HOME CAREER ARTICLES / Q & A
Mom Entrepreneurs
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Becoming a Work at Home Mom
It is a common dilemma for many new and experienced mothers, feeling being torn between going back to work and staying at home with their children. Money and family becomes equally important and the decision can be very stressful. Some have taken to becoming a work at home mom and have found jobs to do from home. With this can come a new experience of joy and stress but can be easily avoided.
Starting with the type of work, it is important to create a balance. The type of work that is done can potentially dictate daily schedules or routines. The age of the children is equally important here as more kinds of work may be possible while with an infant or school aged child than a toddler.
Another important factor is discussing with the family the importance of the work being done at home. Family members may see that the mom is always home and “available” and expect that work is not a priority. Even young children can be taught that there is a need for this block of time and activities can be structured to allow it. Even though it is work from home, it is still work and can be vital depending on personal situations.
Having children does not mean that there must be an exclusion of one role for the other. Becoming a work at home mom can be a new challenge but many moms have found this to be the perfect solution to feeling the need to provide in both ways. Some have even found that even part time work while staying at home helps to retain their sense of self and is very fulfilling.
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Taking care of your home while running your home business
Working at Home can be lonely. You have to be focused and motivated to work. I have found out that when we work at home, it's like adding a new family member.
Remember that as a work-at-home women, your home becomes part of your business. You work where you live and live where you work. I was surprised when I first started working at home to find that my home was never really used before, when I was working away from home. Now I have to manage my home- and my home business.
Find your comfort level and realize that you're not alone! Get connected with other women that work at home.
Housekeeping and Children
Housekeeping tasks can take over all of your free time. But you can actually minimize the time you spend taking care of day-to-day chores by working with your children and following these five simple steps:
1. Teach your children to clean up after themselves. Keep small brooms and dust pans, a Dust buster, and paper towels where they can reach them when they need to clean up a small spill.
If your children tend to be competitive, make up cleaning contents. Try the bed-making dash or the take-out the trash triathlon. Use a stopwatch; create charts of personal bests and household record holders. Blue ribbons and trophies can be purchased inexpensively at discount stores or party supply stores and they really add to the fun.
Limit your cleaning time and set a timer. Designate your cleaning time into 10 minute intervals during which everybody pitches in to clean the house. You�ll be surprised at how much you can accomplish in a short time if everyone focuses on his or her tasks. Since there is a time limit, helpers are less likely to drag their feet.
A trip through the car wash is a big treat for my kids. Get your children to help vacuum, wash the windows, and clean the inside of the car with the payoff being a trip through the wash.
Working at home is like adding a new member to the family.
Starting a home business is like adding another member to your family. As you can imagine, this will require some adjustment on everyone�s part. Your priorities and expectations will determine how well you will adjust, communication, help, and humor will make the transition easier.
2. Determine your Priorities
Defining what you expect from your business and family is important before you start your business. What are your priorities? Do you need to have a clean house? Make lots of money? Have free time for yourself? Will your spouse be supportive? Will your children be expected to help with the business or will the business be off-limits to them?
Will you work regular hours?
For me, one of my top priorities is my family, which is why I chose a home business in the first place. When all is said and done, I would rather say I've had a marginally successful business and a successful family life.
Besides, once I build this business, I'l have all the time and freedom to spend many many years with my children AND my grandchildren! (which I'm very looking forward to spending lots of time with them as well). I plan to be the best grandmother ever!
I do believe that it's possible to combine business and family successfully.
3. Adjust your expectations.
The first day is very exciting! You got a homebased business and you can't wait to get started. Then reality sets in, and reality doesn't always meet our expectations. The day-to-day challenges of running a business starts to take a toll. Do not give up! Adjust your expectations and realize that this is normal and to be expected. Take advantage of regional offices (if you have them in your area). Talk to other people that work at home. Stay plugged into training calls and listen to people that have built a huge business.
Talk to other stay at home moms. They will understand what you're going through, and often just talking to someone else who understands can help you get through the tough times. Also keep your priorities clear, go back to your priority list. Remind yourself why you started the business in the first place, and keep your focus on your long-term goals.
4. Communicate:
Don't expect your spouse and children to be psychic. If you require something of them, let them know. Now that you've established your priorities and expectations, communicate them to your family. And be specific. I get more help if I say to my husband, Please empty the dishwasher and make eggs and toast for the boys, than if I just ask, Will you help in the kitchen?
I also tell my family the details of my business and sometimes discuss questions I have with them. We are always talking. We make a point of sitting down for meals together so we can all share what is happening in our lives. We usually keep the radio off in the car and use this time for talking, too. We set goals together and choose something fun that we will all do with the business money when our goal is reached. It can be simple as a night out for ice cream or as big as a family vacation. This way, they also reap the rewards of the business. And I often get great ideas from my husband and the boys.
5. Accept Help
Since time is a limited resource, you'll want to spend it in the most efficient manner possible.
Face the fact that you can't do everything. Get out your priority list again. If you don't want to turn over full-time care of your children to someone else, explore other options. Maybe have a sitter come into your home occasionally or share part-time child care with another home-based parent. Then plan your client meetings and work during those hours. Hire a neighborhood teenager to help out with chores around the house.
Help is out there; accept it.
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Time Management - 3 Tips For Mommypreneur Time Management
When you’re a work at home mommypreneur, there are a lot of demands placed on your schedule: tending to children, household chores, running errands, business activity, family time, socializing, and hopefully time for yourself. All of these things are challenging for moms who work outside the home. But it is especially challenging for moms who choose to work from home. Why is this? Because you often don’t have very much help. You are the babysitter, the cook, the cleaner upper, the business owner, and much more. There are days when I am sucked into doing one task. I look up, its 5pm and I wonder where the time goes. I use the tips laid out in this article to stay well-rounded.
In this chaos we call life; it’s very easy to be overwhelmed. The main reason you leave your job is to achieve work-life balance. But guess what, soon after you become a work at home mom who runs a business, you discover that you STILL can’t maintain work-life balance. Your role as a mom takes priority over everything else.
Effective time management skills are critical to maintaining personal and business success. There are several ways to manage your time. I’ve laid out three tips to manage your time well so that all issues receive attention, which includes personal time for you.
Tip #1: Manage Your Quadrants
This concept was introduced by Stephen Covey, author of the 7 Habits to Highly Effective People. The quadrant you see below illustrates this idea: all tasks fall into one of the four quadrants. It is your job to identify all of these tasks, place them in each quadrant and manage them appropriately.
QUADRANT I: Urgent and Important: Crises, problems, deadline-driven projects
QUADRANT II: Not Urgent, but Important: Preparation, problem prevention, planning, relationship building
QUADRANT III: Urgent, but Not Important: Interruptions, some phone calls, some meetings, some emails, some text messages
QUADRANT IV: Not Urgent, Not Important: Junk mail, busywork, watching tv, surfing the internet, excessive texting, talking on the phone
You may question quadrant III and ask, how can something be urgent but not important? It’s all about how we treat the issue. If a task reaches quad III, it’s because we allow it. Here’s a perfect example. My mom called as I was writing this article. I answered and she has an issue that’s “urgent” and she needs me to take care of it. Well after listening I quickly determined that it wasn’t important. Don’t misunderstand. The issue does need attention, but not at this very moment. Completing this article is the most important task at hand. Quad III tasks are urgent for others, not necessarily for you and can wait until you can find the time to address them.
This is where many mistakes are made. Dropping your current activities for Quad III tasks. If I had immediately jumped to what my mom wants me to do, this article wouldn’t be completed on time, thus throwing off my schedule and productivity. Just remember that there is a time and place for everything. So while you are concentrating on one task, don’t let phone calls and emails distract you.
Quadrant I is a direct result of our actions as well. When tasks end up in quad I, it’s because we let them. Why? Because of poor planning and procrastination, deadlines come up and we have to drop everything in order to meet them. A classic example is waiting the night before to study for a test. The first day of class the teacher hands out a syllabus. But instead of doing the weekly homework assignments and reviewing a few pages per day, you wait until the night before to have a cram study session. You met the deadline and took the test. But did you do well is the question. Now I have done this plenty of times and did quite well on most tests. However this behavior catches up with you eventually. A crisis ridden, deadline driven lifestyle wears on you. It’s not healthy at all.
Focus most of your time and energy in quad II. This is involves planning and problem prevention. This is a result of doing tasks at scheduled times so they don’t end up in quad I. Actually following the syllabus and completing your assignments each week is working quad II. Even though focusing on quad II is the key to effective time management and avoiding burnout, you mistakenly give most of your attention to quads I and III. This is the mistake that most people make.
Quadrant IV activities are time-wasters. They are necessary but they should be kept to a minimum.
Tip #2: Block Your Time
This tip well help you to avoid spending time in quads I and III. Blocking your time is simply making a schedule. Keep to a daily schedule. The key to successful blocking is ONLY do the activities that’s in each block at that specific time. This works wonders for handling emails and phone calls, which can really be distracting. Set aside time everyday for this task specifically. So if 8am to 10am is phone call and email time. Stick to it. Shut it down at 10am and MOVE ON to the next item on your agenda. Do not panic if there is more to be done and the time frame is over. That’s okay. You will be 10xs more productive sticking to a schedule, than if you just take things as they come. You want to be proactive and have control over what happens in your day. Allowing issues to arise and take over is a reactive approach and you will begin to feel the negative effects.
Yes, emergencies will come up. Use common sense to prioritize. But you must be able to recognize the difference between a true emergency and a quad I or III task.
Tip #3: Take Time for Yourself
This is to help you avoid burn out. Setting aside time for yourself is CRITICAL for a work at home mommypreneur. You absolutely need it. You CANNOT take care of the children, your significant other, the house, your clients, your social committees, your family, your friends and forget all about yourself. It is not healthy. You will become tired very quickly. You will be stressed. And it will negatively affect your attitude and daily productivity. I recommend taking personal time either first thing in the morning or at the end of the day or both. You need time for yourself. I repeat, you NEED time for yourself. Ideally, I like to wake up earlier than everyone else and treat myself to a morning workout. It clears my mind, energizes my body and prepares me for the day’s work.
Time management is necessary to achieve life-work balance. It is a critical component to your personal and business success. Organizing your time helps you to organize your life. Life, while unpredictable, requires a plan. So plan your time, that’s all time management really is.
Shafondra_Matthews
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Work at Home + Mothers = Perfect
Traditionally the role of a mother was the household. This included taking care of the children, home, cooking, and a thousand others jobs where the only pay was a smile from a family member. In today’s society not only is the mother involved with the same duties as before, but also in the large majority of cases also contributes financially to the family. It has become a society of two income families. Not necessarily out of wanting more, but of necessity. So this new role for the overburdened moms creates alot of stress, and takes some of the fun out of being a mom.
So why not consider working from home? Work at home jobs and moms are the perfect solution to a stressful situation.
As mothers we face the emotional decision to leave our 3-4 month olds in the care of virtual strangers in order to go back to work. That alone is a tremendous burden emotionally, then you have the extra guilt trip of not being able to spend time with your child. Even though you may have had a successful career before children, as a mother your emotions will rebel against this decision. At the end of the month you have to decide if the cost of child care, extra gas for the car, clothes, and all the other expenses are worth the time away. Shouldn’t there be another option? Isn’t there another way to earn money, as still be able to fill my role as a mother?
As a stay a home mom, I can vouch that it is a full time job. But as the children got older I had more free time on my hands that I used to make extra income to take some of the pressure off my husband. It allowed me some independence as I was not entirely dependent on my husband for support. It also allowed me a break from the everyday routine of four children. It allowed me to further my knowledge, and do something I really enjoy and get paid for doing it. So when they were in school or taking a nap, I worked on the computer and honed my skills. Working at home and motherhood is a perfect fit for me.
In todays’ world downsizing is a national past-time for some companies. We have all been hit by it in some form or another. The hardest segment of the population to be hit by this trend are women. So any income generated at home is more valuable than it was 20-30 years ago. So can you earn money while staying at home? The answer is not a simple one, but one of a “yes” and a “no”. Everyone will agree that the possibility of gaining financial success at home is possible, we should also say that it will not happen overnight. You will not see an income on the first day, or the first week, or the first month, perhaps not even the first year. However, if you are determined to learn and do not give up the dream, then you will see some measure of success. The amount of success is entirely in your hands.
In my opinion working at home is the perfect solution for a stress free life.
Article Author :Nancy_Kraska
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How Busy Moms Can Start a Business
One of the biggest hurdles Moms face when starting any home business is how to manage the home, the kids, and a job, all in the same place! It can be done, and many of us actually even find the time to put eye makeup on every day as well!
First things first, if you are going to start any home business, you need to regard yourself as a business woman. If you don't, I promise you no one else will! I know a lot of work at home sites talk about the perks of working at home including the ability to work in your pj's, but I highly suggest you make sure you dress for work every morning. This doesn't mean you need to have your suit and heels on, just casual dress, maybe a little makeup...enough to give you that "I'm ready to tackle my day" mentality! I just can't start the day without a shower, a cup of tea, and some decent street clothes. If you feel like if a client came to the door you would be appropriately dressed, then you will feel like you are at work!
Make sure you explain to your family that you have started a business, and don't sell yourself short. Act like a business woman, think like a business woman, and people will treat you like a business woman. One of the major morale problems women who work at home have is that they are not taken seriously. Show yourself, and everyone else that you are indeed serious!
Secondly, in order to work at home with a houseful of kids, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, and the dryer beeping at you, you need to get organized. This is a constant battle for me, but it's a battle that can be won! Start small, and you will soon realize how much smoother your household runs with just a little planning.
Make Sunday evening (or Friday for the next week) your day to set aside an hour to get yourself prepared for the week ahead. Print out a weekly calendar from your computer every Sunday, or pick up a daily planner. Make sure you have room to list both work items, and also home and family issues you need to attend to. Also make sure you have a weekly menu, cleaning schedule, and shopping/errand list on your fridge, or in another easily accessed spot. Create master menu lists on your computer and keep your recipes either in a Word document you can print out when you create your weekly menu, or in a box of index cards on your kitchen counter. (Ol' fashioned, I know, but I love my recipe box!)
Use your Organizing Hour to create a menu for the week, and schedule in all your household needs along with a rough draft of work items you need to get done that week. Don't forget to leave time for yourself, and to spend with the family! (After all, what good will your business success be if you feel like you've neglected the most important thing in your life!) Remember the schedule must be flexible for a woman running a business and a household, but that's why God made erasers! I strongly suggest joining an organizing group online, such as the ones at Organized Home or Fly lady, both of which are excellent. A little organizing will keep your business steadily moving forward, your kids with plenty of hugs and sit down meals, and your sanity intact!
Finally, realize that it is NOT going to run perfectly. Ever. If you can accept that now, than you will realize that placing unrealistic expectations on yourself will just cause you stress and anxiety, and that is not what success is all about. It's about balance. And every once in awhile, no matter how much is on your day planner, pack those kids in the car with some peanut butter sandwiches, head for the nearest park, and spend your day pushing the little ones in the swings and tossing a ball around. After all, that's why God made Moms.
Kathleen_Wilson
