The Downsides To Being A Work-at-home Mom
As the fax machine noisily went off, I ran to silence it. After all, the baby had just gotten to sleep after a fussy morning due to teething, and I didn't want him to be disturbed. I'd have to call the client in a few minutes so that he could resend his papers, but not until after I turned the volume down on the fax machine, of course. Talking on the phone, however, could end up taking a lot of time, as this client tended to like to talk for a while. I, on the other hand, would much rather be getting some quality work time in during the baby's nap time.
Being a full-time mother and working from home has many challenges. Originally, it seemed like the best idea ever. I could still be brining in money while at the same time being able to attend "Mommy and Me" groups. I am a dedicated worker, and I knew the baby had to sleep sometime. It sounded like a great idea, but there were two major problems. My new baby was really fussy, and I had to hold him for a long time for him to get to sleep. Besides that, my best customer required even more coddling than the baby, and I had to talk to him on the phone for long periods of time.
It's hard when you're a work from home mom. You never know who comes first ??" the baby or the client. I finally had to put my foot down one day. The client and I had just had a long conversation, so I went to take care of the baby. He seemed a little feverish, and right when I was taking his temperature, the phone rang and the answering machine called out, "Hello? Are you still there? Did you go somewhere? Hello?" That was the last straw.
I was to blame for allowing the customer to take up all my time. Therefore, I had to fix the problem by forcing myself to become more efficient or else I would continue this problem. Everything became easier once I told my clients that I would only be working after 10:00 p.m. They could email or fax me during the day, but I would actually only be working at night. That way, I could take care of my baby while he was awake and totally focus on their projects when I was working. It also helped cure my clients of keeping me on the phone with marathon calls.
What makes it hard to be a work at home mom? Finding time for everything. I set up a schedule for returning client's phone calls, one per client per day. It made all of use focus on the important things when we did talk, and the business became more streamlined on both ends, which was a win-win situation. The quality of my work got better, and my customers ended up actually paying less because fewer errors were made due to interruptions.
My clients soon got used to the new schedule, and I became much more productive. I had learned to manage my time in small increments, which even let me get the house cleaned up on a regular basis. My baby, however, soon became a toddler. His naps changed from the morning to the afternoon, and just trying to keep up with him would wear me out, leaving me unable to get anything done while he was sleeping.
That was when I had to make major adjustments to my schedule for the second time. I had to allow time for my boy to play outside, allowing him to play freely and wear himself out a little. That way, I didn't spend all my time picking up and cleaning up behind him as he made a disaster area out of our home.
Now my boys (plural) are teenagers. I've worked at home for the past 15 years, mostly writing and editing for various clients. Newer technology has made it possible for me to work for clients I never even meet, which keeps my car's gas bill low. Older children are much more independent and don't need my constant supervision, but I still try to work at night. They may be my big grown boys, but I still like to work while my babies sleep.
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by: JessicaFranks
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