Do you want to be a work from home mom?
It sounds dreamy, doesn’t it?
…Rocking the mom bun and snuggling a baby while making boatloads of money as an Instagram Influencer or Youtube star while surfing Pinterest for content ideas in yoga pants…
That would be the life, am i right?
But can I be real with you?
Working from home is not all that dreamy.
I’ve been working from home as an Internet Marketer for almost eight years now. While it does have its downsides – you can never escape the looming pile of laundry and your only co-worker is the cat if you have one. It seems super-glamorous until you do it yourself and realize it’s just work in a different setting.
The Bad
1. The chores never ever shut up
We see the dishes that need washed, the laundry that needs folded, the legos and trucks and barbies and dress-up stuff that no one is playing with, but is still scattered across the floor…
We see it all…
This can be a pain in the butt when the place you work is also the place you live.
2. The kids work from home too
If you have some kids that aren’t school-age yet, then that means that they work from home, too.
The top stressor that I hear when working with other mompreneurs is that it is difficult to balance the responsibilities of motherhood with the responsibilities of business…And that struggle is no joke.
Working from home requires you to put in lot of hours, especially if you are hoping to produce an income.
But our little guys don’t understand what we’re up to…
3. There is no time clock
When you’re a work at home mom, you don’t ever clock out…EVER.
There is no 5:00 wrap-up that signals the end of your workday, and you are always “on.”
This lack of separation can be extremely overwhelming and make it feel like you never have a break.
4. Plus all those other distractions
Being at home with unlimited wi-fi and unrestricted internet usage can mean access to a plethora of possible distractions…
#netflixanyone?
But streaming shows or scrolling Facebook is a slippery slope straight down to Unproductive Town.
Top tips for being a productive Work From Home Mom
Afraid that a Netflix marathon is the only thing you’d manage to accomplish every day if you worked from home? Here are six tips to help you stay focused and productive.
- Shower, get dressed and put makeup on. No one ever took over the world in their PJs!
- Send the kids to day care. You’ll get so much more done if you don’t have a child begging for a snack every four seconds
- Ignore the housework. Putting on a load of laundry before you start work is fine, but don’t get sucked into the trap of spending half your day tidying and cleaning. Walk straight to your desk and ignore it all until later. (Apologies to all the neat freaks!)
- Take some time out (But Not Too Much). Some work from home moms forget to take any breaks and eat lunch at their desk, while others pop out for coffee dates and yoga classes a little too often. Set an “at your desk” schedule – 9am to 12pm and 1pm to 5pm – and try to stick to it.
- Set accountabilities. When you work from home, there is no one there to monitor your behavior. And as freeing as that sounds, it can make you sloppy. Make your list for the day and don’t allow yourself the reward of “time off” until you big items are done. Not having a boss requires you to focus on the right things… What are the tasks that will move your business or project furthest today?
And finally RESPECT your new work setting
Working from home isn’t always treated with the same respect as working outside the home… You might find that you get called on to help friends or family because you’re “not working.” Practice saying NO.
Learning to guard your time is essential if you want to be successful at working from home. You have to treat working from home like a career, and no one would ask you to take time off from your office job in the middle of the day.
People treat you like you treat you, so treat yourself and your new work-from-home position with RESPECT.
So… do you have what it takes to be a work from home mom?