It’s no longer a surprise when somebody tells you that they work from home. Technology allows people to work remotely, choosing hours around childcare is becoming increasingly more accepted as commonplace and access to resources and information in relation to starting a business or launching a freelance career are available in abundance.

More and more professionals are choosing to take their own paths and take control over their working lives with freelance careers, or jobs that allow them to work from home when necessary – or even permanently. Many employees work remotely on a permanent basis now, and even from overseas.

These roles allow people to take more responsibility for their careers and the work that they’re doing, but it also helps employers to contribute to the positive wellbeing of staff when providing the benefits of a work/life balance and flexible lifestyle choices. As more pressure is put onto employers to be aware of staff wellbeing, the impact of stress and the difference that employers can make, they are encouraged to take more actions than ever before to help improve the mindset, wellbeing and health of their staff and flexible working seems to be at the top of the list.

The options for flexible and remote working are possible in virtually any industry, but we’ve looked at some of the most popular.

1. Marketing

Marketing is one of the most popular work from home industries and more and more marketers are starting their own businesses and agencies from their kitchens than ever.

Once you’ve built the skills to become an expert in your field and are able to manage business processes from invoicing and payment, winning and retaining business to actually delivering projects, you’re in a reasonably good position to go out on your own. Whether you’re working in SEO, web development, content marketing, social media or advertising, it’s possible to do it all remotely.

It’s not to be taken lightly though, as making the jump to a freelance life can be difficult despite a more balanced lifestyle. If you’re somebody who works in a creative industry, you’ll understand the importance of working as part of a team and collaboration at work, which is something that can be difficult to achieve if you’re working on your own. Balance is important to prevent isolation and ensure job satisfaction – but even this problem is being solved as we speak with the introduction of co-working spaces and networking groups.

That said, you don’t have to go freelance to work remotely anymore. We spoke to an Account Director at digital marketing agency, Patch, who have several members of their team working remotely: “I’ve been a full-time member of the team at Patch for several years now and I’ve worked remotely the whole time. It’s never held me back. I see the rest of the team regularly, speak on the phone every day and take part in team events – I’m very much a part of the team. I’ve been able to maintain and even develop my career despite the distance. I get the best of both: secure employment and the same great team to work with from my company of choice, but all from my location of choice.”

Wouldn’t that be lovely, eh?

2. Event management

In a role that requires lots of planning, project management and organisation, working from home can be an absolute blessing.

A balance is important, and being able to communicate with your team is absolutely key in a role that requires lots of liaison and fingers in pies, but it’s completely possible to fulfil your duties from home. If you spend a lot of time meeting your clients to discuss the details of upcoming events, not being office-based won’t be a problem for you and you’ll experience less of the isolation commonly felt by people who work from home full time.

Venue and events experts share lots of content on utilising social media to raise your profile within the events industry and promoting yourself effectively, book recommendations for career progression and a whole load of tips on event planning in general. These kinds of resources are gold dust for freelance or lone-working event planners and can make that jump to a freelance life much less daunting, if that’s the route you choose.

3. Sales and business development

For field-based roles, remote working can work a real treat – for both you and your employer. Lots of big organisations simply don’t have enough desk space and some of the city’s largest and most well-known businesses rely on hot-desking and remote working to employ new staff. In addition, both men and women are fitting their working hours around childcare, parenting and other responsibilities so really, a remote working option is often suitable for both employer and employee.

If you’re out ‘on the road’ meeting your clients a lot, working from home can give you a sought-after balance of time out of the office, winning business and speaking to clients then working at home and perhaps popping into the office for catch-ups or meetings when required.

If you’re thinking about taking on a freelance career or making your ‘side hustle’ more of a full-time plan, be sure to find trusted information on tax, legislation and insurance requirements when working for yourself.

If you’re interested in remote working instead, take a look at some tips for broaching the subject with your employer.