Blood, sweat and tears

When I came across an advertisement in the local daily about "making money by working online", I was pretty excited. All you needed to do was pay a small fee of about US$ 50 and you would have access to a database of work. I could work from home while taking care of my son who was only a year old. I had resolved during my pregnancy that I would stay home until my son was old enough to start kindergarten. The issue was this was sort of a strain on the family finances, since we were now only depending on my husband’s income. I had to get internet access at home, that would be key in being able to deliver on the job. In 2007 most individuals were accessing the internet from cybercafés, whereas the rates had significantly come down from Ksh 10 per minute to about 3 , to be able to get internet access in the comfort of your home you would have to fork out quite some amount. I shopped around and found a local ISP that would be able to install the internet. I needed money and quite a bit of it for the initial installation would cost just over US$ 120 and the monthly fee would be US70 for fast broadband. I pitched the idea of the business, the potential income vis-a-vis the investment and my Dad was sold. He provided me with the cash for the installation and two months monthly fee, I was sorted.
I would really like to say the business kicked off and within two months I had made the money back and more but, life isn’t that simple….The so called company offering online work turned out to be “fake” I was conned. One month after the business deal with my Dad, he passed away after a traffic accident. Things couldn’t have looked dimmer and so discouraging in my life. I found solace in an online community of women called Mom’s Café, through the chat and discussion board I grieved and celebrated my Dad.
It took about another month before I was fully back to some work routine, I told myself “I have to make lemonade form the lemons I got.” I researched on online work and discovered the good the bad and the ugly. I discovered the right websites that provided legitimate online work and paid well.
For me the best thing that has happened 6 years on is , the internet and Web 2.0 has been enabled me make friends, gain skills and develop a niche career for myself. It has been trial and error but I believe the best is yet to come