By being honest about your needs, prioritizing things and making time to work and to be with your family you’ll have a successful balance with being a work at home mom.
The work at home mom (WAHM) is sort of a new phenomenon. Earlier women either worked or stayed home after having kids. However, it was rare to find a mom who worked and stayed home. And initially, it sounds like you have the best of both worlds by being a WAHM.
However, the reality is that balancing work-life and home-life within the confines of your home is not a very task. To balance working from home and being a mom, try these tips:
1. Set up a designated office space:
It can be hard, especially at first, for your kids to understand that you are actually working when you’re working from home. Setting up a designated office space helps give the feel of being in an actual office. Also, you can tell the kids that you are working and should not to be disturbed.
2. Consider hiring a babysitter:
If designating a specific office space isn’t helping minimize distractions, consider hiring a babysitter that comes in for a few hours a day so that you can either work uninterrupted or leave and work elsewhere. Those few hours can be just the break that you need to buck up your speed.
3. Prioritize what you’re willing to give up and what you aren’t:
Work at home is going to require certain sacrifices on both your part and your family’s part. Determine what you’re willing to let go of, such as watching a morning talk show, and what you aren’t willing to let go of, like the weekly play date with your best friend’s kids who also happen to be your kids’ best friends.
4. Figure out a schedule that works for you:
It’s unlikely that you’ll be able to work a typical 9-5 shift during the day and more unlikely that you want to do that anyway – after all, you decided to stay home with the kids for a reason! Figure out which hours you can get work done without infringing on time spent with your family, such as early in the morning before the kids are awake and after they go to sleep, or for a few hours after your spouse gets home and can spend time with the kids. Being flexible with your work schedule will allow you to juggle both working at home and being a stay-at-home mom.
5. Don’t be afraid to ask for help:
As a mom, it’s easy to get into the mindset that you can and should do it all. However, as a working mom or a WAHM, this mindset can get overwhelming quickly. Don’t be afraid to ask your spouse or the kids for help around the house, with dinner, etc. Your job as both a businesswoman and a mom is equally important, and to be effective at both you have to learn when to delegate.
It isn’t easy managing both family and work, especially when you’re working from home. Your kids, family, and friends may not see your job as an actual job because you’re at home all the time, which can be a difficult pill to swallow.
By being honest about your needs, prioritizing what has to get done, and making time to work and to be with your family you’ll have a much more successful balance with being both a stay at home mom and a work at home mom.
