Work At Home Tips

Work at home tips for the busy mom

Ok, so you’ve decided you are going to be a work at home mom, or perhaps you already are. This means you need to get and stay organized, while still seeing to the needs of your family. It can be challenging, especially if you have young children, but it can be done.

First of all, it is ideal if you can get your own room to work in, preferably with a door you can close for those important phone calls! ( or just for some quiet time). Failing this, you’ll need an area that has all your working needs together in one place.

If you are going to have clients calling you, then try to get a phone line specifically for this. Children like to answer the phone, and it can be very embarrassing to have them answer a home phone and it turn out to be a client, especially if they hang up!

Encourage your family to help you by filing, shredding all the documents you no longer need, answering the phones (if they are old enough to do this), etc. Younger children could sharpen your pencils, stuff envelopes, put stamps on envelopes etc, older ones can check your printer has paper, proof read articles (if their spelling is strong), etc. Now this could mean that jobs take a little longer, but their cooperation is important, and will gain you more than you will lose. Plus, if your children do not like helping, then they will just keep out of your way!

Having your family help is a financial benefit too. You can pay them for the jobs they do, and so encourage them from an early age to see the benefits of work. It is also a good way to introduce them to saving money and budgeting.

Make a schedule, and stick to it. It is very easy when you work at home to spend more hours than you intend working, because the work is always there. If you stick to a schedule, not only will your family get used to the hours you work, but you are more likely to make sure your family do not suffer from a lack of mom time.

If your children are home while you are working, let them know when you will be available to spend time with them, and make sure you do.

Have a look at this article for some more help.

Getting Your Family Involved In Your Home Business
by: Craig Binkley

Do you own your own home business? Is your family involved with your daily business? Yeah, I know at times it seems easier to just do everything yourself. It is an easy trap to get into. Why take the time to explain the job, show them how it should be done, make sure it is done properly, and then possibly have to redo the project if it is not done to your liking? Yes, we have all been through this at some point. The question is: what are you going to do about it?

You basically have two options: Do everything yourself or invest the time to get your family involved. For me, the second one is the ONLY option.

First off, if you are doing everything yourself, you are probably spending a lot more time with your business than with your family. Secondly, you are depriving your spouse and children of the joy of owning a home business.

Why not take some of the burden off of yourself by allowing your family to help you in your daily tasks. Here are a few ideas that you can implement to start getting your family involved.

SPOUSE: If your spouse is not involved with you in your home business you are missing a great opportunity to spend some much needed time with him/her. I know, this may not be everyone’s idea of quality time with your beloved, but is it not better than the alternate – you doing your thing and he/she doing theirs? My wife is my biggest supporter. She is the person I bounce ideas off of. She is also my proofreader. If your spouse is not in tune with what you are doing, do what you can to peak their interest and get them involved today.

They could buy the office supplies, do the photocopying, file your papers, provided you have a filing system in place,  proof read, book keep etc, as well as helping around the home with making sure there are meals available when needed for the whole family.

~ Site Editor

YOUNG CHILDREN: Obviously there is not much for a toddler to do, but as they grow older you can give them small jobs to start out (dumping your trash can, sharpening your pencils, etc.) and continuing to give them more challenging jobs as they become more mature. No matter what the job, kids feel a sense of pride in knowing they are “pitching in”.

TEENAGERS: This is the group you need to get! There are so many things that a teen can get involved with (sports, music, friends, drugs). Wouldn’t it be nice if what they are involved with were your business? If you have been giving them jobs as younger children then most likely they are already involved. If you are just getting started with your business and/or getting to those teens, try giving them some things that they might not expect that you would delegate to them (typing a letter or making a call to a supplier to place an order). Let them see that you have the confidence in them and they will respond likewise.

Our teen daughter makes her own jewelry so we decided to make it a part of our business with a section of our web site dedicated to her creations only. After seeing this, our oldest son decided he wanted something to do, so he started making wood-burned signs. We added a page for him also. They both are very proud of the fact that the stuff they are making is actually on the web. It has gotten them very interested in what we do as a family business and allows us to get them even more involved as time goes by.

If your teenager has a driving license, and you trust them!, they could pick up office supplies, and go to the bank for you too to deposit cheques. There are lots of possibilities if you think about it, and are prepared to let go of some of the control.~ Site Editor

In conclusion, do whatever you can to get your family involved. Not only will it alleviate some of your workload, it can truly draw you family closer together.

So, make the most of your work at home time, and the most of your family too. Your time with them is precious. ~ Site Editor

About The Author Craig Binkley – husband, father and home business owner assisting in the restoration of the “traditional” family through home business ownership. http://www.bornagainbargains.com craig@bornagainbargains.com