Please note: This article is targeted toward those who prefer hourly work to earn a paycheck (usually W2 employment) – vs. making a living as an independent (1099) or self employed. We will be discussing more ways to make money from your RV in future articles.
Where is your life headed today? If you’re like most people you work a location-dependent job and dream about more freedom (and travel) than your work allows. During the busy work week you squeeze in errands, household chores, and other ‘to-do’ items on your never-ending list.
When the week ends you do it again…rinse and repeat. Meanwhile, this little voice in your head keeps saying, “Is this the American Dream? . . . Do I have another 20 years of this? . . . Isn’t there more to life than working so much, with little time to travel and see the world?”
I know this feeling because, like you, I’ve been there. As a self-confessed workaholic, I pushed through 50+ hour work weeks for years. Vacations were always too short and left me wanting more time off from my hectic life.
One day I made a massive change. I sold my home and my wife and I bought an RV and hit the road. Today I live and travel in our RV, all while working full-time from the road. Learn more about how I make a living from the road.
And if I did it, you can too!
But unless you’re wealthy or retired, how do you make such a dramatic lifestyle change while you still need to earn money? You get a job or career that you can take on the road with you.
In 2019 this is getting increasingly easy as more people telecommute and more companies are willing to hire telecommuters. Internet availability and data speeds are also at an all-time high, and that helps with the vast majority of jobs, too.
Read on for the 5 different types and resources that can help you earn a paycheck from an RV or mobile lifestyle.
#1 – Telecommuting, Virtual, & Home-Based Jobs
I believe working from home is one one the best ways to earn a paycheck while RVing or traveling. My recruiting work is a telecommuting job and I love it!
Telecommuting opportunities are increasing quickly in the US, which naturally makes it easier for you to find one.
Jobs in this category include
- Web Designer
- Web Developer
- Web Marketing/Social Media
- Software Engineer
- Computer Programmer
- Graphic Artist
- Desktop Publisher
- Advertising and Media Buyer
- Architect and Engineer
- Recruiter
- Sales Representative
- Data Entry Clerk
- Customer Service Representative
- Telephone Order Taker
- Telemarketer
- Accountant
- Book Keeper
- Medical Transcriptionist
- Reviewer and Coder
- Writers
- Travel Photographer
- Stockbroker
- Online Professor
The Pay: Clerical and customer service jobs start at minimum wage and pay up to $20/hour. Specialized jobs, such as computer programmers, engineers, and graphic artists range from $50,000 – $100,000/year.
Telecommuters are usually paid the same as their counterparts at the office so I encourage you to ask for full pay. This may not sound ‘fair’, but consider that telecommuters are often tracked more carefully than other office workers. Also, you don’t have office politics, water cooler chats, and meetings to chew up your time.
The Good:
- Provides a steady paycheck.
- Provides good job stability.
- Most often includes health, vacation benefits, and direct deposit.
- The “commute” is great! Instead of a commute, I take a walk around the campground!
- You’re paid according to skill level, like you would if located in an office.
- Rewarding work, assuming you like the job you have.
- Flexibility to travel or stay in one place while working.
- Usually allows for a flexible schedule and other work-at-home perks. Yes, you can work in your pajamas, which I occasionally do!
Not so Good:
- It takes discipline to work, especially when you’re traveling to great places.
- You may feel disconnected from the office and your team at times.
- You may not have the benefit of tech support and other office assistance.
- You’ll need to stay current on your skills so you remain highly productive and employable.
Where to Find Virtual & Home-Based Jobs
Your first resource is your current employer. Assuming you’re in good standing, ask to try telecommuting before you begin traveling as this gives everyone time to adjust.
If that doesn’t work out, there are hundreds of job boards, like Monster.com and CareerBuilder.com. As with all job boards you’ll contact the employer directly through their posting. Most job boards are free to use as a job seeker which is helpful.
The Job Board I Recommend for RVers
While you could spend many hours searching the big job boards, only around 10% of the job postings are telecommuting positions. To save yourself time, I recommend checking out FlexJobs.com (we are not affiliated with flexjobs.com and receive no compensation from them). FlexJobs is a unique job board that lists over 20,000 flexible and virtual jobs, posted by over 4,000 companies – all in one convenient location. It has solid online reviews, and has been featured on CNN, USA Today and NBC. FlexJobs is also BBB Accredited.
FlexJobs has two drawback that I could find. #1 – they charge job seekers $14.95 a month for access. If you’re unable to find flexible work using other job sites, I think it’s a reasonable price. #2 – Many of the jobs on FlexJobs are contract or project work vs. long-term telecommuting positions. That said they do have advanced search features that let you target only the telecommuting positions.
Craigslist Job Listings
While some of the telecommuting jobs posted on Craigslist are legitimate, the pay tends to be ‘entry level’ or worse. CraigsList also has more than its share of scammers and swindlers, so beware of “free internship” and “make money online” listings. If a job requires you to pay money upfront, then it isn’t a job!
That said, if you’re willing to dig you can find leads on Craigslist – but it’s not the place I’d start.
A word of caution regarding online job listings: When you search online you’ll find many “work from home” listings. Most of these listings aren’t legitimate and they want you to pay money for their work-at-home program or class. If it looks like a scam it probably is. When in doubt, Ripoff Report and the Better Business Bureau are good resources.
#2 – Travel Jobs
There are two types of travel jobs: Project work and Client Field work.
Project Work
is often found in the engineering and construction industries. One example is a project engineer who works on a hospital construction site for 6 months, 1,000 miles away from home. Jobs include:
- Project manager
- Field Service and Other Engineer
- Service Technician
- Environmental Surveyor
- Pipe Fitter
- Oil Rigger/Driller
- Archeologist
- Geologist
- Consultant
- Auditor
Client Field Work
Client field work covers a broad range of careers, but is often found in sales and consulting jobs. For example, a sales manager who visits sales reps and clients 2,000 miles away from home for a few weeks at a time. Jobs include
- Business Consultant
- Athletic Recruiter
- Travel Agent
- Large Event Coordinator
- Roadie
- Traveling Nurse
- Sales Manager
- Sales Representative
- Public Speaker
- Spokes Person
The Pay: Most of these jobs start at $50,000 and range into the 6 figures. They pay well because most people don’t want to travel for work and because the jobs require specialized skills. If you’re interested in a travel job, you could use your RV as a home base, rather than staying in motels and flying home between assignments. Many full-timer RVers have been living this way for years, and some even take their families with them.
The Good:
- Provides a steady paycheck – often with excellent pay and job stability.
- Provides regular medical and vacation benefits, direct deposit, and other perks.
- Some jobs provide prestige, rewarding work, and room for advancement.
- Provides the opportunity to expand your network.
- You can travel some while working.
Not so Good:
- You usually can’t choose your locations or assignments.
- Long periods away from family if they can’t join you.
- Project and Client Field work can be very stressful and time-sensitive.
- If you’re RVing and working, some jobs can feel like a “grind” – with high profile client support, overtime or long shifts.
Travel Job Resources
Your first resource is your current employer. Assuming you’re in good standing and your current employer has traveling positions, ask what it will take to transfer. If that doesn’t work out, talk to people in your network for travel job leads.
Resources I Recommend: You can find travel jobs on the big job boards, but your best bet is a more specialized board that is focused on these types of jobs. JobisJob.com has over 1,600 travel jobs listed, and another good resource is NicheJobs.com. Both sites are free to the job seeker.
#3 – Temporary Jobs You Find Through Staffing Agencies
Temporary jobs, or “Temp” jobs can provide you with a paycheck for a range of time – from a few days to a year. There are two ways to get a temporary assignment: #1 – Apply through a Staffing Agency, and #2 – Apply directly to the employer.
In this category I’ll focus on Temp jobs where you apply through a Staffing Agency, because Agencies normally have multiple openings which makes it quicker and easier for you to get a job.
Most Temp Agencies offer two types of work: Administrative jobs and Light Industrial jobs.
Administrative jobs
These office jobs are administrative and support a company’s operations, marketing, finance or manufacturing groups. Jobs include:
- Administrative Assistant
- Receptionist
- Sales Support
- Customer Service
- Data Entry
- Accounting
- Book Keeping
- Sales
- Recruiting
Light industrial jobs
These jobs support warehouse and light manufacturing functions. Jobs include:
- Light assembly
- machine operator
- inventory control
- picker/packer
- quality control
- forklift operator
- shipping and receiving
- quality control
- janitorial
- maintenance workers.
The Pay: Temp jobs are usually paid on an hourly basis, and Administrative jobs average between $10 and $15/hour. Light industrial jobs start at minimum wage and top out around $12 an hour. In both categories, specialized jobs may pay as much as $40 an hour.
The Good:
- Can provide a steady paycheck for a specified period of time. Direct deposit is usually offered.
- Opportunity to expand your work skills and business knowledge in different settings.
- Can be rewarding work, and is often not that stressful.
- Opportunity to stay in a location for a period of time.
- You aren’t expected to be around for long term, so it’s fine to leave when your assignment is over.
Not so Good:
- Working at a business location can take away from the fun of RV’ing, as the hours are usually 8am to 5pm or similar. Some warehouse jobs may require second shift.
- Employers may be located in office parks that aren’t close to RV parks or campgrounds.
- For office jobs: be prepared to wear business-casual clothing.
- Pay isn’t as high as some telecommuting or travel jobs.
- Agencies provide minimal or no benefits.
- While you can usually count on a paycheck for the specified period of time, you could be let go earlier if the client changes their mind.
Temporary Job Resources
Run a Google search for “Temporary Staffing Agencies” and include the name of the town you’re visiting in your search. A number of local Agencies should show up in your search results. If you want to know more about Agencies, check out the American Staffing Association. The ASA promotes ethical and legal practices in the Staffing industry and provides facts to help you know what to expect.
For best results finding a temp job, plan on being in an area for at least a month. You’ll need to identify and register with 2-3 Agencies, and depending on the job market in the area you’re visiting it may take several days before you’re offered a temp job. Temp assignments can last anywhere from a few hours to several weeks.
Resumes: Make sure you have a simple resume that demonstrates your office or warehouse skills. Regardless of your experience, keep your resume focused on these transferable skills such as customer service, data entry, shipping, inventory, or whatever fits the type of job you’re after.
Put an Objective at the top of your resume, stating you’re looking for a temporary position in your target job. This way, if your background is very different from the temp job you’re seeking, the Agency and employer will see your top skills, and will understand that you’re only looking for temporary work. Finally, make sure you don’t put an address on the resume, since companies won’t consider you if they think you’ll need to relocate.
#4 – Temporary Jobs Where You Apply Directly to the Employer
There are three types of jobs in this category: Holiday Seasonal, Peak-Season, and Job Vacancies.
Holiday Seasonal Jobs
You can often find a temp job to help meet holiday seasonal demand. These are usually focused around the retail and distribution/shipping industries. For example, Amazon directly hires a large number of seasonal workers to help package orders during the Christmas rush. Jobs include:
- Warehouse & Shipping
- Customer Service Retail
- Gift Wrapper
- Greeter
- Cashier
- Stock Clerk
- Maintenance & Janitorial
- Restaurant Staff
- Valet
- Bartender
- Hotel/Hospitality Jobs
- Maid Service
- Bellhop
- Delivery
Peak Season Jobs
You could opt for a temp job to help with peak-season demand in industries such as fishing, oil refinery, farming, construction, and tourism. For example: Farms in northern Maine hire hundreds of pickers to harvest potatoes during peak potato season. Jobs include:
- Fisherman
- Deck Hand
- Fish Processor
- Farm Workers
- Construction Framer
- Carpenter
- Site Excavator
- Sheet Rocker
- Oil Refinery
- Tourism Jobs
- Booking Agents
- Tour GUides
- Raft Guides
- SCUBA Instructor
- Cruise Ship Jobs
- Fishing Lodge Jobs
- Ski Instructor
- Snow Removal
Job Vacancies
You might run into a temp job to cover for an employee who’s on vacation or on a leave of absence. Or you might find a company that needs temporary help while searching for a long-term candidate.
Jobs that fit into this category: There’s a wide range of these jobs, including retail, office work, delivery and more. These jobs usually require little training.
The Pay: The pay varies greatly in all three categories. Holiday Seasonal jobs are usually paid hourly and sometimes have a performance bonus attached to the project. Peak-Season work varies widely by region and job type. Jobs where you travel a longer distance usually pay more than those closer to large populations.
For example: Fishing boat crew members in Alaska can make $10,000 a month or more during a good summer season. Many people use Peak-Season work as their only job and take the rest of the year off. Peak-Season jobs usually include room and board as part of the pay. Job Vacancy work is usually paid hourly. (Most jobs in these 3 groups don’t provide benefits.)
The Good:
- Can provide a steady paycheck for a period of time.
- Opportunity to expand your skills, business knowledge and contacts.
- Can be rewarding work, and may be low-stress. (If seasonal, the opposite may be true!)
- Opportunity to stay in an area for a period of time.
- The pay can be excellent for certain job types. Bonus pay may be available for some seasonal work.
Not so Good:
- Working at a business can take detract from the fun of RV’ing, since the hours may be regular. Some may require overtime, swing shifts or late shifts.
- You may need to travel a distance to the job, which should be factored into the pay/cost value equation. (The travel might be a positive or bonus for you, but make sure to consider the expense)
- Usually has no benefits and little job stability.
Resources: Companies usually post ads for Holiday Seasonal or Peak-Season jobs in local newspapers, circular publications, or online. Job Vacancies are often found through referrals, word of mouth, “Help Wanted” signs, or on community bulletin boards. You could check out FlexJobs too, since this type of work is also included in those listings. I’ve also put a link to Alaska Summer Jobs, since the site has a ton of job information, and Alaska is a popular destination for summer work.
#5 – Working at a Campground or RV Park (aka Workamping)
Workamping is short for work camping, and describes any temporary work offered to RVers by a Campground or RV Park.
Some people expand the term Workamping to include all types of temporary jobs outside of working in a campground or RV park. I’ve already talked about other Temp jobs so will stick with RV and Campground jobs here.
I’ve devoted a category to Workamping because it’s unique in two ways: First, some openings require job sharing with a partner or spouse. Second, most Workamping jobs have unique compensation which I’ll describe in detail below.
Workamping jobs can be temporary or long-term, but most are seasonal and last from one to six months.
There are three types of Workamping jobs: Office, Manual Labor (maintenance, landscaping, cleaning), and Management/Combination jobs. Smaller parks or campgrounds may require a mixture of these duties.
Office Jobs
These jobs include new camper registration, taking campers to their campsite, running the office or store, and some paperwork.
Jobs that fit into this category: Cashier, customer service, store clerk, reservations, security check-in, activities coordinator, and more.
Manual Labor Jobs
These jobs include anything that helps keep the campground looking good and running well.
Jobs or duties that fit into this category: Lawn maintenance, campsite cleanup, janitor, landscaper, property maintenance, and more.
Management/Combination Jobs
If you have management experience you may be qualified to assist campground management in a variety of ways.
Jobs that fit into this category: Camp host, as well as assistant manager, or manager to the office or manual workers. You may also be required to do some of these duties, yourself.
Workamper Pay
Workampers are paid in one of three ways:
#1 – You get a “free” RV site. This usually including utilities and sometimes including propane and wifi.
#2 – You work for an hourly, weekly, or monthly rate.
#3 – You get a “free” RV site and some additional pay – usually minimum wage.
Hourly rates for Office and Manual work range between minimum wage and $15/hour. Management roles pay up to $25/hour. The parks spell out the terms ahead of time, so you’ll know what to expect before you arrive. Whether the RV Park is privately-owned, State-owned, Federally-owned, or part of a membership system, the income opportunities are similar.
The Good:
- Can provide a steady paycheck for a period of time.
- Can provide an inexpensive or rent-free place to camp.
- There is no commute, since you work at your park.
- You often get to do some outside work, which is compatible with RV’ing.
- Jobs are often available in adventurous places, such as regional, state and national parks.
- RV’ers, campers and fellow workers are a pretty friendly group.
Not so Good:
- Some jobs require you to work long hours, late/early hours, weekends or nights.
- In some jobs you may be “on call” as RV’ers arrive and leave.
- It may be challenging to get away from your job, compromising some privacy while camping.
- Some tasks aren’t as desirable (to me, at least), such as cleaning bathrooms, dump stations.
- The pay is fairly low, compared to other forms of work you can do.
Workamper Resources
The easiest way to find these jobs is to subscribe to Workamper News or Workampingjobs.com. After you sign up you’ll become a member and receive monthly or bi-monthly newsletters as well as emails about jobs around the country. Membership costs you between $30 and $55 a year. Workamper News also hosts job fairs around the country.
A good free resource is CampHost.org. It’s easy to sign up for their mailing list, and they’ll send you an email when they have a campground host or host couple position available.
Don’t Forget ‘Work’ Clothes
If you plan to apply to a temp job, or to work from the road, it’s a good idea to have one business suit for interviews or meetings. A nice suit is also useful for weddings and other dressy events. If a suit is too fancy for your line of work, I’d at least recommend a few business-casual outfits, such as slacks or skirt and a button-down shirt. I have one suit and a few business-casual outfits with me in the RV, and they take up very little room.
The Book That Helped Us Get Started
Before we got on the road – and before we even thought about getting on the road, we read The 4 Hour Work Week by Timothy Ferris. It’s one of the best idea-generating career books I’ve read! As the title implies, Tim will help you see ways to leverage your skills so you can work less, and enjoy your travel life more. He also has a comprehensive section on turning your current job into a telecommuting position. In fact, Kathy used Tim’s strategy with her employer and that’s how she’s able to telecommute now.
Tim is a work-efficiency expert, and his tips have helped me work less hours today than I ever have before.
We’d love to hear how your search for a travel-friendly job works out for you. Please let us know in the comments. If you’re already making a living while full-time RVing, please feel free to share what you do for work, and how you like it.
Until next time, happy trekking!
47 Comments
Hi. Thanks for a great article. I am a massage therapist and am wondering if you think that there might be a market to do either regular table massage or chair massage while traveling in an RV at RV parks?
Hi Vince – absolutely. In many parks you can post a sign outside your RV as well as up on the bulletin board. I know I would have paid for your services plenty of times – especially after a long driving day!
Thanks, Rich!
Hi Vince,
Thank you for answering this question, I am also a massage therapist trying to figure out how I can travel and still do what I love while still having an income. I recently purchased a C-class motor home and just wanna travel from state to state and exploring what our country has to view!
Thanks Rich
Hi Vince,
Thank you for asking your question, I am also a massage therapist trying to figure out how I can travel and still do what I love! I recently purchased a C-class motor home and just wanna travel from state to state and exploring what our country has to view!
Congratulations on your new motorhome Deanna! There is a lot of need for your services in most RV campgrounds and parks. If you advertise your services and have space to work I think you’d do well.
Our family is considering RVing at least part-time. I already have a great “work from home” job and am very mobile. I have to have internet access though, all my work is via remote desktop connection. I’ve read that WiFi is quite iffy or non existent in some parks. And does this mean I can’t park anywhere BUT a high end RV facility with WiFi? Is the technology there yet? I read you comments about using Verizon.. is that just for cell coverage?
Hi Wesley – most of my posts refer to data coverage. The vast majority of RV parks – even good ones – have relatively poor WiFi coverage. If it’s good coverage, that means other people are streaming Netflix which slows everyone down periodically anyway. The only way we were able to make it work is with a Verizon unlimited plan. On the unlimited plans, each phone gets 15GB of high-speed hotspot data, so with two phones that’s 30GB. Verizon 4G data is very fast almost everywhere – just don’t use it to stream video. It’s important to use video blockers in your browser, as lots of sites auto-play video (Facebook, news sites) and it chews up data really quickly. That, and don’t let your phones auto-update apps! We wait until we go somewhere that has wifi and let them update there (McDonalds, coffee shop, walmart, etc..). Good luck!
Great article. My husband and I want to leave the daily grind as well and live full time in an RV. He will be working as a travelling respiratory therapist. The assignments will last approximately 3 months. I have been a hairdresser for 30 years and am used to above average compensation. I feel like I dont have other job skills and I’m wondering about what kind of job I could do on the road that would pay more than minimum wage. I would love to do hair but licensing is different in each state and I feel it would be challenging to find clients on short notice that aren’t looking for a long vfc term relationship with their stylist. Any ideas?
Hi Terryl – You might consider checking in with local salons ahead of time and seeing if they have any use for a short-term hair stylist. You can also advertise on local Craiglist and most campgrounds have a board up front where you can advertise. A lot of people in campgrounds even advertise products or services right at their campsite. I’m sure it requires approval by campground management, but I’ve seen it many times. Just some thoughts.
If you want to do something other than hair, then start brainstorming. Everyone has things they’re good at that can translate into money or a job somehow. Good at social media? Get into social media marketing for companies. Arts and crafts? Sell stuff on Etsy. Think about it and I hope you find something that ‘clicks’ – Good luck!
What a great read! I am posting because I need some advice. I just bought a large fifth wheel already own a truck to pull! Yayy so exciting. Anyway. I used to own a plumbing company and sold it recently due to stress. I cashed out with a large lump sum which I’ve spent and became debt free. I get a small income from the business i sold for the lease of my license. I now work for an engineering firm. I do their estimating and PM. I am 37. I can do just about anything. I have electrical experience. Plumbing. Engineering. General carpentry. I would say I am an excellent handyman. Jack of all trades really. Although I am sure I could use those trades to make a living anywhere I wonder if I could take my engineering skills on the road. My thing is that I don’t want to travel the country burning bridges. I would rather do it as a seasonal type things. Any thoughts on how I should go about my search? I am ready sell everything and get this life going. Any advice would be appreciated. Also, my girl is a personal trainer. Any thoughts on how she would do on the road? Meal plans, nutritional advice, training, etc. thanks so much!
Hi George – It sounds like you might make a good mobile RV mechanic of sorts. Plenty of RVers have need for plumbing, electrical, and carpentry help, so you may have good luck with your fellow RVers. The personal trainer gig is a little harder to take on the road. If you can produce and upload videos or classes for online students via Youtube or Instagram you may have luck.
Hello
I work for the government. Me and my husband have one more child left in the house. Our 4 yr old. We want to do RV travel and work in the RV. I was looking into the school education called k12 virtual classroom for her. Hubby was thinking something like programming or IT graphics design. I just don’t know for me. I know i would be good as a virtual assistant or something along those lines. But would it pay better than what I make now $16HR? What other family couple jobs are their that would be stress free? He is so tired of managing a self storage company. STRESS!!
Hi Casey, Thanks for sharing your family plans and congrats on them! Regarding a job for you, most virtual assistant roles seem to pay $11-$15/hour range. That said, they should be much less stressful than managing a self storage company. There are certainly more ways to make higher figure than $16/hour but it usually involves you knowing someone who needs you to manage a project or something that leverages your management skills..without all the management responsibility. I mention FlexJobs.com in my article and recommend you check it out. Even with a small monthly cost it’s worth looking over time. You don’t have to sign up to browse openings (some are part time onsite work, others are virtual part or full time hours, either case can be temp or long term). I hope this helps and best to you!
My husband and I are planning on buying an RV and traveling. I took a voluntary separation package from my employer (early retirement) and took my retirement in a lump sum which I rolled over into my 401K. I plan on taking a chunk of that money out just to buy a new RV and a nice truck to pull it. I”m going to pay off my house as well, but am not quite ready to sell it in case I find the full time RV life is not for me. I would like to find some employment to supplement our travels. The last three years at my job, I did telecommute from home so I know what telecommuting is all about. My husband gets social security disability which basically only covers his medical and prescription drugs. Any advice on getting started with this endeavor would be greatly appreciated.
Hi Linda, First of all congratulations to you and your husband! It sounds like you have a smart plan with buying the RV and truck, and holding onto your home while trying out the RV lifestyle. You appear to be in better shape financially than many new RVers, so that’s a good thing. In terms of ideas for supplemental income, you don’t mention what type of work you did with telecommuting. I bring it up because I’ve found that using previous connections are the best way to earn money while on the road – and I wonder if you could do some part-time ‘independent’ (I-9) work for your former employer? Tele-commuting work is also the easiest way to make money from the road in my opinion. That said, I recognize you took early retirement with them so perhaps you prefer to do something different on the road. If you’re looking for a desk job, Flexjobs.com has virtual (and non virtual) part time and other flex jobs of all types – and while there is a small monthly subscription fee you can browse jobs for free first. They are legitimate, too. If so when looking at options it will depend on whether you need a steady paycheck. I wrote this article for people like me, who do want or need a stead paycheck. If you don’t need that, you could start with cottage industry ideas. I see tons of people and couples on the road who sell RV services or products, others who sell crafts, and even people who do taxes, etc. Then there are people who prefer Workcamping in some locations. You can refer back to my article to get the ideas going, and then we you get on the road you’ll learn more from other RVers as you go. I hope this helps, and stay in touch!
My husband and I will be RV living full time in two weeks! We’re so excited!
I am hoping my businesses take off in the RV parks (or virtually) once I get out there and spread the word. Using sites like CraigsList don’t seem to generate the clientele I look for but I’m hoping to talk with someone at Good Sam to hopefully get featured. Commenting on these posts will also hopefully get the word out (insert roar of laughter here).
Do you see a need in the RV community for any pet services or housekeeping-type? Or other full time RVers that may need a virtual assistant?
PuppyandCompany.com
AdminonaMountain.com
Hi Chelsea,
Congrats to you and your husband for becoming full time RVers!! It certainly is an exciting time. To answer your question, yes I absolutely see a need for pet services/sitting and housekeeping in the RV community. You don’t mention how long you’re going to stay at each park, but this makes a huge difference in how easy it will be to market your services. Of course if you’re moving from place to place, Craigslist would be tough, as would most other traditional advertising venues. Regardless of your travel plans, my first thought would be to put magnetic decals on your car or tow vehicle, which states your services are geared to RVers. I’ve seen a number of RV-geared businesses as we travel the country. With a magnetic sign you wouldn’t have to worry about potential park rules banning business signage. You’d have your phone number and email address to provide easy contact for RVers walking by. Then you might have business cards you could hand out when meeting people at social events, etc. If you do travel you could always write the length of time you plan to be at that campground on the back of the card. Obviously if you’re planning on staying in one location you can check the RV park’s boards, as sometimes they allow local advertising or advertisers from the park. In that case you could also post in local cafes, stores, etc., using a small flyer. I’ve heard this method of advertising works well. By the way, your PuppyandCompany website is very nicely designed. All the best to you and hope this helps!
Great article,
I tried all kinds of websites to make extra money online.
What works best for me is Koocam.
I teach my hobbies, and sells my knowledge in any field
And it works great!
Hi Eitan,
Sorry I didn’t see your comment until now but thanks for sharing. I’ve checked out Koocam and it seems like an excellent resource. Good for you!
Thank you for your website. We are wanting to start traveling and working. I have been doing a lot of research on what is out there, we have sold the house and are getting our bills down so we will be ready.. I think the hardest thing is leaving 2 jobs that we have both had for awhile. All the websites have been a great help .
What a spectacular roundup of opportunities! THANK YOU for putting this amazing guide together.
Not sure if you are still checking comments, if so I have a question:
In your remote recruiting work, have you found it’s difficult to be able to do things like take work calls from campsites? I’m concerned mostly about the noise level in the campground during the day. Like you, I work remotely and once or twice a month I have VERY important calls that really can’t be disturbed with outside noise. Generally speaking, do you think that might become a problem for me (I know there are tons of variables at play – what campgrounds, time of year, etc. – just asking somewhat generally).
Thanks for any insight you can provide!
Hello Lori, Thanks so much for your feedback, and I appreciate knowing it was helpful for you to read this article.
To answer your questions: First, it is fairly easy for me to answer calls at campsites for my recruiting work. Of course I need decent cell service but we plan ahead when we book campgrounds by looking on campsite reviews, or in a site called Campendium, if the location is more remote. You talk about noise level during the day. I find our RV is well insulated enough that I can take a call, have a conference call, talk with clients, etc. and 98% of the time it is quiet enough for me. Occasionally there may be a leaf blower outside that’s a little too loud but the same thing happens in an office setting at times, too.
If you have an RV that is enclosed and insulated (in other words, not a pop-up tent camper), you should be in good shape, too. Summer in general can be a bit noiser with families, kids, dogs, but I still find I am able to talk on the phone just fine almost all the time. I really found it to be surprising just how quiet my RV is! If this helps, I work from the bedroom on my laptop and I have a headboard behind me, which has padding. We made one and hung it over the larger windows for this reason, so it provides some insulation. There are pics on our site that show our bedroom.
Best of luck to you Lori!
My husband and I are wanting to become full time rver’s. I have started grooming dogs and love it. Would this be an ideal job for on the road. We would pull our own mobile grooming van behind our RV. Please let me know if this is a good idea or not.
Thank you,
Tracy White
Hi Tracy,
Thanks for your question and my apologies for the delay in responding. I think your mobile grooming business sounds like a great idea, as you have a large built-in audience in every RV park.
You could have graphics painted on the van and a tent sign that you could pop outside the van when you are open for business, inviting other RVers to stop in or schedule an appointment (depending on how you want business to come in.)
As with any income stream, if you need a steady paycheck you may want backup income until you build that steady revenue.
Best of luck to you!
I have a similar idea but with childcare.. Do you think it would be possible to live in a tiny home (bus or rv) full time and travel and be able to support myself watching kids?
Kim I’ve been wondering the same thing! I’m a nanny and in a year or so I will be ready to take to the road – I will want to be very mobile and there are lots of places I would be interested in working. Also as an infant specialist I will be looking at shorter-term positions. So I’ve been thinking about an rv – almost certainly a newer, smaller class b that families would not mind having on their property. Did you try this, or do you know anyone who did? I’m very curious about how it would work.
RV living… what a great way to live. We have been camping for 30 years. We love it, but have never been on the road. Never took the time to just pack up and go. We lived in our camper last year at the campground we have been at for 10 years. We would go to work every day we both work for ourselves. So this is our last year at the same campground for more than one season. The workcampers we are not sure about. If you work for a free site 20 hours a week you lose. If you work for 10.00 hour . 200.00 a week 800.00 a month that’s high for a camp site . But you are living the dream. We are getting ready to retire in 2017 . So we will be looking for a campground in the south to stay warm. Then there’s what to take and what to leave behind. So many things to do but there again we are going to live the dream we are done with the every day thing. We are going. Thanks
We are thinking about going on the road in a couple of years, but I will be too young for SS (59) but he can get it. The one thing holding us back is me with health insurance. I am still working and have good insurance now, but what about on the road? My fiancé has V A. I have lots of clerical experience and data entry thinking I could get a job online.
Hi Cindy – Our friend, Howard, over at RV-Dreams wrote a great article on health insurance for full-time RVers. Click Here to read it.
Hi Cindy: My fiancé is looking to go full time in 2 years when he retires. At that point I will only be 55 and looking at getting 11 more years out of the world of work (at least part time) without ruining his retirement experience. I was wondering if you had started your experience and how it was going…We are trying to reach out to people that are in a similar situation (one retired, one working) for any advise we can get before we make this leap.
Thank you,
Cindy
Hi Cindy,
Thanks for your comment and sharing your upcoming plans. Since my husband and I both work approx. 35-40 hours per week I don’t have any firsthand experience in your potential situation with one working and the other partner retired. However, I have seen it work well with one couple. The husband travels via RV in a sales role, and since they RV, his wife joins him. She helps him out with a little administrative help, and also takes care of some family items for them which help him focus on work.
I would say that your husband may want to volunteer, focus on a few hobbies, etc. while you work part-time. Or the both of you could do Workcamping or other type of hosting here and there, as this is one way couples stay connected. I’m sure you’ll find other ideas from couples who have been successful as you reach out, too.
That said, I can tell you that when you are working from your RV this will impact the relationship in terms of time. This can still be positive but I think managing your expectations, being creative, etc. will help ensure a workable and enjoyable lifestyle for both of you.
Best to you both!
Rich,
How do you guys handle banking and other business related necessities? We have a well established home business that could go mobile BUT, the well-established includes PO Box, bank where deposits are regular, etc, etc. We’d have to hire someone very trustworthy at the homebase to handle mail and bank activities…
How do you guys work it? Any ideas are appreciated. Also (!) where best to shop for good RV values?
Thanks,
Ben
Hi Ben – two parts. We have a street address that’s also a forwarding address through Virtual Post Mail. That allows us to have banking and insurance, etc.. They also scan all incoming mail for us (the outside) and we can view it on their website. If we want them to open something and scan the inside, they do – otherwise we can have them forward mail to wherever we’re staying.
We do most of our banking through a large, national bank chain. I use PayPal for invoicing, so I have funds right away – no need to deposit checks – then I transfer funds from PayPal to our bank. It’s pretty straightforward and has worked well for us.
As far as good RV values – I’d say the best prices are close to the source. For example – Winnebago is in Forest City, Iowa, and their local dealer – Lichtsinn RV (http://www.lichtsinn.com/) has some of the best prices I’ve seen on Winnebago. If you buy from them, you also get an RV with almost no miles on it – vs. the 2000 delivery miles our RV had when we bought it in California. Of course you still need to take it home – but that sounds like a fun road trip to me! 🙂 Good luck!
Please don’t recommend paid sites for anyone looking for work. A Google search of Flexjobs reviews will show they’ve had BBB complaints, as well as, Ripoff Report complaints, Any company charging the person and not the company posting is going to be a scam. They generally are fishing the legitimate sites and re-purposing listings. Do your homework yourself—-go to the major search engines for jobs (Monster, Dice, Careerbuilder….) and put in searches for Telecommuting, Flexible, etc. Don’t EVER pay some no name company to find work.
Thanks for your comment, Denny. I’ll have Kathy review this and see if she wants to change her article.
Hello Denny,
Thank you for your feedback. After reading your comment I’ve debated about taking FlexJobs.com out of my post, since I wouldn’t want to steer people to a fraudulent company. (My apology for the very long delay in personally responding as I gave your comment a lot of thought over time.)
I did some more looking into Flexjobs and saw they have two complaints in RipoffReport and the company addressed the complaints professionally. On BBB FlexJobs is rated A+ with only 3 complaints (a low number for any company.) They’re also mentioned by CNN, NBC, and USA Today, which lends them credibility, as well.
I also realize that this company does charge a monthly fee, which I noted in my article. I’ve been in staffing/recruiting for over 15 years and paid fees by job seekers is rare, I admit. However, in my job I spend a ton of time sourcing on job boards and while you can use search parameters to focus in on telecommuting jobs, it’s very time consuming. I feel that the service they provide is worth the $15/month for some job seekers to at least give it a try.
(One complaint people have is they feel all the jobs should be telecommuting. However, the company states these are a variety of flex jobs, with some of those as part time, others seasonal, some are onsite in an office/flex and others are remote.)
With these thoughts in mind I’ve decided to keep FlexJobs in my article for now, but will keep an eye on them and should their ratings go down I’ll definitely change my article. Thanks again!
This is such good information for someone looking to start out traveling and starting their adventures! Thank you I’ll look into these resources 🙂
I’ve got to agree 110% with what Denny said. I was setting up an account with Flexjobs and then saw what they’re charging for their service, then tried to back out. I’ve received 4 emails from them trying to get me to apply to their service and I’ve had to get pretty hard on them in replies to get them to stop. I’ve also reported them as Spam to Google.There are a lot more job sites that don’t charge a dime to use their services, why would I want to pay for one?
I’m in the process now of letting friends on LinkedIn know about their pushiness and to tell them not to subscribe unless they want to pay for a service that everyone else does for free.
Hi, Thank you for your feedback about FlexJobs and I can imagine that is irritating that they emailed you four times.
Since I’ve now heard a few complaints about them, and I am in the recruiting field – I decided to check on them again and in more detail, half expecting I’d take them down as a resource on our site.
What I found is that FlexJobs still have an A+ rating on BBB, with only 3 complaints and all were answered by the company with resolution for the problem the customer encountered. They had over 90 positive reviews on BBB. They are also highly rated by the media, including positive reviews from the Wall Street Journal and many more credible organizations. FlexJobs has been in business for 10 years and is a Boulder, CO-based business, founded by a respected industry pro.
I also noticed the FlexJobs website has a full page that outlines their pricing. Now I realize this information is not on the main page, but it is visible. That said, I understand most job seekers are not accustomed to paying for career opportunity websites. (Indeed, Monster, Careerbuilder, etc., are free but you have to sift through hundreds of local/onsite jobs to find a telecommuting job.) However, the work that FlexJobs puts into their site is tremendous, in that they screen each company that wishes to post jobs. First they screen for credibility (no scams). Then they screen to ensure the company is either offering the ability for you to telecommute, work part time, or offer flexible hours. As an industry pro of 20 years, I can tell you this is worth the small monthly fee. Especially since many or most work from home websites are offering some type of scam or option where you pay them to give you something that resembles a job.
Since it is a priority to me that I provide solid recommendations on this site, I went a step further. I signed up myself to try their service out for the year. It was advertised at $49.95/year but when I didn’t sign up immediately it provided me the opportunity for a discount and I paid $34.95 for the year. Once I signed up I was greeted with a 5 minute WELCOME video email that guided me to my next steps, such as creating a profile.
Even though I’m not looking for a job, I’ve enjoyed the process of browsing jobs and checking out the site. So far is seems very legitimate. I will post a future comment after I’ve used it for 6 months, which may be even more helpful to our readers. I should note that I receive no commissions or compensation for recommending FlexJobs. I hope this helps and my best to you.
Thank you so much for sharing this article! Especially helpful to me was your last comment about how you are able to stay online and reachable by phone almost anywhere. Right now, my goal is to save up money to buy a RV and then make a living while on the road. This was inspiring. 🙂
We’re so glad you found the info useful! Good luck with your future RV purchase! 🙂
Not sure why there isn’t more comments here because you have some great posts. Thanks for the time you put into them. I’ve been working remote for a while and my wife just managed to pivot her position to temporarily be remote. We’ll be able to travel somewhat freely until July. I say somewhat because we both need to be online to do our jobs. We have a mobile hotspot we use in our rv but it doesn’t work that well everywhere. That being said, so far its been great. I can’t wait for the weather to warm up so we can visit some of the places we’ve always wanted to see. If you asked us a year ago if we thought we’d be doing this, I’d say you’re crazy. But, here we are. We love it.
Hi Jay – thanks! We don’t post nearly often enough to have much traffic – too much work, not enough blogging I guess. 🙂 We also love working remotely, and we also both need to be online to do our jobs. We found the key to being 3 things – First, we use Verizon. They charge the most, but they also have the best coverage. We’ve been all over and have been able to get 4G coverage everywhere – and we took advantage of a deal they had last October of 40 Gigs a Month for $150 (half price). Worth it! Second, we use a Wilson Signal Booster. This works with hotspots or phones. In our case, one of us uses our Phone as a mobile hotspot to save the $10/month. The Wilson Signal Booster is on Amazon here: Wilson Electronics Sleek 4G – Vehicle Cellular Signal Booster. Lastly, we use an upgraded antenna. Our Sleek 4G came with a very basic antenna that does work, but a better antenna makes a big difference. This one is good: Wilson Electronics 800/1900 MHz Magnet Mount Antenna, and the Trucker Antennas can be even better. Like I said – so far we’ve been everywhere and have always had 4G. Good luck, Jay!
I really admire your lifestyle and hope to get to it one day too.
Keep up the good life!
Thanks Anita!