I launched The Freelancers' Oasis in April of 2008 with the sole purpose of providing a wide variety of scam-free, legitimate telecommuting employment positions and freelance projects to those who are interested in working from home. My goal was to provide a One-Stop jobs database of positions and projects found all in one place, so that job seekers could spend their time applying for jobs, rather than searching all over the Internet for real jobs to apply for. In a nutshell, I wanted to bring job seekers reliable and diverse REAL JOBS for REAL PAY that they could do from HOME.

The Internet is a wonderful invention, but it does have its downside, its dark side, and its drawbacks. In many cases, it's a breeding ground for deceitful scammers and other predators who are able to hide behind their cloak of anonymity and thus elude being caught. I recognized that most of the major job sites on the Internet have been overrun by these scammers, making it difficult to determine which positions are legitimate and which are nothing more than hoaxes and a total waste of time, effort and sometimes money.

In light of this, I was determined to develop a jobs site that promotes a scam-free policy in a secure environment -- a safe haven -- for people to search for credible, real jobs. The idea of an Oasis personifies what this site is all about.

A little about me . . . I taught at The American University in Washington, DC before becoming the Director of Human Resources for a major, growing company in the DC Metro area. As the company grew, the work stress also grew and as time passed, the commute became more and more time-consuming. Anyone who has ever had to drive in the DC area in rush hour will understand. So, I decided to explore the work-from-home lifestyle.

I embarked on a journey which has led me to where I am today. I've worked as a telecommuter, a freelancer, and an independent contractor, on-site and off-site, part-time and full-time, long-term and temporary. I've worked as a journalist, typesetter, newspaper managing editor, newspaper deliverer, copy editor, proofreader, administrative assistant, customer service agent, sales rep, freelance writer, medical transcriptionist, legal transcriber, tutor, translator, ESL teacher, desktop publisher, blogger, human resources coordinator, and the list goes on and on. I've known lean times and times of plenty. I've learned to roll with the punches. Now, I want to help other people achieve the work-from-home lifestyle too, if that's their desire.

Like everyone else, I'm painfully aware of all of the scams out there trying to lure in unsuspecting job seekers. I've been stung by a few of them myself. I'm particularly sensitive to Internet scam and scammers because I wrote a book about how West African scammers have invaded the online dating and social networking industry, stealing billions of dollars annually from Americans, Canadians, Australians, and Western Europeans.

The book, Cyber Love's Illusions, is available in (or can be ordered from) bookstores nationwide. People learn about it from my website (www.cyberlovesillusions.com) and the media exposure the book has received, for instance, Fox News Miami, Dallas and New York City as well as a number of radio interviews and speaking engagements.

Because of my sensitivity to Internet scamming and fraud, I am totally committed to having a zero-tolerance-for-scam policy for this website. I can be fooled too, and I have been in my personal job searches, but I will do my best to keep scammers and schemers out of this database and make it a safe and secure place -- an Oasis -- to come and browse for jobs and projects.

I hope you'll find The Freelancers' Oasis to be a valuable tool in your search for work from home. May you benefit from the labor of love that it has become. Feel free to write me with any questions, concerns, comments, or just to chat. I'll get back to you right away. And, of course, if you get a job through this website, please let me know. That's what it's all about.

All the best to you in your job search,

Anna Alden-Tirrill