If you’re reading this, you’ve probably made the transition to being a work-at-home mom and for that – you deserve an enormous congratulations. Transitioning from working mom to work-at-home mom isn’t easy because it’s typically accompanied by a ton of emotional and financial hurdles. Then, when you are settled and start to work at home, you realize just how difficult it is to actually get stuff done while juggling all of your other womanly priorities under the same roof.
It’s actually quite amazing how many irrelevant to-do’s cross your mind when you sit down to the computer.
Have you ever had these thoughts or requests?
Wow, this keyboard is dirty.
Mommy, can you help me with my math?
It’s a beautiful day, the sun shining through the windows makes them look – gross! Just a quick clean and then I’ll start.
You’re working from home now, right? How about grabbing a coffee with me at 9, downtown? Hey honey, can you clean the car while you’re home today?
Of course, regardless of its difficulty, having the flexibility to work from home is invaluable to most moms and mastering the art of it takes time, practice and patience. But because we’ve been there and done that, we have some tips from in the trenches to help get you in the right groove.
Find a Schedule That Works and Stick To It
Working at home is all about finding a schedule that works for you and your family and adhering to it. Scheduling depends on numerous factors, such as the industry you’re working in, the number of clients you have, the flexibility of clients or employers, your personal priorities, the age of your children, the schedules of your children, your spouse’s work schedule, etc. But there are very popular slots of time that many work at home moms take advantage of, and you should probably try to.
- Early mornings – Are you an early bird? If your kids wake up at 7, get up at 5. Make a cup of coffee and work in your pajamas for 2 hours. Trust us, that 2 hours per day adds up quick, and it’s easier to work when the house is quiet.
- Late nights – If you’re not an early bird, you may choose to work later into the night. If your kids go to bed at 9, work until 11 or 12. You can also work early and late if you want more free time during the day.
- Naptime – Naptime is prime time for most work-at-home moms. As soon as you put the kids down, make use of that 1-3 hour span of time.
- School – If your kids are in school, you should be lucky enough to get in 3-7 hours work each day.
- Snack time – Do you let your child relax, read or watch television while eating a snack? Check your email, write a few lines, and submit an invoice – whatever it is, make use of those 15-minute time spans.
- Lunchtime – Depending on age, some kids eat later lunches. For example, if your son naps 11-1, let him eat lunch and try to fit a few minutes of work in if you can.
- Extracurricular activities – This is a good time to fit in an hour or two of work per activity. To balance, go to one or two activities a week, and work during the other days.
Categorize Your Priorities
Categorizing your priorities goes hand-in-hand with finding a schedule that works for you and sticking to it. The below chart is a good routine to follow to keep you on track but keep in mind that important and urgent items need to be made on an individual, circumstantial basis.
- Category 1 – Important and urgent things should be done first. This might include tasks like making your child breakfast, meeting a client deadline or expectations previously set, submitting invoices, etc.
- Category 2 – Urgent but less important should be done second. This could include things like planning dinner, doing your bills, checking your email, replying to your clients, etc.
- Category 3 – Important but not urgent should follow. This might include researching new business opportunities, working on improving SEO for your website, making a check-up appointment for your kids, exercising, doing laundry, etc.
- Category 4 – Then finally, unimportant and not urgent can be done. This would include areas of personal enjoyment such as checking your social networks, writing your blog post, etc. Not to say these things are of absolute unimportance, but they should follow the more important items.
Work Efficiently
Working efficiently means following the priority model above. Also, take the following tips into consideration:
- Unless you’re using it for work purposes, save Facebook and tweeting for breaks. Social networks can suck you in and make you waste valuable time.
- You’re not going anywhere, so why look pretty? Go ahead, work in your pajamas! You’ve earned it. Not only are they comfortable, you’ll trim an hour off your schedule by bypassing the professional look. Need to Skype with a client? Just throw on a dress shirt and some make-up. The great thing is – they’ll never see your Betty Boop bottoms. I know some argue that just getting dressed motivates you to work, but the opposite is true for me.
- Is there something on your list that sucks you into a time warp but never seems to be worth the precious time spent? Maybe it’s trying to teach yourself SEO, or keeping up with your blog, or managing your business finances. If things are sucking time and not compensating monetarily, consider how outsourcing some of it might save you money. Consider freelancers, interns or other consultants.
- We all know you work at home to spend more time with your kids, but occasionally having a sitter come play or a family member take your kids out can free up much-needed time. Ask yourself if it’s worth it for you to hire someone for a day or two a week, or pull in an aunt or grandma to babysit a few hours a week.
Setting a schedule, sticking to that schedule, categorizing your priorities and working efficiently are methods that can take you from being overwhelmed to being empowered. It might take you a few weeks or months to get into the groove, but remind yourself daily that you’re at home with the kids while making money – and that’s a priceless combo that many envy.
