Childcare: The Good, the Bad & the Other Considerations

Part 1:  Daycare Centers

When I had my first child, I was working full time for a large corporation in a job that required frequent client meetings and travel.  Missing a meeting because my babysitters car died wasn’t an option, so an institutional child care setting was a must.

The Good:  Open Monday through Friday from 6am to 6pm.  Closed Christmas and Thanksgiving.  If a sitter calls in sick, the management takes care of it and you don’t have to scramble.  If you can find a good one, and really you are the only one that can determine what good is for you and your child, a daycare center is the only consistently reliable choice for child care, even if you’re a work at home mom.  Things to keep in mind include state guidelines, certifications, ratios, cleanliness, organization, educational opportunities and whether or not you get the kind of warm fuzzies you’re hoping for.

The Bad:  Not always the warmest of environments.  You and your child will get frequent colds in the beginning from exposure to the other children.  Can be expensive.

Other Considerations:  If you have friends or family that can help in a pinch, you have the luxury of considering other child care options.  That said, the last thing I want to deal with at 6:46am when trying to feed am eighteen month old while wearing a black business suit and pumps was a telephone call from my sitter saying that she had strep and couldn’t watch my child.  Makes my skin crawl just thinking about it.

Childcare...Ya gotta have it!

Childcare is a HUGE issue for work at home moms.  Some of us have mistakenly thought we could go it alone, particularly when we have newborns or preteens.  Wrong.  To effectively work from home, it is important to have large blocks of uninterrupted time.  A blip on the baby monitor or a benign request for a snack can be just enough to redirect your train of thought and put you back at ground zero. 

By working a consistently childless schedule, you’ll force yourself to get your work done efficiently during business hours and avoid the costly mistakes persistent interruptions and lack of focus can create. 

My next few installments will talk about the pro’s and con’s of different kinds of child care – day care center, home based child care, in your home based child care with a nanny or with a teen and relying on friends. 

For your benefit and that of your employer, get a sitter.

Tight economy? Good time to kick off your start-up

If you’re hoping to become a work at home mom, an economic downturn may allow you to create the opportunity of your dreams!  Scenario…economy contracts, the job market contracts…laid off workers try to start their own business, BUT they aren’t entrepreneurs, just out of work business people.  When they go it on their own, they quickly realize that they don’t have the skills they need to cover all their required business bases.  That’s where you come in, budding work at home mom!

Think back to the day when you did work.  What did you do for a living?  What did you like?  What were or what are you good at?  In the world of freelance work, someone will be willing to pay for your skills.  Doing freelance project based work is a great way to test the waters of entrepreneurship and small business owners rely on independent contractors to help them get their job done.  

To explore the world of freelance work, visit sites like www.guru.com, www.elance.com or www.ivaa.org.  You can check out the competition, see what employers are looking for and begin the process of creating your own work at home mom business.  

When you work from home, creating work life balance can be tough

Everybody’s jealous.  They say working from allows me to create the perfect work life balance.  Not.  It’s just as tough to get everything done when you work from home as it is when you work in an outside office.  No time for personal calls.  No time for “play dates.”  And, if I do take time for myself, it has to be “made up” during non-business hours.  

When working from home, the best way to manage your time is to actually manage it.  Set aside work hours, plan your day and work your plan.  Of course you can allow for an occasional lunch date or special event, but make sure to account for it in your calendar.  Don’t plan on working when kids are around and putting off work for the evening will only drain your energy.  

For tips on creating an ideal work life balance, I recommend reading Elaine St. James, Simplify Your Work Life: Ways to Change the Way You Work so You Have More Time to Live.