Are second life jobs real jobs or just jobs for the site?

[AbbeyRosella90]

I'm new and some of the wording in some post when I looking for a job confused me. So I want to know are you apply for a real job or a job for the web site. I know this might be a stupid question. But I just had to ask it. 

Hope to get my answer soon. 

[Lindal Kidd]

Well, that depends.

You can get a job within SL, for example as a dancer, a hostess, or an estate manager. 

You can create a business within SL, too...creating content and selling it in a store, or on the Marketplace.

$L that you earn from these activities can be exchanged for $USD through the Linden Exchange.  Some successful SL businesses make enough money to support their owners in Real Life.  Not many, but some.

You might also negotiate a contract outside of SL to do a project within SL, such as design and build a sim for a client.  You might consider this a "real job".

EDIT:

Rolig is right about $L having no value...in the legal sense.  Linden Lab is careful to spell this out in their policies.  They have to do so, because unless you are a sovereign nation, it's illegal to print your own money.   However, in a practical sense, I disagree with Rolig.   Linden dollars represent a functional microcurrency, because they can easily be exchanged back into "real world" dollars.  There are people who, like Ansche Chung, have become wealthy in real world terms from "playing an on line computer game".

[Rolig Loon]

Most people I know would define a job as some activity that you do in return for pay.  By that definition, a very large number of people have jobs in SL.  They don't pay very well by RL standards, of course, so it's rare for anyone to get rich on a SL job, but lots of us make at least enough to cover our in-world expenses and leave enough pocket change to have fun with.

Two things to think about:

1. Most people who work in SL are self-employed as creators, performers, or entrepreneurs of some kind.  Opportunities to work for someone else are less common, because creators tend to sell their own creations, real estate tycoons handle their own listings, and so on.    You can get a feel for the range of opportunities here >>> https://wiki.secondlife.com/wiki/Guide_to_Jobs_in_Second_Life .

2.  Linden Dollars (L$) are not real money, even though we usually think of them as if they were.  See >>> https://secondlife.com/corporate/tos.php?lang=en-US#tos5 .  L$ are "virtual tokens" that residents use to exchange for goods and services in world.  They have no value outside SL (even to Linden Lab, who won't accept L$ in payment).  That sounds like a weasly distinction, but it means that any earnings from in-world jobs have no value in RL unless you sell your L$ to other residents through the Lindex and export them.  By that important distinction, for example, I have never "earned" anything by working in SL fo over 5 years, and have thus never had to declare earnings in my federal or state income taxes.  It's all "funny money."

So ....... You can do "real" work in SL and earn compensation in virtual tokens that have value in world.  That sounds like a job to me.  What you do with your earnings is up to you.

[JJBlackRose]

I have a question about getting a job in SL. I have had not much luck finding a job. I tried one place and I found out it was for role playing and I wasn't told a straight answer. I went to another place at the Stetson Bar and no one was there. I found a third place where you do things and get paid but I am not sure if it is real (legit) or not. I just want to make Linden money to be able too buy things. Maybe someday be able to get a home there. I am frustrated by the lack of answers when I ask a question. Can you help me out please? Just looking for a real, legit job that I can get paid. Thank you!

JJBlackRose Resident

[Rolig Loon]

There really aren't many-- at least not many that pay well. There's very little need for unskilled labor in SL. Creators and performers are independent contractors, and they tend to sell their own products and services directly. If you have a RL skill and can be competitive in SL as a scripter, modeler, animator, DJ, musician, ..... then you can easily earn enough to cover rent and basic necessities. I have been doing that for almost 8 years now and have very rarely brought any money into SL. If you are not a creator or performer, and don't have the bankroll and risk tolerance to speculate in real estate, then your best bet is to keep watching the InWorld Employment forum here to see what pops up. Otherwise, you'll need to bring money in from RL.