I never pictured myself as that mom; you know the one, the stay-at-home-mom. The mom who volunteers, who bakes, who loves to do that crap with her kids/for her kids. I was just never going to be that mom.
Fast forward 15 years...
I am not only that mom, but I am a single mom, work from home, and homeschool. Yeah. That went according to plan...HA. Well, let me be the first to tell you, it sucks. So. Much. However, in all the chaos is a little bit of notsocrazy. My children are closer than ever. The genuinely love one another and like to be around one another. I give all respect to God for making that happen. While he made that happen, he allowed me to work from home in order to ensure that his plan came to fruition.
When I first started to work from home as a single mom, I was in shock. It is competitive out there. I had no real desire to get out there and get a minimum wage job. It made no sense, I would lose money. I came up with a plan...
I would keep working from home and not pay childcare costs. Done. But how? I had been doing it for a very long time, but was getting back into it after a rather long hiatus. I sat down and wrote out a list of work I could do for others, with very little or no overhead at all.
1. Direct Sales/MLM I know what you're thinking, but you would be wrong here. This is a great way to make some extra chase, and maybe even a full-time income! Dave Ramsey even stands behind this business model.
2. Babysitting/Nanny/Daycare This one should seem pretty obvious, right? All my sitters were stay-at-home-moms who needed cash. One sitter was a single mom who was trying to get back on her feet, I loved her and I referred friends. She ended up getting licensed and opening an in-home childcare and working from home! She even homeschooled some kids so parents could work outside the home.
3. Personal Assistant If you have the ability to run errands for people, it is a welcomed activity to busy moms, dads, and business owners. People need client gifts ordered, holiday cards sent out, emails sorted, and even dry cleaning picked up! Yes, you can be paid for this.
4. Party Planner You already plan parties anyway, you may as well make some money off it. Get to know other moms who bake and decorate cakes, some private chef mommies, maybe some florists, and a few others...you will have a team ready to go for any party!
5. Dog Walker/Animal Care This is especially true if you have any idea how to care for farm animals. I live out in the middle of nowhere and would need someone who knows how to care for special animals to leave for a week or so. This is a great service for people who do not want to ask friends to drive to care for animals.
6. Sell Crafts If you are artsy, use it! Sell your art and use your God-given talents to make your income and be able to stay at home with your family. This would also work for a baked good type company.
7. Redesign You can work with Realtors and stage homes for them...if you have mad photography skill, bonus! While most people will stage a home on their own, some Realtors want a professional's eye to look it over and take out all the little pieces that make the home personal.
8. Home-based Call Center I have done this in the past. This type of work can actually be quite lucrative, if you pay attention and pick the right companies! With some, you are paid hourly and will need either kids in school, or childcare. With others, you choose your hours and some even let you log in and take calls when you have time.
9. Sell on Ebay Several moms make a killing doing this. There are whole blogs based on this concept. If you want something different and interesting, I suggest you take a good look at ebay selling and how it all works!
I'm glad it's working for you. I miss everyone.
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