A work from home mom experiences many challenges and rewards over the course of day-to-day living. While staying at home with your children can be a huge blessing, it can also be difficult. Learn about the pros and cons to being a work from home mom.
First, let’s talk about the negative aspects of being a work from home mom. Sometimes it’s hard to remember when you work from home to treat it like a real job. There are dishes to do, diapers to change or homework to help with, and a million other tasks moms do every day. It can be difficult to remember that in addition to these chores, work needs to be a priority.
And that’s another thing. When you are a work from home mom, often household duties tend to get ignored in favor of spending more time on the working task at hand. Dinner can be forgotten, laundry remains unfolded, and don’t even look at the unmade beds. It’s important to remember that if you are a work from home mom, you need help, whether that is a little assistance from your husband, your kids, or even an outside service.
Most moms that work out of the home do so because they want to spend more time with their children, but this can be a challenge for a work from home mom. Often, due to added household pressures and work itself, while there is a great deal of quantity time with the kids, it can be difficult to make quality time a priority. Try to keep a couple nights a week open for games, movies, or outings with the kids.
Working from home can mean isolation from adults as well. Grown-up conversations can be limited to online interactions and friends and family may not understand how much work you are really doing. Often, obligations to friends and family add up when a mom is a work from home mom, as these people think you "do nothing" all day.
Still, despite all these drawbacks, it can be very rewarding to be a work from home mom. In addition to the flexibility working from home usually offers, the main reason most moms work from home is simply to be around for their kids. You’re the one who gets to see your baby take his first step; you’re the one who is there when your daughter breaks her arm on the playground; you’re able to make ballet recitals, school plays, and class field trips.
Plus, working from home can be a huge monetary savings as well. Without the cost of additional transportation, some families are able to move down to one vehicle, not to mention reduced clothing costs and daycare fees. All in all, the pros greatly outweigh the cons.