Life as a WAHM

Written by Aly Pain

Being a "Work at Home Mom" or WAHM was not my plan, yet I am a successful WAHM in Life and Relationship Coaching and love every minute of it. My boys are in school in the afternoons so I use my precious three hours to live my passion.

The most important thing is setting boundaries:

1. Time: My clients ask me to meet in the evenings or weekends. Fortunately, I was warned about this pitfall. My response, "I have a husband and children to be with in the evenings and weekends, and like you, I get my work done during the day.
Does a lunch hour work for you?" Without time boundaries you will be working 24/7 to fit everyone else's schedules.

2. Friends: Just because I answer the phone does not mean I am available to shoot the breeze with friends and family. I meet my friends in the evenings after the boys are in bed instead of the afternoon.

3. Family: Making agreements with my children and husband about my need to live my passion and create my dream life have been great. My husband changed his schedule to help out. The house may not be immaculate by 4pm but they appreciate how present I am with them now. Self-discipline is perhaps the one boundary I visit most. Afternoons are not free time to get things done around the house. Clients will be calling so I need focus; have a 'fluid check,' the phone and head set ready and get comfortable. After that, there is still plenty of computer time to log, like writing this article on time, working on my web site, following up on client contacts, etc. My real challenge is not working all night on my business and spending time with my husband!

As a WAHM I get to live my passion in a career, get paid for it, and still be there for my kids and husband. I wear what I want everyday and set my own hours. My client sessions are primarily over the phone so I don't spend time or money on transportation. I have no overhead in property rental or equipment and get to write off a portion of my house and bills for working at home. I did have some business start-up costs but they are very low compared to most corporations. WAHMs have flexibility with their own businesses and are very attractive for corporations to hire in remote positions for cost saving reasons. With the increased cost of living requiring many families to have more than one income, being a WAHM is the way to go. If you can dream it, you can create it!