Julianne Wish, Member Contributions
Like any job environment, working from home requires a certain type of individual. There are skills and characteristics of the home employee that may or may not fit your style. So if you are considering working from home, you might want to ask yourself if it’s right for you. Here are some things to consider.
The Work Day
Do you value the time when the work day is over and you can go home and do what you please? If this is a valuable aspect of your outside-the-home job, then think carefully if you want to work from home. Setting your own hours sounds wonderful, but it is not as easy as it sounds. You don’t go home from your home office!
Computer Knowledge
If you are going to work from home, you’ll need a working knowledge of computers. You don’t have to a software designer, but knowledge of the basics is important. It’s also a good idea to have resources you can turn to, such as technically savvy friends.
There’s no IT department to turn to in the home office, and computers require maintenance and updates. If you have trouble downloading software, or if your machine freezes up, you will need to have some knowledge at your disposal to fix the problem. Also, you are undoubtedly using an internet connection to work from home; find out if a back-up plan is feasible for you in case you can’t get online.
Task Orientation
Some people are more task oriented than others – that is, some people find great satisfaction in making a list and getting everything on it done. Others find staying on task difficult, and may get distracted easily with other interests and ideas. You don’t have to be naturally task-oriented to succeed at working from home; but you do need to be honest with yourself about your abilities in this regard and plan accordingly.
Motivation
Remaining self-motivated can be challenging for some. Again, you can’t rewire your brain to be the personality type you need to succeed; but understanding your limitations and strengths regarding motivation can help you put safeguards in place before you begin.
For example, if you have trouble staying motivated, you can ask a friend to hold you accountable periodically. He or she can check up on you weekly with an email or phone call, asking you if your’re on task and if you’ve reached your goals.
Perks
If you already have a day job, carefully consider the perks that job offers and decide what you will do about providing those yourself. Health insurance and taxes, for instance, are often things an employer takes care of behind the scenes. You’ll want to look into those things on your own before starting out in the work at home world.
Julianne Alvarez-Wish is a military wife, mother, business owner, professional writer, blogger and legislative advocate. She is the Director of Communications for Our Milk Money, the Colorado State Leader for the National Association for Moms in Business and the owner of Buy By Mom and Buy By Mom Blog. She is the Colorado Springs Stay-at-Home Mom Examiner for Examiner.com. She also blogs at A Wishful Thought. Her passion, purpose and goal is to help parents work from home so they can be home with their children.
Ally Loprete, Member Contributions
Work at Home Parents who are constantly on the go between their business and their families run more of a risk of “breaking down.”
A written schedule can help to keep you accountable to all your responsibilities, including yourself.
- Schedule work time for yourself that you know you can count on, such as while the kids are at school or during nap time, but remain flexible.
- Break tasks down into categories and dedicate 1 day of the week to each category. Marketing and PR on Monday, Social Networking on Tuesday, Blogging on Wednesday, etc.
- Plan quality time with the kids each day. Put those super multi-tasking skills to work! Kid time and house chore time can go hand in hand. Get creative and make a game out of the daily chores.
- Don’t forget to eat and sleep. You may laugh, but these are often the first things to go for a busy Work at Home Parent. The body needs food to stay nourished and sleep to stay refreshed, and both will contribute to more productivity and alertness.
- Wind down time: In addition to going to sleep at a decent hour, you must give yourself at least 1/2 hour of “wind down” time before bed. Read a book or do a crossword puzzle. But do not work. Just like a computer, your mind needs to adequately shut down and reboot for the next day.
Self -employed Parent Enthusiast Ally Loprete is the Founder of OurMilkMoney.com, a nationwide online business directory of self-employed parents, and the host of This Little Parent Stayed Home, a live weekly radio show, on The Toginet.com Radio Group which can be downloaded on iTunes. Ally is on a mission to help other’s deal with the sometimes overwhelming prospect of leaving a full time job to start a new business, while running a full time household and raising kids. She is resolute about creating a haven in which parents across the nation will continue to thrive and obtain the support they need in their personal journeys. Visit more at www.ourmilkmoney.com. Private coaching is available at www.thislittleparent.info
Family, Judith Cassis, Member Contributions
If there’s one thing I love it’s a nice, expensive suit. Since presently my budget is targeted for things like trade shows and computer repair, let’s just say I’m a little dated in the fashion department. Okay, a lot dated…
I remember the days when my professional attire vacillated between a bathrobe or sweats and at times a bath towel. Oh yeah, there’s a story here, and I’ll bet when you hear it, more than one work-from-home parent will relate.
From a birds-eye view, the daily shenanigans of a work-from-home household are literally a three ring circus, sans popcorn. We learn to balance responsibilities and juggle chores with one hand, while caring for our children with the other. The day can be flowing along nicely when all of a sudden, the phone rings. Yikes – a client! Quickly, dry your hands, turn off the stereo/TV, close the door (if possible) to the playroom (if you have one), clear your throat, smile and answer the phone. Whew!
I did this for many years –yes, often in my sweats or bathrobe, and none of my clients was ever the wiser. So, what about the towel? You guessed it – fresh out of the shower and the phone rings. No one ever knew.
Judith Cassis,C.Ht. is a Personal Development Consultant with 26 years experience. Known as “The Bounce-Back Coach”, she works with people who are “bouncing back” from failure, loss or tragedy. Judith was the co-owner of a small newspaper, Tidbits of Santa Clarita Valley, www.tidbitsscv.com a family business she and her late husband, Lee Cadena ran with their sons. Through a monthly teleseries, Mama Come Home, Judith supports mothers in staying home or returning home to raise their children.
![Work/Life Balance Part IV – The To-Do List]()
Julianne Wish, Member Contributions
by Julianne Alvarez-Wish
A to-do list is a list of tasks to be completed or steps toward completing a project. DUH! We all know this – so what’s the point in going any further with this topic, right? Not so fast…
The reason we will continue is because it’s hard to argue the benefits that come from getting your commitments out of your cranium and into a consistent format.
Let’s begin by breaking down a to-do list by starting with the obvious: a to-do list should contain things that can and should be done. You say, DUH! again? You may be surprised to learn how many items wind up on to-do lists that don’t belong there – as well as how many are missed. So let’s continue on. To-do lists should have items on them that are:
- something for which you are responsible
- actions
- something that can be accomplished in a short period of time…say a sitting
- something that works toward achieving a larger goal
David Allen, in Getting Things Done, talks about the ‘next action’. He defines the next action as ‘the next physical activity that needs to be engaged in, in order to move the current reality toward completion’.
For example, most people might put something on their to-do list like ‘get ready for the trip’. The reality is that this is really a project (here comes my PM background). Projects should be broken down into the activities required to complete it. ‘Get ready for the trip’ is too vague. Instead, it should be broken down into activities such as:
- call the kennel to make reservations for dogs from x/xx to x/xx
- take suits to the dry cleaners
- go to the post office to stop mail delivery until x/xx
These are specific and actionable – it’s easy to determine when they are done. Notice theses are all physical activities. Breaking these projects down into physical activities will help you
- clearly and completely think through the project
- make it easier to complete the project
- make the project more manageable for you
By taking this approach and have a ‘proper’ to-do list you may find you’re really not as busy as you thought you were (because you are now working smarter!), you’re better organized and have a better handle on what needs to be done!
Julianne Alvarez-Wish is a military wife, mother, business owner, professional writer, blogger and legislative advocate. She is the Director of Communications for Our Milk Money, the Colorado State Leader for the National Association for Moms in Business and the owner of Buy By Mom and Buy By Mom Blog. She also blogs at Wishful Thinking. Her passion, purpose and goal is to help parents work from home so they can be home with their children.
![Work/Life Balance Part IV – The To-Do List]()
Resource Articles
If you are like most working parents, you’d prefer that your child not see a nanny, or the inside of a daycare, more than they see you. Well, here is some good news: becoming a self-employed parent is a possibility for everyone. Yes, even you. You are not alone in wanting more for children and parents everywhere are uniting together in support of a new movement that will increase your odds of work-at-home success. The Parent Entrepreneur community has grown exponentially over the last 5 years and it even comes with its own set of rules that will allow you to put family before your work. With meticulous planning, lowered expectations and a positive outlook you too can transition to becoming a work-at-home parent.
Many corporations are already on board with this new movement and are accepting more proposals to telecommute than ever before. For a basic telecommute proposal template to get you started visit: http://www.ourmilkmoney.com/resources .
You must be willing to make sacrifices. Quitting your job will most likely result in making major budget cuts and the need to make up for that lost income. Offer your skills in exchange for payment or barter, and be prepared to work a lot more for a lot less. Never take your eye off the prize: precious time with your children is priceless.
Self-employed Parent Enthusiast Ally Loprete is the Founder of OurMilkMoney.com, a nationwide online business directory of self-employed parents, and the host of This Little Parent Stayed Home, a live weekly radio show which is part of the Her Insight Group on Toginet.com. Ally is on a mission to help others deal with the sometimes overwhelming prospect of leaving a full time job to start a new business, while running a full time household and raising kids. She is resolute about creating a haven in which parents across the nation will continue to thrive and obtain the support they need in their personal journeys.
Julianne Alvarez-Wish is a military wife, mother, business owner, professional writer, blogger and legislative advocate. She is the Director of Communications for Our Milk Money, the Colorado State Leader for the National Association for Moms in Business and the owner of Buy By Mom and Buy By Mom Blog. She is the Colorado Springs Stay-at-Home Mom Examiner for Examiner.com. She also blogs at A Wishful Thought. Her passion, purpose and goal is to help parents work from home so they can be home with their children.
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