Work-At-Home Parents
Hey everyone,
I know it has been quite sometime since I have posted to our site. Ken and I have been really busy building our home business. I am so thankful that we have the opportunity to work from home, it allows us to travel, be with family, celebrate holidays, and even anniversaries without the hassels of “getting off from work” or making sure we have enough time off to do what we want to do. We just returned from Arizona where we went for our 41st wedding anniversay and at Christmas we visited our son and daughter-in-love in California. This summer we plan on taking another trip of about two weeks and spend sometime in Gatlinburg, Tennessee at our time share. So we are blessed to be able to work from home.
Well, enough about us. I found this article on parents who work from home. Having children can be a challenge when you work around their schedules and demands. Diana Ennen – President of Virtual Word Publishing has some really good pointers in her article on how to be productive, but I will let her tell you………
Productivity Tips for Work-at-Home Parents
Many parents dream of being able to work from home so that they can be the primary caregivers for their children. Thanks to a recent increase in available telecommuting positions, such as being a virtual assistant, that dream can be a reality. However, working from home with the kids can be extremely challenging at times. It takes an industrious freelancer to balance both work and family at the same time. Below are five productivity tips for work-at-home parents.
1. Establish Work Hours – Not only do you need to commit to a certain amount of work each day, you also need to know when to “clock out.” While working from home, you may be compelled to keep working, even after you put in a full day. Let your family know what your work hours are and make yourself stick to them.
2. Take Advantage of “Nap Time” – If your children are still young enough to take naps during the day, consider yourself lucky. You can use this time to devote to work that requires silence, such as phone calls or intense concentration.
3. Set Boundaries – You need an area that is designated as your workspace. While you don’t want to be a tyrant about this, your family should know to ask before they move/use anything in your home office. This is the same courtesy you would receive from coworkers in a traditional office.
4. Keep Emergency Distractions Nearby – If you really need to commit to some mission-critical work and your kids have other plans, make sure you have some sort of toy or movie that can entertain them for a bit. While you don’t want to park them in front of the television all day, sometimes you will need to distract them while you put your nose to the grindstone.
5. Remain Flexible – Sometimes, even the tips above won’t work. There will be days when your kids are screaming, your work is due and you haven’t had a good night’s sleep in a week. Don’t panic! Instead of trying to make your family fit your schedule, just go with the flow until you can get things back on track. Even though working at home will afford you many creature comforts and perks, there are unique challenges involved with the lifestyle. The most important thing to do is relax and be diligent. With the above tips, your work life and home life will hopefully have a more peaceful coexistence. Diana Ennen – President of Virtual Word Publishing
Well, I hope you have learned how to be a productive work-at-home parent from this article. Let me know your thoughts and how you manage your home business.
To Your Success,
Sherry Pope
