In an article full of advice about how to find a job (even in today’s “tough market”), USA Weekend cited best-selling author Stephen Covey in recommending that the would-be employee be available to work on an as-needed basis to get their foot in the door. “Customize your own career,” was Covey’s advice. The article continues: “When the number of full-time job opening is down, demand for contractual work typically increases, Covey says.” Hmmm….sounds ideal for a work at home mom, doesn’t it?! We’ve talked before about the current ideal timing for a work at home mom with a home-based business. Apparently, the same is true if you are interested in working for someone, but at home.
Non-Competitive Culture
May 6th, 2010
I read a newspaper article recently about the world of blogging moms. It is a huge community, and I was startled to read just how huge. Guess I shouldn’t be surprised. We moms have lots to say, and it’s bound to be of interest.
But I was sort of taken aback that the thrust of the article was about the controversy among some very successful mommy bloggers. Blogger A not liking what Blogger B had to say about motherhood. Blogger B responding in kind. And so on. Yikes! That is so not my style.
If what a mommy blogger has to say doesn’t resonate with me, I probably won’t return to that blog, but I would feel no compulsion to shout out my perspective. I don’t agree with every work at home mom blog out there, but so what?! I have much better things to do with my time than to be sure that disagreement is known far and wide.
That type of competitive culture does not appeal to me and that’s one of the reasons I am SO happy with the company with whom I work at home. Technically, all of us who represent the company could be considered competitors, but the culture of the company just doesn’t cultivate that. We are on a common mission, we support one another, and we believe that, at a certain level, when one succeeds, we all succeed.
Income Even When the Work at Home Mom Just Can’t
April 29th, 2010
Moms are busy people. We all know that. Add “work” (of any sort) to motherhood and the busy-ness steps up a notch (or two or three). For the work at home mom, the flexibility inherent in this work arrangement can also mean that the demands of motherhood easily take precedence, and it’s hard to get the work done. There are also times when the supreme commitment to motherhood means the work just isn’t going to get done…today. In these cases, the corporate mother has sick day/vacation day/leave of absence possibilities. What does the work at home mother have? Well, if she has a home-based business that involves social marketing, the concept of leverage, and/or residual streams of income, she has what I’d call a great fit. I think these types of work at home options give maximum time control for us moms with minimal negative impact from time diversions. A missed day does not stop the flow of income. Business does not have to suffer because of motherhood stuff that calls us away from work. How great is that?!
Learning from the Bloggers
April 22nd, 2010
The blogsphere may be a part of the work landscape for many work at home moms. But whether or not blogging is part of our home-based operations, I think there are lessons for all of us at-home workers to learn from those who do blog.
I recently read The 8 Habits of Highly Effective Bloggers at copyblogger.com, and while some were particular to the craft of writing, many of those habits apply to all of us who work at home. Persistency. Consistency. Planning. Being a self-starter. Yep, those are all critical to work at home success, wouldn’t you agree? You can get more inspiration on all those fronts at the original post.
Flirting
April 15th, 2010
Do you ever flirt with being an employee? You fellow work at home moms, do you ever think about how nice it would be to just punch the time clock, have someone else to “report” to who can make the hard decisions, have your responsibilities clearly defined in an employee handbook somewhere? Once in a while, I have those days. Yes, even though it feels so good to do what I do, there are some days when going back to being an employee seems appealing.
Any harm done in gazing over the fence occasionally to check the grass color? Anything wrong with daydreaming about the patches of green that surely are there? Only, I think, if I let that derail me. If I spent hours of time at it, I would later be frustrated beyond belief by the consequences of that time usage. After all, I CAN return to the corporate world if I so choose and the choice is mine.
So if it’s truly a consideration, all I have to do is (mentally) put myself there for a brief period of time. I wouldn’t be at home right now. I’d be doing someone else’s bidding on their schedule. I would have to answer to others (in addition to myself). How does that feel? No thanks. My independent streak bristles at the very thought.
This exercise works for me. You can do the same thing if you’re contemplating the transition from employee to work at home mom, just reverse the tables. Imagine yourself working at home. How does it feel? You probably don’t have enough particulars to think about what it would look like. Just focus on the feeling. Go ahead – flirt with being a work at home mom 
.
If I Can Have It, So Can You
April 12th, 2010
I have the kind of home-based business where I get to offer the same benefits I enjoy to others. And I feel as though it is incumbent upon me to share the gift of this opportunity, so that other moms can work at home, provide for their families, have better health, serve others and make a difference in the world, and enjoy a community of support in their professional lives.
Wow – when I try to look at it from the outside, it almost sounds too good to be true. Can one woman with nonmom skills and a mother’s heart really have all that? Well, regardless of how it sounds, I’m living proof that it IS true. And if it can be true for me, it can be true for you!
How Will Your Work at Home be Perceived by Others?
March 31st, 2010
There was a period of time in my work at home mom tenure when I was very self-conscious about what other people thought of my career choice. Especially other professional people. It wasn’t so much the being at home…I mean, who could disdain a mother’s desire to be with her children?
It was more the foray into network marketing…an often misunderstood and often under-appreciated business model. It wasn’t even considered a valid business model by some. I was affected by these perceptions of other people, and I know of other work at home moms and would-be WAHMs in the same boat. For myself personally, I find it tinged with sad humor in retrospect. The advance of home-based business is now touted as a driving market force, and it has been a wonderful fit for me.
But I think there are still some professional women out there who are stymied by this old stigma. To them, I would say: do your due diligence. Educate yourself on the current state of business affairs among the forward-thinking. Be careful who you allow to be your “who saids” (who you listen to in forming your self-picture). And then remember these wise words from a man who is the Director of International Business Development for a highly successful network marketing company: “Any major change is ridiculed, opposed and then becomes self-evident it would happen anyway.”
Feels So Good
March 26th, 2010
When you have your own home-based business as a work at home mom, the failure or success of your undertakings rests heavily on your own efforts, your own initiative, your own motivation and your own ideas. Sure, this can feel a little heavy sometimes. But what a great venue for creativity. And it feels SO good to come up with a home run in any of those categories. So, so good.
A Mother’s Heart
March 16th, 2010
While most of my posts focus on the logistics of working at home, there is nothing to write about today other than a mother’s heart.
You see, my oldest son is home for a week of spring break. He’s a college freshman who choose a wonderful institution of higher learning that is 1/2 way across the country. We covet the rare time we get to spend with him – and that time is now.
I feel SO blessed to be the CEO of my own home-based business such that my self-designated time off can coincide with his. It makes this mother’s heart very happy!
Independence & Teamwork
March 12th, 2010
Most any work at home mom with a home-based business would probably consider herself an independent worker. I know I do. I was the fifth grader who wanted to do the “work with a partner” project solo, because then I knew it would be done right and right away. Nor did I go for “study groups” in college or grad school.
So I was actually kind of surprised to find how much I enjoy and appreciate the team business support inherent in my business model. Each team member has her (or his) own business in the same field, but we aren’t really competitors and we are connected by a common business mentor. I applaud the success of my team members which in no way diminishes my own accomplishments, which are, in turn, also celebrated by the team (see the previous post for an example).
Seems to be a good marriage of independence and teamwork, doesn’t it?
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