5 More Tips to Thrive as a Work-At-Home Mom

Take a look at my original post on how to thrive as a work-at-home mom, here.

You’re working at home. Your kids are asleep (hallelujah!) and you’re sitting down to work. You’ve eliminated all the unnecessary work and have a prioritized plan. Now what? Well…

Here are 5 more tips to thrive as a work-at-home mom:

1. Stick to your plan.

Yes, way easier said than done, but in order to make the WAHM thing work, you gotta make a plan and then actually find time to work that plan.

Not check Instagram. Not sort through the junk drawer, again. Not do laundry. You have to sit down and work. Do everything you can to stick to the plan. Be as relentless of a plan follower as you possibly can. Do not let anything get in your way of sticking to your plan. Except of course, for your kids … which leads me to …

2. Revel in the times you can’t stick to the plan. 

There will always be times when you just can’t stick to your plan. The naps don’t come. Or they do, but your kids alternate schedules, leaving you with a wide awake toddler while your baby snoozes and a demanding baby while the toddler is in bed. They get sick. Daycare has a holiday, your babysitter flakes. Or your kids just need you so bad. So many reasons…

Those days are tough, especially when they are unexpected. The work can pile up and it can feel overwhelming.

But, you are working at home for these moments. To make sure someone is available to snuggle a feverish kid, to get on the floor and make a painting, to explore a new part of the backyard. To be available when school is closed, to be there when they need you a little more.

So, when the kids demand your attention for whatever reason, put aside the project and know that you will get to it. Eventually.

Try your hardest to enjoy these moments. You won’t be able to cuddle sick little ones forever. And they won’t always need you this much. And it will be bittersweet.

So, on the days that things just cannot go according to plan, lean into it and try your best to enjoy it. Use their sick time for some downtime of your own. Curl up in bed and watch Cars 2 for the 17th time and maybe take a snooze too. Play with them, take them to a park and try your hardest to separate yourself from the plan to enjoy the unexpected.

It is so much easier said than done, I know. I struggle with this every time it happens. But, I’ve built some wiggle room into my schedule for when things just don’t work out according to the plan, and I do my best to put aside my feelings of overwhelm and go with the day.

Postpone as much as possible and if it really can’t wait, if there is a deadline or an appointment or something that requires your full undivided attention, well…

3. Find Childcare

Sometimes you have a huge project, a deadline, or something that requires uninterrupted concentration. And naptime won’t cut it. Or a kid gets sick right before an important appointment. Have a few trusted people that you can call on short notice to help out. 

I have used short term care from Care.com before, and while it wasn’t ideal (I didn’t know the person), I stayed at home while she played with my little one and was able to meet a deadline. 

I have a neighbor who can watch my baby in a pinch, and a father-in-law who is great with my toddler. None of these are regular childcare options, but when things come up unexpectedly, and I can’t postpone, I know that I can usually find someone on short notice.

Just because you are working at home, doesn’t mean that the occasional help isn’t necessary. Get it when you need it. If you can’t ask for help, you won’t be able to thrive as a work-at-home mom, there is just no way.

4. Do the Hard Things First

In my previous post on surviving as a work-at-home mom, I mentioned the 1-3-5 method I use for planning my days. I use this most days in order to get the most important thing done first.

But, on days when I have something that seems like it might be the most difficult, is something I have been dreading or putting off, or requires the most energy, I do it first.

Even if it isn’t the most important thing, if it is important and hard, I try to knock it out right away. Usually, it is a phone call that I have been dreading or a project that involves numbers and detail. If I knock it out first, I am not spending the rest of the day dreading thinking about it.

If I get the hardest thing done, I am more motivated to do the easier things, and they feel almost effortless after the hard thing. And, one less thing to obsess over, which frees my mind to work on everything else.

5. Celebrate your wins. 

Not every day is going to go as planned. But some days will. Every once in a while, you will get through your top five things, you will easily meet a deadline, and your house will stay clean from the night before. Is it a miracle? Maybe. But more likely, you hustled and focused and got sh*t done. So, celebrate it.

We often (maybe just me?) dwell on all the things we didn’t get done. We talk about the lengths of our to-do lists and how much is left on it. We talk about how we had to stay up several hours after bedtime finishing up a project or trying to get our homes under control. And yes, I’m right there with you. More often than not, my not-done list is longer than my done list.

But, there are times. Times when the list gets done. Where I have managed my day just so, the kids cooperated with naps, nothing unexpected came up, and I focused. And the day’s list gets done.

These are times when we need to celebrate ourselves, even if it is just a momentary appreciation to ourselves of a job well done. So, have a glass of wine, or watch your favorite show. Take a short nap or get lost on Pinterest. Whatever you can do to give yourself a quick reward for conquering what many times seems impossible.

Working at home with kids is not the easiest thing in the world (it is the hardest job I’ve ever had), so it is important to recognize when things go well. Likely, no one else is going to notice, so recognizing and rewarding yourself is imperative, motivating, and could be the little bit of self-care that you need today.

Celebrating ourselves might be the number one way to stay sane and thrive as a work-at-home mom. Maybe I should have put it first!