5 Questions To Ask Yourself Before Grabbing A Work At Home Opportunity

My work at home life in the past two months has been very toxic. While I was busy earning big bucks with a lot of projects that I thought were huge opportunities, I totally neglected myself, my husband and my kids. I was in front of the computer most of the day or on my phone making calls. I didn’t eat proper meals, I put the kids in front of the TV and i barely had real conversations with my husband. Work became my life.

I know I swore that I will balance work and life, so I took a pretty hard blow when I realized what I have gotten myself into… again. The most difficult part was that my youngest had to be admitted to a hospital for me to realize that work has taken over my life.

Imagine, I was at the hospital with the Little Man with my laptop on because I had to answer e-mails and finish tasks. That was when Daddy A finally made an intervention and got me to re-evaluate my work at home career for the second time.

5 Questions To Ask Yourself Before Grabbing A Work At Home Opportunity

A few weeks ago, I stumbled upon an article by Martine de Luna that was published at The Work At Home Woman. It talks about finding your purpose and prioritizing. So as not to go down the same path for the third time, I asked myself questions that helped me find my purpose, which later on assisted me in choosing projects that both the client and I will benefit on.

  1. Finding work-life balanceWhy did you decide to become a work at home parent? I decided to work at home because I want to be around while the kids are growing up. I always remind myself of my reason for working at home. This way, I think twice before accepting a job that may consume my time for the kids.
  2. What are your skills? Before jumping into an opportunity, always make sure that you have what the client is looking for. If you know that the work is something you are not familiar with, then be honest and let the client know or else you will have to spend hours trying to figure things out. Some clients may start looking for another candidate when you tell them that you do not have the skills/experience, but I have met clients who are very much willing to train new hires who are not familiar with the job. The key here is that you are willing to learn.
  3. How many hours are you available? It is important to be specific about your work hours. Know how much time you are willing to dedicate for work and stick to it. If you can only work for 15 hours a week, then so be it. I also try to land contracts with clients that allow flexible work hours because my work schedule depends on the kids, too.
  4. Is the project an opportunity for learning and growth? As stated in number 2, there are clients who would be willing to train you if you are not familiar with the work they are offering. I have a client that I started working with almost three years ago. I was an article writer then. I still work with this client today and she has taught me so many new skills. From being an article writer, I eventually became a project manager. What I love most about working with this client is that she allows me to work on my own time so my work-life balance was not affected by the promotion. So when you find a huge opportunity, weigh things first. Sure, it’s a good opportunity… but how will it affect your work-life balance?
  5. Does the client have a clear vision for the project? I learned this the hard way. I once accepted a client who was unsure about where they want to bring their business. I ended up working long hours for them, trying to figure out what they want, but ending up constantly revising my work every time they come up with a new idea. So before jumping into an opportunity, make sure that the client has a clear vision of what he/she wants to achieve.

Enjoying The Work-Life Balance

After asking myself those questions, I reviewed the projects I was working on and eventually dropped the clients that have caused imbalances. Although this meant less income for me, it also meant more time for my family, which is the main reason why I decided to work at home anyway.

No more sleepless nights. No more hanging out in front of the computer for hours. No more rushing to get errands done so I can go back to work. I feel more relaxed now and a lot happier–no kidding here; I swear I was already feeling depressed in the past months.

I finally have time to teach the kids again (instead of relying on the TV and DVDs for daily lessons), to play pretend with them, draw with them and sing with them.

Finding work-life balance

And yesterday, for the first time in weeks, I had a stress-free day with my family. By stress-free I mean I didn’t have to be constantly on my phone, receiving and sending updates.

Running errands with the kids and Daddy A was a blast, too! We took the kids to Gymboree for their classes first thing in the morning, we then had a hearty meal as a family (without rushing), went shopping for new clothes (Daddy A’s “welcome back to life” gift), and bought everything we need at home.

Working from home is both a blessing and a challenge. If handled properly, it gives parents a chance to spend more time with the family. However, lose the work-life balance and you will quickly find yourself feeling drained and without direction. {Mom On Duty}

I hope the 5 questions I shared will help fellow work at home parents be more successful in their chosen path! These questions really helped me find balance, so try doing this exercise too!

Kimberley Reyes

Kimberley Reyes is an Online Business Manager for entrepreneurs who are ready to get off the hamster wheel and step into their CEO shoes. On top of helping her clients get organized and scale their businesses, she is also happily busy raising her five kids with her firefighter husband.

This Post Has 3 Comments

  1. Donna Ocon -Juezan

    This post is very enlightening Mommy Kim. Even if I’m not a WAHM, but still I’m a working mom. AFter coming home from work everyday, I feel I don’t have enough energy to spend little time with the kids because it’s time for their sleep. nakaka guilty talaga

  2. Kristine

    And I thought being a WAHM is easy. How wrong I was. Thanks for this enlightening post. I hope you will find the balance you were hoping for in the first place.:)

    1. Mom On Duty

      Hi Kristine! I thought it was easy too! Like I said, it is both a blessing and a challenge.

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