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Balancing Work & Career as a Special Needs Parent
By Tracy Peterson | Last Update: September 23, 2025
Navigating the complexities of both work and family life, particularly a family life with special needs, can be challenging. As a parent to a non-verbal person on the autism spectrum, I had to be creative in finding ways to earn a legitimate income to help support my family while being available to care for my family. This unique experience has shaped my career path in remarkable ways.
Technology enabled a shift in the way I found and leveraged my experience in retail to find flexible 1099 & W2 roles that included mystery shopping and merchandising. Through a mystery shopper platform, I landed my first hybrid remote role in 2006, where I gathered store-level data on a device that I would later transmit and manage the administrative side of my role via dial-up from home. This incredibly flexible opportunity evolved into scheduling, sourcing, and eventually recruiting...the role that I absolutely enjoy with every ounce of my being. Outside of the occasional gig economy opportunities that I enjoyed for an abundance of reasons, I have worked fully remotely since 2012, learning some of the most effective and efficient means to earn an income while navigating a positive and productive work-life balance as a parent of a special-needs person.
As a Recruiter/Talent Acquisition Specialist, Affiliate Partner, and otherwise 1099 Independent Contractor, I partner with organizations with different hiring needs and opportunities that allow me the flexibility to explore and share opportunities while maintaining work-life balance. Whenever possible, the name of the organization is provided in the relevant job description. However, some roles may be listed as confidential due to third-party client requirements or linked directly to the partnership website.
And today, after years of helping others navigate the challenges of parenting a child on the spectrum, I am proud to announce my services as a Certified Transformational Coach, where I help others reclaim their identity beyond navigating their current care-giving life demands. For more information, click here.
Featured Partnerships
Content Creators Desired!
Exploring Our World Differently (EOWD) is seeking passionate Volunteer Contributors who want to share authentic, lived experiences of navigating daily life outside of “social norms.”We welcome voices from individuals, parents, caregivers, educators, advocates, and allies who support or live alongside people impacted by neurodiversity and cognitive difference, including—but not limited to—autism, Asperger’s, intellectual and developmental disabilities, Alzheimer’s, and dementia.
This is an unpaid volunteer opportunity designed for writers and content creators who want to:
- Strengthen their voice and writing portfolio
- Build personal and professional visibility
- Raise social awareness and foster understanding
- Join a community that honors the challenges and joys of neurodiverse lives
Contribution Opportunities
We are currently seeking volunteers for the following roles:
- Writers – Original articles and blog content rooted in real-life experience
- Social Media Content Contributors – Platform-specific posts aligned with EOWD’s mission
- Social Media Moderators – Support safe, respectful, and inclusive community engagement
What You’ll Receive
- Public exposure and publishing experience
- Link backs to your social media accounts, personal website, and contact information
- A dedicated “About You” contributor page linking to: All published EOWD articles, Your personal website (if applicable), Social media profiles and contact information (available after a minimum of three published submissions)
- Opportunities to grow your name, brand, and network across EOWD platforms
- Eligibility to earn through affiliate marketing (terms and conditions apply)
- Optional EOWD email address after 12 published articles/blogs
- Personalized EOWD article URLs, with the option to use your full name or initials
Submission Requirements
- To maintain integrity, trust, and quality, all contributors must meet the following standards:
- All submissions must pass an originality and non-plagiarism check
- Content must contain less than 2% AI-generated material, with proper AI disclosure and citations
- All submissions must be based on the creator’s real, lived experiences (real names may be changed or replaced with pseudonyms if desired)
- All external resources must include verifiable, properly formatted links
- All quotes must be accurately cited and attributable
For consideration, please submit a writing sample and a brief introduction to contribute@exploringourworlddifferently.com that includes answers to the following questions:
- What draws you to Exploring Our World Differently and our mission?
- In what role(s) do you connect to this space? (Individual, parent, caregiver, educator, advocate, supporter, etc.)
- What topics or experiences are you most interested in writing about?
- Have you written or published personal stories before? (Links welcome but not required.)
- Are you interested in writing, social media content, moderation—or a combination?
- How often do you realistically see yourself contributing?
CONSTRUCTION
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DRIVERS / DRIVING
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Human Resources / RECRUITING / TALENT ACQUISTION
- Merchant Services Recruiter - Nationwide (Part to Full-Time, 1099 Commission-Only, Fully Remote/Work-From-Home, NO Investment Required)
LOGISTICS & OPERATIONS
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Sales & MARKETING
- B2B Lead Generation Specialist - Nationwide (Part to Full-Time, 1099 Commission-Only, Fully Remote/Work-From-Home)
- B2B Sales Agent - Nationwide (Part to Full-Time, 1099 Commission-Only, Hybrid Field-Based to Fully Remote/Work-From-Home)
Application & Communication Disclosure
EOWD Recruiting will never sell your information and will only share your details with our employment partners only after an initial phone or video chat screen has been completed and your consent has been provided for the roles discussed. Some of our partnerships will provide a direct affiliate link to apply directly. For such partnerships, we are not part of their screening process and we do not guarantee placement with any partnership. For roles that we specifically recruit and screen, we work diligently to keep applicants/candidates informed of their application status as we receive them via phone, email, or text with your written consent for SMS text messaging. If consenting to SMS messaging, know that Message and Data Rates May Apply. Reply Stop to opt out. Reply Help for moSore information. Message frequency. See our Privacy & Cookies Policy.