The second factor is that employers have more open attitudes toward telecommuting arrangements.
  
• The third factor is new opportunities that have been created because of all this new technology. Today there are a wealth of jobs that weren't even around 10 - 15 years ago.

Q2: When someone is considering a change from a traditional job to a work at home role, there seems like there is so much to do. What are the top three things that you feel should be addressed to become the work at home woman?


Holly:  Working from home can be a dream, but you need to have the right personality and mindset to be successful. 


Here's what I believe are the three most important questions you need to ask yourself before jumping in:


• Are you a social butterfly? If you're the sort of person that thrives in a social environment, working from home may not be for you. Working in a home office can be incredibly isolating, and it may make you feel lonely, even depressed. If you flourish in a busy and high energy office environment, you may want to take a second look if working remotely is genuinely for you. 


• Can you stay focused? The key to being successful at home is being able to avoid distractions. Unlike a traditional office environment, you'll have household members, duties, and luxuries that you'll need to avoid. If you're not able to ignore these distractions, you'll have a difficult time getting work done. 


• Are you able to think critically? Again, when you work-from-home, you're all alone, and often you'll have to figure stuff out on your own. If you prefer a lot of hand-holding, reassurance, and guidance, working remotely may not be the best option.

What Are Your Answers To These Three Questions? (Base photo courtesy of Holly)

Q3:  In you book "Time Management in 20 Minutes a Day: Simple Strategies to Increase Productivity, Enhance Creativity, and Make Your Time Your Own" released in July 2019, you talk about the proper use of time management. You gave examples of apps and services that one could use to help take care of tasks for you. I was particularly interested in Fiverr.com and TaskBullet.com. How can services like that help someone who is trying to find her path to be the work at home woman?

Holly:  As an entrepreneur, you likely have a never-ending to-do list. One easy and affordable way to take some of the tasks off your list is by outsourcing. With Fiverr, you can purchase one-off solutions for $5 (sometimes more depending on the job). For instance, if you needed an image for Pinterest, you could search the marketplace and find someone to create it for you. By outsourcing, you free up time in your schedule to focus on more important activities.

Q4: You provide a significant number of ideas for your visitors. Some of them are associated with a company in which one works for them on a part-time or perhaps full-time basis. Others are opportunities to set up one's own business. Can you give us a feel for which model has seen the greatest growth? Have you received feedback from your visitors as to level of satisfaction they have received from taking one path or the other as the work at home woman?

Holly:  There are so many different ways individuals can work-from-home. There's freelancing, telecommuting for a company, joining a direct sales opportunity, buying an established business or franchise, or even starting your own business from scratch. Most of these options have seen tremendous growth over the past ten years.

However, with each option, you need to weigh the pros and cons before deciding which path to take. For instance, if you're an introvert, a direct selling opportunity is probably going to be very challenging for you because you constantly have to put yourself out there. My advice is to talk to others in the field that you want to pursue so that you can get a realistic view of what the position entails and how it works.

Talk To Others In The Field You Want To Pursue (Base photo courtesy of Holly)

Q5: As the number of women in the general workforce has grown over the last 20 - 30 years, we now may find more women in midlife that are considering a career change or adjustment to their work life in some way. What would your recommendations be specifically for women considering this at midlife?

Holly:  Before you quit your job or invest in additional schooling, research the new field that you want to go into. Talk to others who are actively working in the occupation and find out the realities of the role. Sometimes we have romanticized notions about other jobs when each profession comes with its own set of pros and cons. If you can, try volunteering, interning, or starting a side hustle to get a taste of what it would really be like. The more prepared you can be, the better.

Q6: Let's talk about the future. Our fantastic world is changing everyday. It certainly has changed over the past 10 - 20 years. What do you feel are going to be the most significant change coming, especially for the work at home woman? How can someone prepare to take advantage of those changes?


Holly:  I think technology will continue to evolve, so staying up-to-date with current technologies and trends will be important. But because of all of this technology, I think people will place a greater emphasis on human interaction and connection. I believe the companies that are able to combine the two into an authentic blend will be the ones that flourish.

Combine Technology and Human Interaction To Succeed (Photo courtesy of Holly)

End of interview

For additional interviews with other knowledgeable individuals and experts, click here.  Or you can find your own mentor, reserve a mentor or become a mentor by clicking these links.

As always, feel free to contact me at anytime if you have questions or comments.

Thanks to Holly Reisem Hanna, THE WORK AT HOME WOMAN

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