A girl in Hanoi earns thousands of USD every month just by sitting in a cafe.

(Dan Tri Newspaper) - At 8 a.m., while her peers were jostling on the streets to get to work on time, Mai Anh (28 years old, living in Hanoi ) was just waking up. Her workplace is in coffee shops.

Working from a coffee shop and still earning over $1,000 a month.

At 8 a.m., while her peers were jostling on the streets to get to work on time, Mai Anh (28 years old, living in Hanoi) was just waking up. Instead of rushing to face hours of traffic jams, she enjoyed a deep sleep, waiting until she felt refreshed before getting out of bed and preparing for her workday at her own pace. After personal hygiene, Mai Anh applied light makeup and left home for work. Her destination wasn't the usual high-rise buildings or offices. Instead, she strolled through a few streets and spotted a newly opened, beautifully decorated cafe. She decided this would be her workplace for the day. "I've been a regular at many cafes on the streets of Hanoi for the past three years. If I'm not working from home, a cafe is my second choice," Mai Anh shared with a smile. Opening her computer, Mai Anh began her work, posting articles to her website, checking her ongoing projects, and completing them. After more than an hour at the computer, the girl took a break, listened to some music, sipped her coffee, and watched the people passing by. Mai Anh proudly showed off a marketing project she had just completed for a Korean restaurant in the US. This project earned her 30 million VND. She shared that this was the second project she had completed this month. Her to-do list also included a content writing project, managing a page for a newly launched restaurant in Australia, and building a page for a skincare spa in Hanoi. "This is my second year working freelance from home," the young woman shared.

Mai Anh often chooses coffee shops as her workplace (Photo: Nguyen Ngoan).

Mai Anh said that instead of struggling in the office and constantly worrying about her boss's moods, she decided to quit her job three years ago and become a freelancer. She only accepts projects when they arise and has full control over her work. Mai Anh graduated in Journalism from the University of Social Sciences and Humanities. She worked for a while in journalism before switching to communications for a company that organizes golf tournaments, earning 20 million VND per month. However, after four years working for the company, she felt exhausted by the constant meetings, overtime, boss reprimands, and pressure from colleagues who were always gossiping and backstabbing each other. One time, a friend introduced her to a part-time project, and she was quickly attracted by the lucrative salary and the lack of pressure from management. After several successful projects, she made the bold decision to quit her job and become a freelancer. Mai Anh has experience, good foreign language skills, is articulate, and has many external connections, so her work has been quite smooth since she started. "I usually take on projects from foreign companies, earning 20-30 million VND per project," Mai Anh said, adding that on average, she works 2-3 jobs per month for both Vietnamese and foreign companies. The time to complete a project is about 15 days to over a month. However, the jobs overlap, ensuring a consistent monthly income. According to her, the attractive aspect of foreign work is the high salary. However, the relatively short project completion time and the need to understand the market and the psychology of foreign customers are the biggest challenges. For some projects, she spends an entire month just researching the market and customer preferences to develop communication ideas and product development. Regarding her work in Vietnam, Mai Anh said that the income is not as high as abroad, with some jobs only earning her 4-5 million VND per month. However, with her experience and knowledge of the Vietnamese market, she easily completes her work in a short time. "My monthly income fluctuates around 30 million VND," Mai Anh said. She shared that instead of working 8 hours a day in an office, she chooses to work at cafes with beautiful views or work from home. Mai Anh doesn't worry about KPI deductions, attendance bonuses, fingerprint clock-ins every morning at 7:30, or rushing home at 5:30, stuck in traffic for hours.

Be your own boss and still earn an income.

Ngo Ngoc (29 years old, Da Nang ) decided to leave her job as a media sponsor for a company in Hanoi to return to her hometown after her father repeatedly experienced health problems. Ngoc said she had spent nearly 10 years in Hanoi, working for many companies with salaries ranging from 15-20 million VND. Besides her main job, she also worked overtime at a coffee shop in the evenings and on weekends. Ngoc spent her youth struggling to make a living, hoping to settle in Hanoi. However, three years ago, her father unexpectedly suffered a stroke. Returning home and seeing her elderly mother struggling to care for him, and reflecting on the hustle and bustle of city life and the meager savings she had accumulated after many years in Hanoi, Ngoc began to consider quitting her job and returning home. "It took me quite a while to make the decision because I still really love Hanoi," she said. But after repeatedly seeing her mother struggling to care for her father, Ngoc also developed a long-distance relationship with a lecturer in Da Nang. She knew she couldn't stay in Hanoi for long. After some thought, Ngoc decided to submit her resignation and return to her hometown.

Ngoc can travel and work at the same time (Photo: Provided by the subject).

When she left Hanoi, she feared she wouldn't find a stable job in her hometown, as the area she lived in was an underdeveloped rural region. However, through friends' recommendations, Ngoc started taking on freelance projects, initially earning only 3-4 million VND per month. Gradually, she expanded her work, and her income increased over time. Currently, Ngoc works in content marketing for a traditional chili sauce company in her hometown and manages human resources for a tutoring center in Hanoi. Even without being physically present at the company, she earns 16-17 million VND per month. She dedicates about 3-4 hours a day to her work, using the rest of her time to help her mother care for her father. Ngoc has complete control over her workplace and also has time to relax when under pressure. "I can travel and work at the same time, something I couldn't do working at a fixed-hour office," Ngoc said. Last September, Ngoc got married and moved to Da Nang to live with her husband. She continues to work for a tutoring center and does content marketing for a chili sauce company, despite being hundreds of kilometers away. Being independent in terms of time allows her to further her knowledge. Currently, Ngoc is learning a foreign language to support her work. In addition, she makes her own notebooks, decorated with flowers and plants, to sell online. After a long period of freelance work, both Mai Anh and Ngoc feel comfortable with their choice. Although they don't have many connections at their workplace, they are in control of their time and remain financially independent. Remote work is a form of employment where employees perform and complete tasks from anywhere outside the company office. Remote workers exchange information, manage their work, and communicate with others through technological tools and platforms. In Vietnam, this trend has also seen a strong increase after the COVID-19 pandemic, and is predicted to potentially replace traditional work models in the future. According to the 2023 Global Remote Working Index (GRWI) report, Vietnam ranked 59th out of 108 countries as an attractive destination for remote work, thanks to its high-quality internet connection and developed digital infrastructure. Overall, the recent trend of seeking remote jobs is a sign that both the nature of work is changing and the preferences of workers are also changing. Organizations and businesses are also forced to acknowledge and adjust to these changes.

Dantri.com.vn

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/doi-song/co-gai-o-ha-noi-ngoi-ca-phe-van-kiem-nghin-usd-moi-thang-20241104170413540.htm