As the fax machine noisily went off, I ran to silence it. After all, the baby had just gotten to sleep after a fussy morning due to teething, and I didn’t want him to be disturbed. I’d have to call the client in a few minutes so that he could resend his papers, but not until after I turned the volume down on the fax machine, of course. Talking on the phone, however, could end up taking a lot of time, as this client tended to like to talk for a while. I, on the other hand, would much rather be getting some quality work time in during the baby’s nap time.

Being a full-time mother and working from home has many challenges. Originally, it seemed like the best idea ever. I could still be brining in money while at the same time being able to attend “Mommy and Me” groups. I am a dedicated worker, and I knew the baby had to sleep sometime. It sounded like a great idea, but there were two major problems. My new baby was really fussy, and I had to hold him for a long time for him to get to sleep. Besides that, my best customer required even more coddling than the baby, and I had to talk to him on the phone for long periods of time.

What makes it hard to be a work at home mom? Figuring out what’s the most important and what your limits need to be. Although I sometimes had trouble trying to decide whether the baby or the client should take precedence, I soon figured out what was more important. I had just gotten off the phone with my client, and I was tending to the baby, who wasn’t feeling well, when the phone rang. It was my client ??” again ??” and that’s when I knew I had to draw a line.

That was when I had to toughen up and set some ground rules for myself. The client couldn’t be blamed for taking up my time ??” after all, I was letting him. If I didn’t set some limits now, all my clients would behave the same way. Everything started to run smoother when I let my customers know that work for me was set for after 10:00 pm. They could fax or email me during the day, but my work day would officially start after the baby was either in bed for the night or being attended by my husband. That would allow me to more fully concentrate on my job. It would also help me to avoid marathon phone calls with clients who just needed someone to talk to

Another area in which being a mom who works from home can be difficult is knowing how to properly manage your time. I had to set up a specific time of day that I would contact each client. That schedule also helped my clients to manage their time better, which made all of our lives easier and more focused. Since I wasn’t being interrupted as often, the quality of my work increased, which in turn ended up saving the client money.

The new schedule soon became comfortable for both me and my clients. I got quite good at producing a good amount of work in a short time, and the house was better cared for because my newly developed time management skills. Everything changed, however, when the baby became a toddler. Morning naps were no longer taken, and even though his afternoon naps lasted longer, I was so worn out from chasing him around, I couldn’t get anything done.

What makes it hard to be a work at home mom? Being too rigid with my time. Flexibility is a crucial component of managing both work and home. Letting my little one play outside for a few hours daily allowed him to expend pent up energy, and it let me ease up from always having to follow after him cleaning up his toys and messes.

Now my boys (plural) are teenagers. I’ve worked at home for the past 15 years, mostly writing and editing for various clients. Newer technology has made it possible for me to work for clients I never even meet, which keeps my car’s gas bill low. Older children are much more independent and don’t need my constant supervision, but I still try to work at night. They may be my big grown boys, but I still like to work while my babies sleep.