New Years Resolutions for Work at Home Mom
Those who leave home daily to go to a job should admire the work-at-home mom. They get all fancied up, travel to interesting places and interact with others all day long. They get steady pay even when they take long coffee breaks, gab at the water fountain and do other kinds of goofing off.That ambitious mom in her home office must spend every possible moment working on current projects, or she doesn’t get paid. Instead of coffee breaks, she usually has to take work-time-consuming breaks for her kids’ diaper changes and runny nose fixes.What can those busy moms resolve to do in this new year to make their work-at-home time more productive? Some suggestions may help the harried self-employed mom cope. That busy mom should:1. Create an effective shedule: Apply self-discipline as if you were going out to work each day. If your kids are at home and/or go to school, set aside hours when you can work undisturbed. They could be from four a.m. to seven a.m., or eight p.m. to midnight, or whenever there’s a spare hour.It certainly isn’t easy in a busy household, but think of how author Charles Dickens did it. With no computer nor typewriter, he worked at home with a quill pen, usually while his ten kids were running around. In all of that turmoil, he produced “A Christmas Carol” and “A Tale of Two Cities”.2. Allow enough time for your family: Unless your work-at-home income is the sole family source of support, resolve that you won’t get so involved that you neglect your family responsibilities. Take on only the volume of freelance work you can handle.3. Enlist everyday help: If your freelance work keeps you very busy, and your spouse and older kids can help, assign household duties for them to help you. Additionally, if your income is sufficient enough, consider hiring babysitters and other household help.4. Get enough rest: Working at home gives you freedom, but also the inclination and incentive to work excessively on projects. If this will adversely affect your health, you owe it to yourself and family members to keep a balance between work and rest.5. Watch your diet and exercise routines: Don’t use working at home as an excuse to sit and nibble all day. Resolve to get up at least once every two hours for some stretching and bending exercises. If you’ve just completed an assignment and clicked it to a client, celebrate by biking or hiking outside for an hour or so. If you must nibble between sensible meals, make it raw fruit or veggie sticks.6. Keep accurate records of expenses and income: Your success as a freelancer will mean more family income, but know that Uncle Sam and other tax pals will want their share, too. Get the latest information on how many deductions you can take for working at home, and if your budget permits, get your end-of-year returns prepared by a savvy tax accountant who’s familiar with your type of career.
If you’re an ambitious work-at-home mom, this year resolve to set a personal discipline schedule. Without negatively affecting your family, devote as many productive hours as possible to succeeding in your career.
