There are lots of different jobs you can have that will enable you to work from home. Whether you become a freelance editor, product tester (click here to find out more about this), or blogger, it doesn’t matter — you just need to make sure you’re prepared for the challenges you may face. And if you’ve chosen to be a work-from-home mom because you want to be a stay-at-home mom, you are well aware of these challenges, day in and day out. Working from home has some fantastic benefits, and as these working from home statistics VPNcompass suggest the amount of people choosing to work from home is increasing! I can certainly see why, although working from home does have its challenges. From juggling ‘mom and me’ time with rides to and from lessons, chores that need seeing to and clients who insist on meeting with you today, there never seems to be enough hours in the day to get everything done. Actually, the solution to your problems is easier than you might imagine and the key is organization. Here are a few tips that might make life a little easier for everyone involved.
First – Set Aside Time for You
Before you do anything at all to try to organize your day so that you can meet everyone else’s needs, take time for yourself. This is ‘mommy time’ and no one is to interfere unless it is a life and death emergency. If you can, schedule it for the same time every day so that family, friends, and yes even clients know that you will be unavailable during this hour or two. This is your time to use as you see fit. Nap, shop, read, watch television or whatever you please, but make sure it’s time for you and you alone.
Putting that Online MBA to Work for You
So, you’ve taken the initiative to study for an online masters in business administration from a top-notch school like Washington State University. At first you had thought to find a job in the corporate world when the kids went off to school, but somehow along the line you became a freelance financial advisor and now you work from a home office, so that’s where you receive your clients. Use your administrative skills to juggle work and home, keeping both worlds separate while getting both ‘jobs’ done.
Networking Helps You Get It Done
You earned a masters in business administration online so why not use some of those sound business practices you learned to organize your own life? Prioritize your time and build a network of other moms who take turns driving and babysitting. Remember, networking is huge in the corporate environment – it is often a part of remote onboarding programs, after all – and when working from home you are running a business as well. It’s imperative to find ways to keep the two worlds separate and a network of moms in the same situation can help each other.
Take Your Office Outside
So, you miss getting in the car and driving off to work each day, even though you really do want to be at home with the kids. Why not take your office outside so that you can compromise a bit? You could leave the house without leaving the house if you set up your office in a garden building! At least you’d have peace and quiet while working but close enough to be available to tend to bruised shins and homework that won’t get done unless you’re there.
The point is, yes there are challenges which must be overcome when working from home but those challenges are minimal when you consider what it was like working miles away at the office. Network with other moms, take turns watching each other’s kids and carpool if necessary to get kids to and from school or sports or outings with their friends. It’s a challenge but it can be done and the rewards are better than you could have ever imagined. You get to work but you get to be at home to watch your kids grow during those all-important formative years. What could be better than that?