Deciding to be a life-long work at home mom has been the best decision I’ve ever made for my life. However, there are a ton of things I wish I would have known before I decided to do it. Being a work at home mom has made my life fuller in so many ways. I spend a ton more time with my kids. Have trail blazed the way for my now entrepreneur of a husband to become a WAHD (work at home dad), and I make money right from my crib! YES!
Nonetheless, life is still hectic. (As is the life of every mom.) So, here’s what I wish I’d known before making the leap from working mom to work at home mom.
Everyone Will Think You’re Doing Nothing
Most people equate being at home with one thing – chillin’. In you’re new life as a work-at-home-mom you will initially feel a great sense of freedom. That sense of freedom will very quickly become a sense of obligation. You, and everyone else, will believe you have a lot more free time than you actually have. While you are at home, and might even have the luxury of going to the grocery store on your lunch break, running errands after you drop the kids at school, or even taking a nap, you STILL have to find time to work.
Mange this newfound freedom by going through your calendar prior to each month and setting aside time to do favors, or spend time with relatives and friends. If anyone ask you to run errands outside of that time simply say, “I’m working during that time, but I’d be happy to help on (insert date here.” Please, and thank you!
Time Management Skills Will Now Make or Break You
Since your new freedom will have everyone else playing chess with your free time, you’ll need to create a new way to manage your time.
Brown Mamas’ Guide to Organizing Your Time is an excellent read for any work at home mom looking to upgrade her time management skills.
As a work at home mom your timelines will begin to blur. You’ll begin doing housework when you should be doing business work, and business work will start crossing lines into time you should be spending with your kids. To avoid the mom guilt associated with bad time management skills, check yourself before you wreck yourself by sitting down and setting up a time management system.
Your House Will Be A lot Messier
Bottom-line, you’ll be home more. Your kids can now come home when their sick, when their sad or, when they just want to. Your husband might even start coming home for lunch. If you’re like me, and also take a b-line down the homeschool track, everything will get messier. Take some time to organize your home around the fact that it will get more traction. Putting small collection baskets or bins in each room, or creating a mid-day chore chart helps us keep our house clean.
You’ll Never Go Back to Work Again
I became a work at home mom 10 years ago and never looked back. I started running a support group for Black moms in my area, work as a sales rep for
Legging Army and run a business club. In essence, I’ve become a jack of all trades. The one thing I realized once I became a work at home mom is that time is your greatest asset. I refuse to give mines to anyone or thing that is not directly beneficial to myself and family.
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