Are You Dreaming Of Working At Home?

Tired and weary of the daily grind? Long commute? Is working outside your home costing you so much that you are just certain you could save money if you could only find a way to work from home? Years ago I did just that, and made excellent money freelancing. That was the upside.

I still had to make some commutes to pick up and deliver work, but not every day. I didn’t have to pay for lunches at a restaurant and there were no more dry cleaning bills for office clothing. There were no sky-high daycare fees (because I had no children at the time). It was easy enough to start dinner and throw in a load of wash when I took a break. This was before everyone needed a computer and the internet.

Over all, it was a very good experience. It gave me a lot of confidence in my own abilities and myself on many different facets.

There were plenty of downsides to this as well. First was the initial financial outlay. Putting the plan together required a professional desk and equipment, as well as the more mundane things such as a telephone, adding machine and office furniture.

The equipment was also insured in case of breakdown so I could get prompt in‑home service and get back to work. Add to that a window air conditioner and new carpeting, and the price tag to start was about $2,500. All this had to be ready before even marketing my service. After a while, work came in just by word of mouth and I had no need to market the service again. That was the only task that went away.

As a one-person business, all the work was done by me. Everything from taxes (and the social security contribution was double what a regular employee had to pay) to preparing the work for the client. Sometimes a client would need the work personally delivered to their business to meet a project deadline. At this time, I learned the beauty of multi-tasking – make a single trip out to grocery shop and deliver work.

While it was good to be very busy (and that meant making good money), the only people I was able to be around or talk to was my family (when they were home) or those who used my service. Work often consumed many evening hours as well when time ran short on project deadlines. It always seemed that the larger the job, the shorter the deadline. Wise use of time became a priority so that I could have both a business and a life.

My business lasted about another two years longer after my first child was born, but on a very restricted level. When I became pregnant, I went back to work as an employee full-time to the same job I left so that I could freelance full‑time. My former office had kept in touch and even given me work. The door was open in case I wanted to come back.

Why did I go back? It made perfect sense in my life at that time. The pregnancy had a few complications and work with structured hours was more reasonable. It turned out to continue to be the right choice. My son would have needed a babysitter whether I worked at home or whether I worked as an employee. This child always resisted naps or would nap for 15 minutes to a half hour and then be awake for another two or three hours. He just wouldn’t go to sleep until late in the evening and it was a long time before he would sleep through an entire night. Sleep had become a big priority. It just wasn’t possible to work my own business even on a restricted level and care for a very lively child in the evenings.

Thinking that you can manage a full‑time job at home and care for infants or young children just does not work for everyone. Sometimes the wiser choice is to work full-time if you need the income and pay the babysitter. If possible, work part-time and begin something a few part-time hours at home until you are certain of your options and your ability to handle all of it and still have a life.

A high-maintenance, intense business with absolute deadlines should be avoided. That was one of the main problems with the freelance business that I had. All my work was deadline driven, and the deadlines were usually short. It was not appropriate for a tired mother with a child who didn’t think sleep was important.

Mothers have many more choices now. Many businesses will permit job sharing or part-time work and include pro‑rata benefits; they are more family friendly. If you want to explore additional part‑time possibilities at home, the opportunities are out there.

Some of the coming posts here will also explore and name some of these possibilities. In the meantime, if you find some exciting opportunities on the internet, remember there are a lot of offers that require you to pay for things you can find yourself for free. Keep in mind that you wouldn’t go on a regular job interview and expect to have to pay when you apply for a job.