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The idea of working at home is attractive, but the reality can be challenging. Fortunately, most of the challenges one faces can be managed with a little effort and forethought.

Our sixth post and second to last of our seven week mini course discusses how to keep our kids occupied and entertained when we need to work at home. So, grab the RSS feed from this blog not to miss the complete mini course. Have a look at our previous posts too.

This week we discuss: KEEPING THE KIDS OCCUPIED WHEN YOU ARE WORKING

Being a work at home parent isn’t easy, but there are many rewards. First (and foremost) is the time you get to spend with your children. Granted you are working, but you are still raising your children by being there for them during your workday.

However, as wonderful as it is being a work at home parent, it’s not as easy as some may think. There are constant interruptions to deal with, the sounds of children fighting, or the disruptions caused by loud horseplay.

While some may begin why they decided to work from home when they have to begin dealing with these challenges, there are a few simple ways to keep sane and productive. Following are a few suggestions for helping your children stay occupied while you try to make your clients happy:

Give them some entertainment. What sort of entertainment your child will prefer varies greatly depending on their age and their ability to remain focused on one task. Some good choices include movies, video games, educational television, coloring books and other self-sufficient art projects. Playing board games or cards with siblings work well, and if they’re old enough, let them run around outside in the yard or ride their bike up and down the street.

Make compromises with your children. While bribes are not the answer, offering to provide your child with rewards for good behavior while you’re working is a good idea. Studies show children will respond better if you use positive reinforcement instead of threatening a consequence should they act up.

In other words, it is better for the parent to offer a trip to the ice cream store after dinner instead of threatening to take away toys and/or other things special to the child.

Establish a time for peaceful activities. Schedule a time of the day when the television and radio are off and when playtime means finding a quiet activity. Make it a routine occurrence. Draw the blinds and eliminate any distractions.

Examples of peaceful activities include reading, writing, playing with puzzles, coloring, or just playing quietly. Quiet toys such as building blocks are great for “quiet time.” A nap may even be in order. Take advantage of community resources. Many are hesitant to use help when it comes to taking care of their children, but community programs are there for a reason. Enroll your child in a fun summer camp or in a sports program. Girls Scouts, the YMCA, and the Boys and Girls Club are good ideas as well.

There are certain work at home jobs and careers that are quite impossible to work if there are small children at home. Such jobs include telemarketing, telephone customer service, and certain art disciplines since as painting.

In addition, depending on your child’s age, or your personal ability to deal with distractions, you may have a hard time being accurate with detail-oriented jobs such as bookkeeping, writing, and proofreading. In these cases, finding an in-home sitter, parent’s helper, or outside daycare may be the best option for you or your kids.

Use these few tips and start to enjoy a more well rounded work at home career and lifestyle today. Join us again soon for our last part of our 7 week mini course next week.

If you would like to read more about Working at Home and how we can assist you, follow this link:

www.womenslifestylepublications.com/business/work-at-home/

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The idea of working at home is attractive, but the reality can be challenging. Fortunately, most of the challenges one faces can be managed with a little effort and forethought.

The fourth post of our seven week mini course discusses how we need to deal with setting boundaries between our business hours and those around us. So, grab the RSS feed from this blog not to miss the complete mini course. Have a look at our previous post too.

This week we discuss: BOUNDARY SETTING

Those who have never worked at home aren’t always aware of the work that is involved in being self-employed. Some may have even known a business owner (or two) who lazily sat home, reading the news and drinking coffee all day while their employees did most of the work at an office or warehouse.

Unfortunately, this creates a negative image for those who consider themselves self-employed. Those who work at home cannot always be compared to business owners, who most likely do delegate a good portion of their work. Rather, work at home individuals are often the owner and the employees, the planner and the executioner. In other words, many do all of the work required to make their businesses run.

Because many people do not realize this, friends and family of those working at home may often interrupt their workday with phone calls and unexpected visits that business owners just do not have time to deal with. While your loved ones may have good intentions in their desire to communicate with you during work hours, here are a few tips to educate your friends and family about your need for boundaries:

1. Make a good sign to hang on your door. If you work primarily on the phone where a doorbell ringing might set the dogs off barking, this should help things a little. Print a note politely telling visitors you are unavailable during certain working hours. Mention that packages may be left at the door without ringing the bell. Laminate it, and hang it up when you begin your workday.

2. Turn off the telephone ringer (if possible) or use Caller I.D. Screening your calls and only answering the business-related ones are a good way to cut back on annoying and frivolous phone calls. When your friends and family ask why you did not take their call, simply reply that you were working, and only taking calls from client. After a few times of this happening, they should begin to get the point.

3. Don’t let others talk you into doing errands or favors for them. Learn to say no without offering to help another time. Be firm. Many who work at home get phone calls from friends or other parents asking them to do a favor, run an errand, or transport their children for them. Politely inform them that you are working, and that the only breaks you get throughout the day are to drop off and pick up your children from school.

4. Create a “set” schedule. If you work some hours one day and others another, it will be hard for your loved ones to know the best time to get in touch. Set your schedule and make sure everyone knows it. Put it on the back of your business cards and hand them out at your next family function.

Whether your friends and family are crossing boundaries because they aren’t aware of their existence, or because they don’t truly believe in their necessity, following the above suggestions will help you educate them about your needs. Hopefully, they will recognize your desires, sense your seriousness about needing boundaries, and be fully willing to comply.

Use these few tips and start to enjoy a more well rounded work at home career and lifestyle today. Join us again soon for the 3^rd last of our 7 week mini course next week.

If you would like to read more about Working at Home and how we can assist you, follow this link:

http://www.womenslifestylepublications.com/business/work-at-home/

The idea of working at home is attractive, but the reality can be challenging. Fortunately, most of the challenges one faces can be managed with a little effort and forethought.

The third post of our seven week mini course discusses how to deal with our family’s expectation in regards to us working from home. So, grab the RSS feed from this blog not to miss the complete mini course. Have a look at our previous post too.

This week we discuss: DEALING WITH FAMILY EXPECTATIONS

When both parents work outside the home, the details of taking care of the family and household are usually taken care of equally. The healthiest relationship consists of two partners who agree to split up duties; each taking in consideration what the other does for a living while away at work.

However, most families do not have such agreements in force, but rather they push and pull on each other to get things done when it apparent they have been neglected. Alternatively, mothers may take on the role of house keeper and caretaker without question, drawing on the traditional “wife and mother” roles passed on from grandmothers. In some modern families, dad may play the traditional nurturing role.

However, what happens when the caretaker works from home? Many spouses of work at home parents may not realize the energy that is involved in essentially working two jobs at the same time. While one may be working while at home during the day, the other is not there to see the benefits that come out of the work that was done.

Unfortunately, many spouses have a hard time realizing that their work at home counterparts accomplish more during the day than most in the corporate world do. Therefore, their expectations of what should be done at home, in the evening and on weekends, may not change. Even worse, the expectations could grow.

Here are some ways to help your spouse recognize the work you do, and allow your role of work at home mom morph from the traditional role of wife and mother to something that matches the new dynamics in your family’s household.

1. Display your professionalism – Get up early, shower, and be dressed for work when your spouse leaves for work. Develop a working schedule and adhere to it to show that you are serious about what you do.

2. Create a separate office space, make business cards, and otherwise treat yourself as a self-employed individual.

3. Involve your spouse in your work – Whenever possible, share with your spouse how your day went, any new projects you are involved in, and even offer to let them help now and then. This will help your spouse understand the concept that you actually provide a service or product to others, and make a living doing so.

4. Share the wealth and rewards – Nothing shows a spouse how hard you’ve been working than a share of the profits. While most income earned may be funneled directly into a joint account used for bills, set aside a small sum each month to use as “play” money.

5. Go on a special date, buy something special, or save up your money and take a small vacation. When a spouse is finally able to recognize what is accomplished throughout the day, and see the rewards that are associated with that, they are more likely to be open to a redistribution of the family’s responsibilities.

Not only will this make day-to-day life easier for the person working at home, but also it will bring a new appreciation from family members for the work that is done in support of the family.

Use these few tips and start to enjoy a more well rounded work at home career and lifestyle today. Join us again for the 4^th post of our 7 week mini course next week.

If you would like to read more about Working at Home and how we can assist you, follow this link:

Guide to Working at Home