Recreational Vehicles

Lesson 4: Communications And Finding A Job On The Road

Finding Work!

Finding work on the road: Let’s start with a reality check. You are probably not going to make as much money on the road in the RV lifestyle as you were/could in your brick and mortar life. These positions are mostly seasonal/ part time positions. This means that you will be employed for a season and probably less than 40 hours per week. Typically there are two seasons to the year, spring to Fall or Fall to spring.

There are two philosophies of finding work in this lifestyle: First you can send out applications and wherever the job is, go to it. The other is to pick a location and find a job in or near that location. In this life style you need to always be on the lookout for moneymaking opportunities.

There are some things to think about during your job search: What is the pay per hour? Are there any other perks, such as reduced propane or free laundry? I personally don’t think that reduced propane is that big of a deal. During the summer it usually takes us about a month to use $20.00 worth of propane. Free laundry now is a rather good perk. Are they offering a free site, a reduced rate site, or do you have to work say 10 hours a week for the site? If you have to work hours for your site don’t forget to multiply those hours by the pay rate to determine the cost of your site. 10 hours a week times $8.00 will equal $320 per month. Reduced rate comes out of your wages, and free is a plus but don’t add it to your wages, as you can’t spend it.

Now you have to decide whether it is worth the whole package. Publications such as “Workamper News” (see www.workamper.com) list job opportunities and also offer a resume posting service, (for a fee of course). If you want to work in campgrounds use the “Trailer Life Park directory” to target campgrounds in the area you might like to work.

There are a lot of ways to make money while you are on the road. Don’t overlook any of them. Here are some that come to mind:

• Flea markets: buy stuff in one area and sell it in another.
• Online auctions such as Ebay or Yahoo - these are 24/7 selling venues that can easily be maintained while you are on the road.
• Writing for publications is always an option.
• You can sign up to do mystery shopping or you can get paid to take polls.
• Selling products such as Amway, Amsoil or Mary Kay may be an option.

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