Knowing When Working From Home Isn't Working

I've been a work-at-home mom for over 15 years and can tell you that one of the biggest mistakes I've made is not being honest about when it's not working.

When I first realized I could earn an income from home, I was so excited! I was a social media manager and found my own clients. I remember being so shocked whe the income started rolling in.

"Wow, is this really happening? People will pay me while I take care of my kids?" I was happy to bring on client after client. Each month I made more and more money. I was making even more than my husband at one point

But the cost was steep. I would wake up very early to get a jump on posting for companies. Twitter, Facebook, Instagram...I had to prove to them that even though I was a mom, I could do just as good of a job as anyone in the office.

I would be on my phone all day. I was there...but not there. Even when we were at the park, I'd be checking my phone, afraid to miss an email or take too long to reply.

It was so hard to just enjoy my baby and toddler. I was always thinking about work, always worried about getting fired. Even in the evening, I couldn't turn it off.

What I eventually realized is that if I was physically present, but constantly in my head or on my phone, I wasn't living my work-at-home dream. It wasn't fair to me, it wasn't fair to the kids. It would have been better if they were in daycare with present caregivers.

Look, sometimes a mama has to do what a mama has to do. Childcare is expensive. Not everyone has a support system.

But make sure your work-at-home life is sustainable. You don't want these days of being a mom to pass you by in a fog of stress. They do grow up. Life changes. What does this season of motherhood require of you right now?

If I could go back, I would have just kept a few low-maintenance clients and dropped the ones that required a lot of my time. It wasn't worth it.

If you have a job that doesn't fit with your desire for motherhood, it makes your days awful.

Think: What jobs can I do with where I am as a mom now?

Do you have kids in school? Work while they're in school. Keep the boundaries firm.

Do you have kids home all day? Do you homeschool? In this time of life, writing is a great job. Publish books. Yes, you do have to market them to make money, but it's not as difficult as it seems. People do it on TikTok every day.

I've been publishing on KDP under pseudonyms for years. You can make a part-time or full-time income depending on how intentional you are. Four silly TikToks a week will launch your writing career.

No, you can't publish a book and forget about it or only tell your friends. But if you make a living writing if you want to.

Read what I've written about self-publishing here.

To crack the code on being a happy work-at-home mom, you have to clear about what you want your days to look like.

Do you want to have emails to answer? Phones to answer? Evening work? Early morning work?

If you want flexibility, create the kind of business that will allow for that.

A homeschooling mom of two does NOT want to work for a call center. But being a homeschool influencer where companies send you freebies, advertise with you, and pay you to create simple content for them, yes you can do that in a couple of hours a day.

You just have to work hard at your business and not give up. You have to sit down, write a plan, believe in yourself, and take small steps every week.

All in all, working at home is amazing. It truly is.

But make sure you're doing it in a way that truly works for you, your kids, and your family.

It's possible.

love, Bunmi

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