Time Management For Work At Home Moms

I know all too well that being a work at home mom is an extraordinary feat. Your family seems to think that if you work from a computer all day that you are just sitting around. On the contrary! I work from home and am a student so my time is minimal. To add to my stress, my spouse is laid off and I am the sole bread winner.

This means I work 60 hour weeks and bring home just enough to skim by and have just enough time to get average grades. Unfortunately, before I realized how to manage my time, I missed out on a large chunk of my children's milestones. The most important thing to do when working from home is to achieve balance.

Here are 3 tips for getting the most out of your time:

1.) Don't Accept Underpayment
I know how it can be to be desperate and take any job that is thrown your way. i realized just how fast a person can burn out this way. NEVER accept less than you are worth. My work on ODesk has proven to be tough because I am competing with overseas workers who charge a substantial amount less than I can afford. Someone once told me "act your wage" and once I did I was able to make more and work a little less.

2.) Utilize Break Time
It is always important to take breaks from your work so you can refresh. Even if it is a 10 minute break take that time to read your children a story or pick up the kitchen. 10 minutes seems like a lifetime to kids and you will be able to cherish your time with them.

3.) Remember You Are Human
My first downfall was pretending to be Superwoman and assign myself so many tasks that I was falling behind and losing more clients than I should have. Keep track of how much you are able to accomplish when you apply no more than 10 hours a day to work. You will be able to create a realistic schedule without burning yourself out.

Software such as Microsoft Outlook or Central Desktop are great tools for organizing your time and gaining more balance in your life!

It's Been A While!!

Ok so it's been a while is an understatement!! Two years is definitely a long while! So a lot has happened since my last post (obviously). Odesk turned out to be a bigger success than I imagined. My initial tagline was geared towards following me on my journey to find work.

Well I found work and am in a different area in my life, so now it is geared towards following me in my journey of building my success from the ground up! I am a few steps closer but not where I want to be fully. I have an Associate's in Business and a Bachelor's in Design, and am now enrolled for a Master's in IT Project Management.

I still live in a dinky town with my family and we make it by in the economy, but I want more for my family and that is on the To-Do list!

I am organizing my time, what with three kids and my work, so I will be posting more soon.