It can be difficult to balance being a work at home mom with being a stay at home mom. I am not what you typically think of when you hear the phrase “work at home mom.” Most of the time you hear that and you picture a woman who works from home for a company, often one she worked for before having children.
Instead, I work at home on my Etsy shop. On one hand, it is easier than working for a company as I control the hours, the product, etc. On the other hand, I have to work so much harder to advertise and promote my product. I have to create all of my own items to sell. I have to take all the pictures and edit them to place in my shop. While it is great that everything is under my control, it also means a lot more work.
I have found that if I don’t schedule out my time, I just flounder. This is true for both home stuff and shop stuff.
When I get up in the morning, I do a quick check of Facebook and Etsy. Throughout the day I try to check in on both of those and Twitter (I’m not very good with Twitter but I am learning).
Mornings are usually house chores and Abby activities. If we have errands to run, they happen in the mornings, usually Friday morning. I try to not go out more than once a week unless I absolutely have to.
Picture taking and editing usually happens during nap time. I also use nap time to crochet and work on house projects that are hard to do with Abby around. Like folding laundry. And mopping the kitchen floor.
Afternoons are usually house chores and play time.
Evenings after Abby goes to bed is when I do the bulk of my crocheting.
One things that I have set up as a boundary is that I do my best to stay off of Etsy, Twitter, and my business Facebook on the weekends, especially on Sundays. I will usually check Etsy a couple of times but I don’t spend a lot of time there. I want to keep my weekends for family time and church and not let the business and work take over. I do still crochet on the weekends but I try to not do any computer related business activities.
I don’t follow these guidelines or schedule all the time. There are weeks where I have a lot of orders so I don’t do much besides crochet. Then there are weeks where the house or Abby needs more attention than normal so I don’t do much for the business. Being more consistent is better for the business, sure, but my first job is always wife and mother. I work to make sure those roles always stay more important than the business.
Dena says
This is a great post! As a “work at home” mom I struggle with balance, too. My business is photography, but like yours, it can be come all-consuming if I allow it, too. Setting a schedule & sticking to it (as much as possible) if the best course of action. I’m still working on creating my schedule & yours was a big inspiration. Thanks for sharing! xo
Julie @ Loggers Wife says
Don’t get me wrong. I’m not always good at my schedule. Here it is almost 9am and Abby and I both are still in our pjs. lol. But that balance between business and home is so important to me that I try my best to stick to my general schedule. Glad I could inspire you to work on your schedule. 🙂