How can I work from home as a mom? Let’s talk about it. It’s not that hard! Here are a few tips to focus on your family, work, and schedule. Let’s get into it!
After working from home as a mom for more than 6 years (with two active kids!), I still wake up everyday asking myself “how can I work from home as a mom?”. Literally, it’s a battle every day.
I think if you are wanting to work from home as a mom, you need to start making your goals reasonable, and decide what matters to you. Flexibility? A perfect schedule? Having more quality time with your kids?
Once you figure out what your goals are, you will have a lot more grace for yourself when your life seems crazy, your kids are bouncing off the walls, and your sink is full of dishes!
Let’s go over the different ways you can focus on what matters to your so you can make this working mom thing work!
How can I work from home as a mom?
I’ve spent years trying to make things easier as a WAHM. Trying to find a magical solution that works.
I’ve tried everything while carrying part-time and a full-time job. I’ve had flexible jobs I can do at midnight, but also 8-5 jobs that require me to sit at a desk all day. I’ve had my own schedule, but also had company remote job with their own unwavering schedule. This is how I get through it!
The key is to answer one question:
What does a successful day look like to you? Is it…
- A schedule that works?
- Kids that are happy?
- Time to clean your house and cook?
- Time to see friends and be social?
- Getting 8 hours of sleep?
- Getting your kids to actually take naps?
Once you figure out what makes your day successful, use the tips below to see how you can make that are of your life work!
1. Your home and workspace
1. Let things be messy
Let’s talk your home – your control center. Decide if you need an office with doors (those doors are amazing!) or just a desk in a main room.
In each of my houses I have moved my desk to a central location.
In my old house, my desk was actually in my living room. I had room to push my desk near the wall opposite my sofa. And this gave me a lot of space to work and be near my daughter.
Now in my new house, my desk is in our upstairs loft that is between our bedrooms. There is enough room to fit my desk, a small sofa, and a fenced in play area for my baby.
(See my office/living room combination here!)
Once you decide how your work at home office will look like, you need to realize something:
Keep your home and office clean and organized will be hard. LIKE REALLY HARD.
This is something I’ve had to come to terms with. I love a clean home at all times, and it’s really hard for me to let things go, and let my work area be a complete mess.
So, that’s my piece of advice. Let things be crazy.
When it comes to making cleaning SIMPLE, here is one mental shift that helps me tremendously!
2. How to keep things clean
Write down everything you want to clean weekly and monthly. Don’t worry about laundering your curtains and cleaning your ducts. Who really does that anyway?
Just create a master list of your top chores….and PICK 5 PER WEEK.
Instead of “Doing it all” just pick 5! My 5 are:
- Clean up toys and vacuum upstairs
- Clean master bathroom
- Kids laundry (my husband does his own)
- My laundry
- Pick up downstairs and vaccuum
Everything else? It might not happen. But these 5 items will be enough to make me feel clean every week!
2. A schedule that works
My home and workspace daily routine changes ALL the time. I bet yours does too! The truth is that even if you are a pro work at home mom, your routine will change every time you, or your kids, or your partner has a shift in their schedule. That’s ok!
I can’t tell you how to create a specific workspace routine that works for your family, but I can tell you how I manage our ever-changing schedule, and how I use goal setting to help shape my family work schedule every year.
I use a one-sheet printable digital routine builder as a family/work exercise to see how I spend my time every day. It is the only thing that works for me when it comes to improving my work and productivity and help with work-life balance.
This scheduling solution coordinates all your work, family events, your meals, your kids activities, and self-care time…and then lets you rest.
WITH THIS SYSTEM YOU CAN…
- Keep separate schedules for you, your kids, your home, and your work.
- Compare every day of the week to see where you have extra minutes to optimize and use wisely.
- Prioritize your top to-do items, and and say “no” to what can be saved for next week.
- Add in cleaning chores and kids activities based on how much extra time you have.
Using this planner can be a one-time exercise to help you find extra time in your day. It doesn’t have to be used every day all year!
If you are looking for a single set schedule planner to help you identify a bad habit of productivity, and give you family and work inspiration, grab this single scheduler and see if it helps!
3. Focusing on self-care
Becoming a work at home mom usually means that everything comes before yourself.
Your entire world revolves around your kids, your spouse, your home, and your work.
And, if you happen to have an additional 10 minutes, you get to choose between doing more dishes, or doing something for yourself.
9 times out of 10, I’ll choose the dishes.
After years of having children, working multiple jobs, moving across the country, and doing a home renovation, I have learned that if my self-care isn’t on auto-pilot, it won’t happen.
Now, focusing on yourself is more than just bubble baths.
Sometimes self-care for me is disappearing while my kids are playing with my husband so I can read 10 pages of my book. Just a little “focus on what I need” gives me brain space to enjoy me and my life.
In order to make my life easier, I have learned to ask myself a few basic questions.
These questions change depending on what I am focusing on. But, if they are good questions, they will stick me when I get sucked down an Instagram ad rabbit trail, or when I am in the makeup aisle in Target.
To learn how I do this and focus on self-care, check out these posts!
4. Getting enough sleep
I was listening to a podcast of two work-at-home moms that wake up at 4:30 every morning to get their stuff done. They each have 4 kids, and have been waking up at 4:30 for over a decade.
At first I was mad. DON’T TELL ME I HAVE TO WAKE UP EARLY.
But, then one of the moms said, “I don’t really want to tell anyone to wake up early. But if you are asking how I get everything done, my only answer is that I give up sleep and use those hours when you are sleeping.”
And this hit me hard.
No, we don’t have to wake up early. But, it is a solution that might be the only thing that gives you working time when the house is quiet.
I’ve tried it many times, and currently wake up around 5:30-6 to get things done. See my tips for waking up early here!
5. Quality time with your family
So my blog says on the homepage: Helping working moms create space for what really matters.
And honestly I’ve thought a lot about that statement. How hard is it to focus on the schedule and the routine, but forget to spend time on what really matters.
I didn’t want my kids to look back on this time and think that mom was just stressed out all the time. Change the way you do the schedule. Have fun with the people that matter.
6. Childcare and Actual Work
It’s easy to say “just do your work and watch your kids!” But it’s never that easy, right? Here are some resources to help you juggle work and childcare.
ESSENTIAL GUIDE: Childcare help for working parents – Everything you need to decide what childcare is right for you! I go over daycare costs, and how to make it work even if you don’t have a lot of money.
BEST office hacks for moms working from home – Start here if you need real office tricks for working at home.
9 EASY Tips for Working from Home Without Childcare – Don’t have childcare? Start here!
(For extra tips, I love this list of tips for work at home moms here!)
BONUS – A list of jobs for stay-at-home moms
Are you looking for real work-at-home jobs that you can manage on your own time to bring in extra cash? Here are some of my favorites!
1. Proofreader
Are you passionate about words, reading, and grammar? If so, proofreading could be a perfect fit for you. Check out here how you can create a profitable freelance business as an online proofreader.
Use her this free course to see if Proofreading is right for you! Learn how proofreading can be your ticket to work from anywhere. It’s the surprisingly easy way to attract your ideal proofreading prospects. It’s a great home mom job. Check it out here!
2. Sell Printables On Etsy
Now THIS is the part-time job I can’t wait to try. In fact, I’m already planning how to sell printables on Etsy.
Gold City Ventures (with Julie and Cody) has the perfect free seminar to learn how to start selling on Etsy. It’s fascinating!
3. Transcribing Data
Sign up today for a free 7-day mini Transcriptionist course to see if transcription stay-at-home jobs are right for you.
Choose Transcribe Anywhere because you’re ready to learn everything you need to know. Choose them because you want hands-on experience. What Transcribe Anywhere offers:
- high-quality education without breaking the bank;
- lifetime support from real people who care;
- to learn not just how to get clients, but
- how to keep them;
- to build an excellent reputation and
- grow your business.
4. Tutor
I have tutored with Wyzant for years. Wyzant is an easy way to match your skills with students that need online tutoring in your area. I have tutored English, Spanish, and other subjects – and have always found awesome students in my zip code.
Just fill out a profile, add your qualifications, take a few quizzes, and you will be matched up with potential students in your area. I have always found excellent students – and the money is really good. I totally recommend for how to make money as a stay at home mom!
If you want my complete list jobs for moms like: bookkeeping, virtual assistant, blogger (how to start a blog!), social media manager, and other small business work-from-home jobs, check out my list here!
How can I work from home as a mom?
If you are looking for real-life examples of how other moms work at home, come join our free Facebook group of moms – we can’t wait to meet you!
Also, leave a comment below sharing your favorite things that get you through the day.
