How to Survive Life as a Work at Home Mom
Having a home-based business is a great way for moms to earn money while staying at home. However, the reality is easier said than done. A home-based working mom must be adept in the tricky balancing act of caring for the kids, ensuring the house is in order, and running the business.
I have 3 kids, ranging in age from 7 months to 5 years old -- all needing attention and care of their mom. It is hard to write when my baby wants to be carried, or the older siblings want to play. Harder still to conduct a decent phone conversation when my 3 and 5 year old boys start screaming at each other. Not to mention taking care of the seemingly endless laundry, and other million and one things that needs to be done in the house.
Here are what worked for me to retain my sanity (and actually work) as a home-based working mom:
- Scrunitize your schedule -- and stick to them. The best time for me to work are when my older two boys go to school. My 3-year old who is in pre-school, gets off from school at 11:45 while the eldest at kindergarten goes home at 3 pm. So the window of opportunity for me to work are the 2.5 hours I have after dropping them off to school and picking up my second son from school. That's when I make important calls when the household is quiet. When the two older boys are home, I make sure I have time for them so any work is put aside for later.
- Be prepared to work after everyone has gone off to bed. Thankfully for me, my household is asleep by 8 pm so I have ample time to work in the evenings. I work from 8:30 pm to midnight, while watching my favorite prime time shows. I know of other work at home moms who work from midnight to 3 pm, which I can never do as my brain cells are non-functional at that time.
- Get a babysitter. I survived without a nanny with the first 2 boys. But when my youngest was born, I found it extremely hard to take care of a baby and 2 toddler boys and manage the needs of the household. It was just too much. My nanny comes to our house from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. to take care of the baby. And she is such a godsend! I've always read tips about finding someone to take care of the kids so you can work properly, and now I realized how having someone to help you with the kids can allow you to do some work.
- Give your kids space in the office. We created our home office to allow the adults to work at the same time with the kids. The two boys have their own computers in the office, as well as their own table and chairs for their coloring and drawing works. The baby has a bouncer and playpen in the office. This set-up allows us to work together as a family, with the each kid busy with their own activities.
- Get the support of your spouse. This is incredibly important and cannot be underestimated. Your spouse's support can mean the two of you sharing household responsibilities to allow you to do work for your business.
- Take yourself seriously. You are a mom -- and a business owner. Life can be tough (it always is) but you are living a rich life that allows you to take care of your family while pursuing interests and passions as well as contributing to your family's finances. Give yourself a pat in the back sometimes. You deserve it.
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posted by PowerHomeBiz.com @ 4:29 PM 2 comments links to this post
2 Comments:
I think the ways you use to be a successful work from home Mom, and maintain your sanity are great. I agree that balancing work, kids, and your million other responsibilites can be challenging, and at times daunting!
As a Mom of 3 boys, all under the age of 3 1/2 who runs her own home business, as well as her husbands, here are just a few things that I have found to be useful as well:
1) Be aware. Recognize when you're kids want down-time: My kids, and all kids have a routine - one that works for them. In our home, they like to do something with Mom first thing after breakfast - like arts & crafts, or baking. During this time I work with them one-on-one. Then, they like to go outside, and play - burn off some steam. During this time I work from my porch, or from just inside the window at my computer so that I can work, and keep an eye on them. Then, they come in, and snack, and have some of what I call "down-time" where they like to sit quietly: reading books, doing a quiet activity like drawing, or watching tv for a bit. I work during this time. My boys, and I also have desks that are side by side, and enjoy working together.
I think that one of the biggest mistakes you can make, is to ignore your childs needs. When the kids get demanding, step back and recognize their needs, don't fight it.
To become aware of their needs, and their routine, gives them comfort, and allows you to feel less stress as you try to do more than be a stay at home Mom; which is, less face it, a job in itself!
Another useful strategy I find is to not make things harder then they have to be.
2) Keep things simple. A lot of us get caught up in having a perfect looking home. I have learned to let a few things go. That doesn't mean that I don't shower, or get dressed, or clean my house, it just means that I have learned to recognize what's really important, and what's not. Stripping life down to its bare bones so to speak.
For instance, priority is given to feeding the kids, attending to their needs, keeping the laundry done, and the house functional - not perfectly tidy. A functional home for us, has allowed me to truly maintain my sanity. I have a place for everything, and everyone is on board with working together to keep things in their place so that not just one of us has to clean up all the time.
So, we work together, and we do what's easy.
We have a system that even the kids have found easy to learn. Everything has its place. For example, when we all come from outside everyone has their own tub for outdoor clothing, the kids toys have certain places - a tub for arts & crafts, cars & trucks, blocks, etc. The kids are in charge of keeping their things tidy.
We don't fold laudry - it gets done one load at a time for each member of the household, from their laudry hamper. They then take it up to their room and hang it right up (my youngest still can't help with this yet).
We have cutlery already at the dinner table in a caddy. I think it actually looks nice.
Daily household chores like cooking, cleaning up after meals, and laudry get done, but all "extra" house work gets done on 1 designated day. For instace, Saturdays morning is when the bathrooms, floors, dusting, and other jobs get done.
The kids have jobs too. There jobs include: being in charge of their toy clean-up, taking their dirty clothes to the laundry, putting their clean clothes away, setting the table, clearing their dishes, and extra jobs if they want to earn money to buy things they want to buy.
This all might sound like a "military-like" way of life, but really we're all quite layed back, and happy because there is less stress.
"Many hands make light work" - is how our household works. This has allowed our family to have it all - earn a living from home, spend more quality time together, and to teach our children important values in life.
Lastly, and most importantly in my opinion - 3) Look after You. Don't lose who you are as a Mom, and a woman. Make sure that you look after yourself, and take time for yourself, because otherwise you're not doing any favors for your family, and not being all you can be for them.
Yours truly,
Jennifer Wheeler
Founder of Your Family Wellness www.yourfamilywellness.org An inviting Wellness Community.
Wow .... great tips, Jennifer. Appreciate your added inputs on the topic
Isabel
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