Tips To Get Organised for Work At Home Mums

Are you a mum contemplating starting a home business or working from home? Perhaps you are already working from home and wondering how you can improve your efficiency both as a mum and a business owner? Work at home mums can sometimes face big challenges, however there are many things you can do to be successful at both being a mum and a business owner. For me, the absolute most important thing is to be organised.

I started a home business while looking after my two young children at home. I was busy enough just being a mum, and starting the business made me feel quite overwhelmed at first; now I was really busy! I since realised that you can be very busy without the overwhelmed feeling, and in fact you can reduce your workload just by being organised, which is a secret work at home mums must know!

I focus on a few things to make sure that I have the right balance between being a mum and working at home, and that I am successful in both roles. Work at home mums can follow these simple rules to being organised:

1. Have a Comprehensive Schedule. This is the one thing I have become dependent on! Having working hours is not enough for work at home mums. I have a schedule which includes the type of tasks I will perform in each time slot (e.g. marketing activities, checking emails, website updates, education, making calls, writing articles, etc). This way, you don’t get to the end of the week realising that you didn’t accomplish all your tasks. It also prevents you from always prioritising the things you enjoy doing (there will always be tasks you don’t enjoy doing but need to get done!). Pick the right time of the day to assign mentally demanding tasks. I also prefer to work harder on earlier days in the week so that I can reduce my workload towards the end of the week when I am more tired. I like to keep flexibility with the ‘mum’ and house tasks, but if you find it difficult to manage, you might consider including them in your schedule (e.g. grocery shopping, family time, meal time, laundry, cleaning). Finally, review your schedule at the end of every week to make sure that you accomplished your goals and that the schedule itself is adequate.

2. When You Work, Work! Working around their children can make it hard for work at home mums to focus on their work. I find however that if I try to give attention to my work and my children at the same time, neither job gets done well. My children are more difficult to manage when I am trying to work, and my work doesn’t get done properly or takes twice as long. Sometimes however the need for multi-tasking cannot be avoided. During those times, try to set up your children with music, a snack, special toys and maybe a video for a little while, and try to choose tasks which require less mental focus. If your children are old enough, let them know how long you will work for. Why not promise them a special treat or game after you finished working if they have played nicely?

3. Keep It Tidy. Work at home mums can waste so much valuable time looking for things! Keep everything organised, sorted and tidy. No more piling up and scattering! Take the time to build the tracking and filing systems you need. When you need that document or phone number, you don’t want to waste time and patience looking for it. I even set up a time in my schedule for tidying up my office, otherwise it doesn’t get done and papers just pile up!

4. Make Time For You. As work at home mums, most of our time is taken up looking after the house and the family and managing the business. Is there any time left for you? I make sure there is, and I allocate time in advance in my schedule to look after myself and my well-being. Whatever you like doing for yourself (reading, sport, meditation, having a bath, going out, etc), make provision for it in your weekly schedule, and take the time to re-fuel, enjoy yourself and relax.

5. Get Some Help. If possible, ask your partner or other family members to help you with house tasks or minding the kids. Perhaps your partner can make dinner one or two nights per week so that you can do some work early in the evening? Or grandparents can spend a few hours on a regular basis with your children while you work? Of course, if you can afford some paid help (e.g. cleaning, ironing, etc), go for it! Work at home mums need all the help they can get!

Here is a summary of my 5 tips for work at home mums: make a comprehensive weekly schedule and follow it as much as you can, focus on your work during working hours, keep an organised and tidy office, make time for your well-being, and get help from family members.

Justine Simard is a mum and home business owner. Visit my website to find out about a Home Business Opportunity for Work At Home Mums that allows mums to work from home and look after their children, while providing a high income potential, a better lifestyle and more freedom.