Balancing Home And Work?

Congratulations! You're a lucky stay at home mom if you are balancing home and work. You have managed the best of both worlds by choosing to stay at home with your children while still advancing in your career.

So how do you make it work? Here are a few tips:

PRIORITIZE. A clearly defined schedule will help you stay on task. When you are balancing home and work as I do, it helps to have as much of a schedule as you can...

Break your 'home based business work' into manageable chunks.. While my children are doing their homeschool... I like to do admin and computer work as much as I can, in between explaining their lessons. I save most of my phone work for when they are all done and off playing or doing chores.

If you have pre-school ages, you will need to make the most of quiet time. When are you most productive? It may be possible for you to get work done during the day (while your children are napping or at pre-school), but, chances are, the best opportunities for productivity occur when your child is down for the night... or before they are up for the day!

Remember your priorities. It seems to work better, as you are trying to balance work and family.... if you see to their needs first, then they will often be more content while Mommy is working...

I think it is important to understand it can be difficult to be a successful mom and worker at the same time. For a lot of us ' moms in home business' we had to find what worked for each of us to be working at home with kids running around! It will not be the same for everyone. While it will work for one Mom to work a few hours in the wee morning, it may work best for another to work in the afternoon or evening.

One of my good friends, a young stay at home mom with 4 children under the age of 8, has built a very successful home business, working only a few hours a day, during naptime. She works her business, by calling leads , so she puts the kids down for their nap (she is very organized, by the way!) and during their 2 hour nap, dials like her hair is on fire and connects with as many people as she can!

She will also work an hour or so at night after her husband is home and able to help with the kids...

My kids are so whiny when I am working...

...or am I the only one with unhappy kids at times?? Why is it, that when we have the most to get done, our children seem to need us the most?! I am not sure I have all the answers on that yet, but I will share a bit of what I have learned so far...

Include your children in your work when you can. Children between the ages of 3-10 can be great workers. If you have a direct sales business where you have to sort product for customers, let them help you put it in the bags. If you're doing a mailing, teach them to put stamps on the envelopes. If you hand out business cards, let them all have some to hand out... they love giving the cards to people they meet.

Take breaks from your work and spend them with your kids. Sit down and read for 15 minutes to them, maybe even watch an educational program and let the little ones climb in your lap.

Those few minutes with them will rejuvenate ALL of you and will actually be 15 minutes well spent as they will go off playing for quite awhile again.

For the wee ones, let them play with a box full of lids, or a few pots and pans. I think sometimes we forget the simple things that can keep a one year old occupied. My little ones used to play for an hour with a box of plastic lids!

Teach your children what is expected of them when you are busy on the phone with a client. If you have an office in your home, teach them that when you close the door, it means you may not be disturbed - unless in an emergency, of course. When I first got started working from home, my kids would come into my bedroom, which is where my office is, every few minutes. It was all new to them. But after a few months, they got used to it. Children are very adaptable.

Children love guidelines and schedules. We forget that sometimes, but the most contented children are often the ones with very specific guidelines and rules.

Let your children know when you will be done working. Then, they know that your time is their time. And give them the same respect as you want them to give your business... when you are having 'special time' with them, don't answer business calls or check emails!

And above all else, Have an attitude of gratitude! Because, after all, you are one of those lucky stay at home moms that is balancing home and work, with kids running afoot!

Viola is the owner of Moms in Home Business, a website designed to help women become successful work at home Moms!