Build A Blog You Can Be Proud Of.Here is a list of everything from home business ideas to tips for working with kids at home to meal planning ideas to business budgeting – and everything in between!
If you’re a WAHM, be sure to add your own tips in the comments below!
- Understand the acronyms. WAHM = Work at Home Mom / SAHM = Stay at Home Mom / WOHM = Work Outside the Home Mom. You might also see them with D (for Dad) or P (for parent) at the end.
- If you’re a mom who loves to write, blogging is an easy to get started making money online.
- If you need structure and a lot of support for your home business, direct sales might be just right for you.
- If you like to make your own rules and want to truly express your creativity in your business, direct sales may not be the best fit.
- If you’re looking for direct sales companies, do your homework. Look for companies with a solid reputation and history.
- People will try to lure you into new direct sales or MLM opportunities by saying you’re “getting in on the ground floor”. Remember, most new businesses fail and without that history, you need to understand the risk involved.
- Every business needs a business plan. Have you created yours?
- If you sell a physical product, don’t clutter your home with all that inventory. Choose a dropshipper instead and keep your home like a home.
- As a WAHM, schedules are your friend. Make a strict schedule to balance work and family, but realize that you have the freedom to adjust things where necessary.
- It takes time to build a business (and a blog!), so don’t get frustrated when the money doesn’t roll in right away. Keep working. It’s worth it.
- If you are starting work at home out of necessity and need to pay the bills, consider offering a service to generate some quick cash.
- Being a WAHM isn’t for everyone. If you have discipline, drive and a keen business sense, you could be one of the lucky ones.
- You’re a busy mom on limited time, so you need to stay focused in your business. Don’t get distracted by side projects or the latest and greatest fly by night marketing opportunity. It’s important to be as productive as possible in the time that you have to work on your business or blog.
- Many WAHMs have multiple businesses, but you’ll find the most successful moms focus just on one.
- When you’re not working, make sure you’re present for your family. Working with distraction produces distracted results anyway.
- Get rich quick schemes prey on mothers seeking an income from home. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.
- Working at home can be lonely sometimes. Join a forum or online group and connect with other WAHMs.
- Work outside the home or in the home? Consider the costs of full-time daycare, business attire, transportation costs and more.
- You don’t need to fully replace your job income to make it affordable to work at home. Consider the work-related expenses you’ll cut out AND be more frugal in general. Cook more home meals, try couponing and more.
- Is the little one making it hard to work? Sometimes it’s easier to just walk away from the computer and snuggle or play together. It’ll reduce BOTH your stress levels.
- It’s fun watching the PayPal account load up with funds, but remember to budget for your expenses, taxes and all that other stuff.
- If you want to make it as a WAHM, you’ve got to work hard. Don’t be fooled by all the amazing success stories. They aren’t typical.
- Being popular online does not necessarily equal business success. Focus on serving your customers rather than looking like you’re a somebody.
- Many hobbies can be turned into businesses, but make sure your hobby is profitable and you’ll still have fun with it when it becomes work.
- Just because you work from home doesn’t mean you aren’t gaining valuable experience. If you plan to return to the workforce eventually, keep a record of the experiences and skills you’ve gained. These are ideal for your resume.
- Go legit. Register your business name and run a “real” business from home.
- You have enough to keep you busy in business and in life, always enlist the help of others with your business.
- Be careful with credit or loans to finance your business. There’s no need to go into debt when there are so many opportunities to start earning a great living on a shoestring budget.
- On the other hand, don’t be afraid to invest in your business wisely. Money is one of the best tools to earn more money.
- Want to work from home, but don’t want to give up your job? Show your boss the money-saving and productivity-boosting benefits of telecommuting.
- If you’re looking for a telecommuting position and someone asks for money to get a job, walk away. Getting a job does not cost money.
- Looking for more clients and other telecommuting opportunities? LinkedIn.com is a great way to get connected and noticed.
- Affiliate marketing is a great opportunity for moms to earn from home. There are no upfront costs and you don’t even have to deal with customer service, giving you more time with the family.
- If you’re a mom who loves writing, you have so many opportunities online. Whether it’s fiction or non-fiction, try your hand at selling your work in the Kindle Ebook Store.
- Moms, participating in social media is simply a complement to your marketing. It should not replace it.
- Mommy bloggers are a dime a dozen these days. Make sure you set yourself apart from the masses to ensure your success.
- Blogging in itself doesn’t make money. You need to secure advertisers, sponsors, promote 3rd party products and/or sell your own products. In short, you need to build a business to make it work for you.
- Organize your work week ahead of time. Know what you’ll be doing each day of the week and fine tune things each evening.
- If you have limited work time, limit your to do list. Pick the 3 most important things you need to get done. Everything else can wait.
- Learning to say no as a WAHM is a great skill. Don’t let people around you assume that just because you’re at home, you have all the time in the world.
- Work on your marriage or relationship as much as you do your business.
- If your spouse doesn’t support your business, help them get more involved. Tell them what you’re doing and what results you’re getting.
- Show the WAHM community support. Buy from other moms where you can.
- Never sacrifice sleep for work. Sleep deprivation has serious health and safety consequences. Keep your priorities in check.
- Nap times are a great time for mom to work, but if you need a nap yourself, take one. Work can wait.
- If you have to work while the children under foot, save special toys and activities just for “mommy’s quiet work time.”
- Make sure your office a child-proof. There’s nothing worse than curious hands roaming about when mom is focusing on the computer.
- Reward your children appropriately when they give you undivided work time. Whether it’s a special (hopefully healthy) treat or an outing to the park, be sure to know you appreciate what you do for them.
- Planning a vacation? Preschedule your blog posts and emails. Then have a VA take care of customer support and correspondence.
- Working with a VA means more time to grow your business. When the small details are taken care of, you can focus on what matters.
- If you’re hiring help for your business, remember communicati is a two-way street. Always be clear, direct and provide constructive feedback for best results.
- Do you have a crafty side? Did you know Etsy has over 14 million members, making it a very viable marketplace for your handmade goods.
- Need some fast cash? Ebay is still one of the best places to sell your used goods. Clean out your closets today!
- School breaks can wreak havoc on the WAHM schedule. Organize activities, hire help, have older children help with younger ones and give yourself a break too. It’s not easy getting it all done.
- Do you get so into working that you forget the housework? Try doing a 30-minute clean up and tidy before you start work.
- Just because you work at home, household chores are not entirely your responsibility. Children and spouses should pitch in too.
- Have you ever worked all day, looked up at the clock and found it’s nearly dinner time with nothing cooking on the stove? Spend time on weekly meal planning to ensure you stay on top of things.
- A crockpot is a WAHM’s best friend. It’s easy to throw some ingredients into the crockpot in the morning and have a meal you can be proud of come dinnertime.
- Not only does meal planning reduce the stress of dinner prep time, but saves plenty of money too. That’s great for the WAHM budget for sure.
- Freezer cooking is another great way to save time and money. Plus, it ensures you can concentrate on work and still have a healthful meal for your family at the end of the day.
- One dish meal ideas: Lasagna, pot pie, stew, chili, baked burritos and more. Prepare ahead of time and then pop them into the oven.
- Teach your children about your business. Have them help with filing, writing, getting organized and more.
- Smartphones are great for productivity on the go. Get caught up on email, social media and more during lessons, waiting for appointments and more.
- Feeling like giving up? Take a break and talk to another WAHM for some support and guidance.
- As a WAHM, you don’t have time to mess around. Continuously evaluate what’s working in your business and isn’t. Do more of what does.
- When you work at home, it’s easy to become inactive. Make fitness a regular part of your day.
- Think you don’t have time for exercise? Realize that exercise reduce stress and helps you get more focused. Everyone has more time for exercise.
- Have you fallen into the modern-day drive the kids to school everyday trap? Leave the keys at home and walk instead.
- Take work breaks to eat your meals. Mindful eating will help keep you from packing on those extra work at home pounds.
- When you work at home, everyone wants to know what you do, but it’s not always easy to explain. Have your elevator speech ready, so you don’t stumble.
- One of the best things you can do for your WAHM service business is to be very selective about your clients. Get rid of your high-maintenance and over-demanding clients and focus on the ones that are easy to work with, provide clear instruction and give you ongoing work.
- Trouble getting to sleep at night? Keep the laptop out of the bedroom and establish a relaxing wind down routine before sleep.
- Establish an office organization routine before things get out of control. Organize and file papers and receipts on a weekly basis.
- If you’re working full time outside the home and are trying to build your business, one of the best things you can do is give yourself plenty of time. Remember to enjoy today because time moves by quickly.
- Reward yourself regularly for your hard work. Whether it’s dinner out, a special new outfit or even just a day off, rewarding yourself will motivate you to do more great things for your business.
- While a service business is a great way to earn some quick cash, it is a matter of trading your hours for dollars. Work toward more passive streams of income for more freedom and flexibility.
- If you’re taking on clients and building your own business at the same time, remember clients take priority. They’re the ones putting food on your table.
- Thinking of working on your business with your spouse? Discuss the pros and cons and establish guidelines for yourselves first.
- Don’t compare yourself to other WAHMs. You are uniquely you and you’re doing things on your own terms.
- Keep your business finances organized and separate from your personal finances because the waters get muddied easily.
- When you start earning some decent money, consider enlisting the help of an accountant. They help you make sure you’re taking advantage of all your tax savings available and that you’re filing everything correctly.
- Stuck in the learning about being a successful WAHM trap? Stop consuming content and start doing instead!
- Free wi-fi is everywhere. Find local businesses where your kids can play and you can get some work done.
- Get out of the house and meet other work at home moms. There are plenty of opportunities on MeetUp.com or create your own.
- “Children are the anchors of a mother’s life.” ~ Sophocles. Always remember this when things get hectic with business.
- “The phrase ‘working mother’ is redundant.” ~ Jane Sellman
- Set achievable, yet challenging goals for yourself. And of course, set a target date for those goals too.
- A goal should always be measurable or it’s pretty much useless. Simply saying you want to “make more money” doesn’t give you much to work for.
- Work hard is good and important, but where possible, work toward working smarter over just working harder.
- Define what success in business means to you. Is it financial freedom, helping others, becoming well known or…? It’s up to you.
- Multitasking is a myth. Your attention will always be more on one task than another. Work on one task at a time.
- Organize your work days, so you work on similar tasks in the same block of time. For example, carve out time for blogging, writing emails and other activities.
- Not everybody has unlimited funds for outsourcing, but start with what you can afford and grow from there.
- Getting help for your business doesn’t necessarily mean out of pocket expenses. Considering partnering on projects or bartering for services.
- Technology is your friend. Enlist the help of autoresponders, bookkeeping software and other tools that help you automate some of your business.
- The nice thing about being a WAHM is a flexible schedule. If you choose to work weekends and take time off during the week, that’s your prerogative.
- Templates are a must for a business owner. Have templates for answering emails and questions you get over and over again.
- As a new WAHM, you’ll probably get a million ideas. You can’t take action on all of them, so choose wisely.
- Take advantage of the many amazing time management tips available.
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Pick up a copy of our brand-new (free!) e-book 50+ Ways to Make Money From Home for more ideas!
What’s your biggest WAHM dillema?
Or, have a tip to share? Leave a comment below!
Beth
Jennifer
Heather@ourcultiv...
Kimberly Vogel
April Shaner
Thanks for this list:)
I love it, and you pretty much covered all of it!
I enjoy receiving your emails and updates and have learned a lot from you.
Brandy Oliver recently posted..The True Nature of Tarot by Diane Wing
Thanks for the kind words, Brandy!
Excellent list Tanya! I can especially relate to #14. I am in that boat right now. Doing my best to meld my established blog with my new direct sales business.
I have been a WAHM for over a decade now, and my best tip is:
don’t forget the care and feeding of yourself, your dreams, your hobbies. We can get so wrapped up in earning, that we can forget the reasons behind the long hours just like work out side the home moms do.
Linda Kinsman recently posted..Are you a Runner?
Great tip, Linda! I’m definitely guilty of getting too busy trying to earn money that I forget the passion that got me started in the first place. Thanks for the reminder!
Tanya,
I love #43. When I needed a redesign of my blog I insisted I look for a WAHM first. I was happy to help her and keep another mom home.
And #98 “As a new WAHM, you’ll probably get a million ideas. You can’t take action on all of them, so choose wisely.” It has taken me almost 2 years to figure that one out.
Great list!
~Allie
Allie recently posted..4 Tips for Bloggers to Make the Most of Pinterest
My biggest WAHM dilemma is trying to blog with children underfoot. I end up trying to get it done late at night when they’re sleeping and become exhausted. Therefore, I think one of the best tips from this list is construct a schedule! I am in the process of doing this now because right now I don’t know if I’m coming or going, and with my daughter starting preschool, I’m going to need structure more than ever!
An example of how far behind I am is the fact that I’m just getting caught up on these emails you send, which I find to be of tremendous help in getting my blog going! Thank you!
Thanks so much for the kind words, Joell! I can relate to the scheduling thing. Trying to blog when the kids are up and about is NOT possible so working around it is a must… If you find a good solution, let me know!