Tears, tantrums and joy

Working from home can seem like the perfect solution for parents - if you are considering this please read my pros and cons before you make up your mind:

Pros

>Work can be more flexible and fit in with your family lifestyle

>If you can work around your kids routines and your partner helps out you may not need childcare

>You will save money on childcare and travel costs - also on office rental if you are self-employed

>You may find it easier to concentrate as there are no work colleagues to distract you

Cons

>If your kids are not yet at school it may prove difficult to do your work around their routines.  They do not always stick to their routines and certainly do not understand that they can’t interrupt you while you are working

>There is of course children’s school holidays to consider also

>Visitors coming along your home and phone calls can also be an unwanted distractions

>You may find it more difficult to switch off from work and relax as it is in your own home

Working from home can be very successful for many parents.  It all really depends how many hours you are expecting to be able to work each day and how you organise your time.  You must be honest with yourself at the start and not expect yourself to perform miracles.  You cannot do a full day’s work at home while directly supervising young children.  You may be able to fit in a few hours and maybe some again at night when they are sleeping.  Partners and parents may be able to help out with childcare to allow you to work.  If your children are at the school this obviously makes working from home a more viable option.  You must organise your time well and be very disciplined as it is easy to get distracted with other things while in your own home.

Please visit my website at:

http://www.tearstantrumsandjoy

I want to bring every moms attention to the area of sleep.  I had my child and for the first year or so tried to carry on my routine as I usually did staying up late and getting up early.  The only difference was before I used to have week-ends of when I could catch up on my sleep - now of course my work was 24/7.

I know as a mother it is very tempting to stay up late once your child has gone to bed and catch up on chores or relax and watch TV or whatever .  This is a time in the day were you can get on with things with no interruptions.  I am also very aware of children having disturbed sleep at times or just not being very good sleepers and am aware this can drive you nuts!!

I am not advocating that mothers should feel bad if they can not get enough sleep as there are clearly times when this is not possible.  I am however asking you to look at your current lifestyle and see if you could make any changes to improve this area.  I have begun doing this and can’t believe how much better I feel.  It has taken some self discipline not to stay up at nights and do things but I have found if I have so much more energy through the day now that I can get all the tasks done and more.

I guarantee that if you make an effort in this area you will be amazed with the results it not only improves you energy levels but also gives you a much more positive outlook on life.

Please visit my website  at :

http://www.tearstantrumsandjoy.com