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You don’t just want to enjoy your time as a work at home mom. You want to be a great work at home mom, and here are five tips to succeed.
You want to be a great work at home mom. That means finding the best balance between raising your children and working, while still staying on top of the housework. The latter is especially important if you’re a single mom.
This can seem like the most impossible thing to do. There’s always someone you end up letting down. Maybe it’s your children when you tell them again that you need to work, or maybe it’s a client who hears “no” from you again.
How can you manage it all. Well, here are my tips. Am I perfect, no! But I do have a successful business.
Put your family first
Family has to come before business. Your children being sick may not be something that you had in mind, but they need their mom right now.
This can be easier said than done at times. The deadlines are looming, and you need to get on with the projects you promised you would complete. If you don’t work, you don’t have money for diapers and food!
Whenever the kids are sleeping, get your work done. When they’re away, spend the time with them. You don’t want to miss out on this time with them.
I know you want to be great in business, but your clients would easily replace you if they needed or wanted to. They’re not loyal to you. Your family needs you.
Learn when to say no to be a great work at home mom
You can’t handle everything, and you can’t take every project that comes your way. It’s time to learn to say no.
But what about money? This is why you need to think about your pricing to make sure you can realistically live on the limited number of projects you take on.
If you struggle to say no, you need to start learning how to use it. The other option is to charge such large amounts for a project that the person asking you to do it is forced to look for someone more within his budget.
Set your working hours now
Moms who go out to work will have set working hours. Once those hours are done, they can go home and spend time with their children. Work at home moms sometimes struggle with this. The work is just in another room, or on the computer that your children are using right now.
It seems so easy to just keep working for an extra hour, or to do a little bit for a client at the weekend. This is a dangerous habit to get yourself into. Make sure your clients know that you have set working hours and don’t be tempted to work outside of them.
Have a system in place
Streamline your workflow with a system. You need folders in place for all your orders, and a system for taking payments and tracking them in your accounts. Without a system, it will also be hell when it comes to tax time!
Create email templates, have files for your inbox so all your clients’ emails are separated from personal ones, and have a chart for anyone else working on your projects. You will limit the mistakes, need for communication and missed deadlines. Think about the amount of extra time you will get with your children.
Keep it simple
Make your system and folders as simple as possible. There’s no need to keep hold of all the paperwork, and you do not need to keep documents from last year. When you’ve finished with something, trash it! Efficiently rent a dumpster when you order online.
The simpler your system is, the easier it will be to stay on track. Again, you end up with more time with your family.
Work at home moms don’t find it easy and they’re not perfect. It takes time to develop a system that works for them, and find ways to spend the time they want with their families. The above five tips will help you get on track to finding the right balance as a work at home mom.
MORE: 4 tips for working with a sick child in the house
What are you struggling with as a work at home mom? Share in the comments below and let’s see some success.
