Scaling Back

I decided today to scale back everything that I have going on. I'm not shelving any projects, just putting them aside for now. I have a series of blogs, Crafts and Projects, Family Finances, and Reluctant Cook, that I was going to direct to a new URL along with One Serious WAHM. They were going to form my homemaker site. I also have Diabetic Spouse about Brian's illness that I was going to turn into a site. I've cut back one of the online magazines for now as well.

I feel that right now I need to get some projects completed before I think about moving on. This weekend, I'm putting up my commemorative birth announcement. (I'll add a link when I get it up.) I'm also finishing Writing Parent Online, the articles for May's food newsletters, and my personal writing site.

That will leave me with four projects to work on continuously throughout the next week. I have Dawson Progressive. Right now we have contracted writers for 8 booklets. We're also talking with 2 authors about books. I'm working on researching and coming up with marketing plans for all of them.

Then I'm working on compiling my work at home mom anthology. I have 8 of 20 submissions right now, so we're, what, 40 percent of the way there on submissions. Brian and I came up with a great plan for added material this week, so I have that to work out, too.

I'm also writing my own book about starting a home-based business. It's a little different from the books that are out there already, so I'm hoping that it will do well.

Finally, I'm preparing a free e-course and corresponding online seminar for my writing site. I hope to have that done in the next couple of weeks. Then I have to research autoresponder programs, which are new to me.

Those tasks will keep me incredibly busy, so I think they're enough for now. When I get one of them done, I'll begin to pick up the other projects and move forward with them.

Trying to Focus Again

One of my ongoing problems is the ability to focus on one task. I have so many projects going on, and so many ideas for new projects, that it's tough to get myself to stay on track. I get off-track because of the many projects we have going on, and then I have to regroup.

I'm getting much better because now I recognize when I get off more easily and can move backward to get myself caught up. I've found that in general I work better when I complete a whole task before moving on. If I can get a project done, then I'm ready to start on a new one and give it my full concentration. Otherwise I end up getting a little done here and there on a zillion projects, but I never feel the sense of accomplishment from getting anything finished.

Cuisine Creator and WAHM Lessons

Brian's designing an online software interface dealing with recipes. I'm not allowed to share the details, but I can say that I think the main grocery shopper in every household will LOVE this idea. We've set it for launch on August 1. I think it's going to be great. I'm putting together the newsletter for it. I'm going to write most of the newsletter for now, though we're going to start paying for one article per issue. We have writer's guidelines here.

I'm also working on an anthology of stories from work at home moms. So far, I have 7 stories, including my own. I've edited them and advertised a little more. My main focus right now is getting more entries, but there's really not a lot I can do in that regard as I can't force people to submit. I'm just hoping that we get some good stories. Right now I'm going to wait a week or so to see if there's a new wave of stories from the ads I just put up. Then I'm going to think about running an advertisement. We'll see.

Online Magazines

I'm starting up 2 online magazines. One's going to be called Now A Student. For right now, it's going to come out every 2 months. I don't think that I have the time to do it more often than that. It's going to focus on non-traditional types of students mainly online students and adult students with careers, children, and other things going on in their lives.

The other one's going to be called Writing Parent Online. The focus is about parents balancing writing and parenting. It will be monthly.

In the beginning, I'm going to have to do the bulk of the writing for the magazines because we can't afford to pay anyone anything decent. I'm going to have one section of WPO that will be paid. Other than that, I'll be doing it.

I'm excited about this project, and I think that eventually we will pay writers for it. That's what I hope anyway.

Career Goals - part 2

Going back to Dawson is coming on all of a sudden, so we're still planning.

The general idea is that I'm focusing my work on three niche areas: writing, working from home, and college. I'm working on creating 2 online magazines and creating an organization for content writers to gain more knowledge and credibility in the fields about which I hope to write.

I'm also working on a new booklet: 101 Careers in Gender Studies. My first two booklets are The Basics of Web Writingand 102 Ways to Make Money from Home. I also run The WAHP, a site for work at home parents.

As if all of that (plus a very active 14-month-old won't keep me busy enough), I'm going to work on my first book. Plus Brian has a project up his sleeve, and I promised I'd edit his newsletter for that.

Whew! That's a lot, but I'm so excited! It's going to be awesome!

Brandi

Career Goals - part 1

Brian and I have been doing a lot of talking about my career goals lately. I must say that for the first time in quite a while, I'm pumped about the prospects! Let me give you a little background.

I have a bachelor's degree with a triple major: history, sociology, and women's studies. I originally went to graduate school in history but didn't care for the program. I left to become a general assignment reporter in a major metropolitan area.

When I got pregnant with my son, I left my job to pursue a career as a freelancer. The road has been tough! I got my first content writing gig in October 2004 working for two guys from England who own an SEO company. From there, I took jobs as bid sites, keyword article banks, and other content sites.

We needed the money, so I did the work. I didn't enjoy it, however, and I found that my own writing dreams were on the backburner because of everything else going on.

Over the past couple of weeks, I've been researching self-publishing. I've always been a take charge kind of person. I realized that even if I go the traditional publishing route, I'll still have to do much of my own marketing and publicity. If that's the case, then why not do the whole thing myself?

Then there's Dawson. Brian and I naively started an online company, Dawson Media, LLC, in 2005. We had no clue what we were doing, and it didn't go that well. We have to file an annual report with the state, and we were going to just close up shop with the filing.

Now that I've been talking about self-pubbing, and I'm working on an anthology, we've decided to revamp Dawson and keep it open as a small (very small for now!) publishing company, which is what we intended in the beginning.

To break up the text, I'm going to continue this post with a part 2.

Five Ways To Save Time

When you are working from home, you will find that you have many needs to be met under the same roof. You are managing a family. You are honing your personal identity and sense of self. You are running a business. Plus many of you are educating your children. That means that you need all of the time you can get. I have learned that saving a few seconds here and there really adds up. Here are five ways that you can save five minutes or fewer everyday and still end up with a cleaner home, better business, and happier family.

Wipe down the bathroom daily.
Use those nifty anti-bacterial wipes to wipe off the bathroom sink, counter space, and the back of the toilet everyday. Your bathroom will look cleaner, and it will not take as long when you need to do a full cleaning.

Cook two entrees at once.
If you're making spaghetti tonight, work on putting getting pork chops baking while the noodles are boiling. Then you will have tomorrow's dinner ready without any work.

Make everyone rinse and reuse cups throughout the day.
There is no need for everyone to get a new cup every time he or she wants a drink. Instead require everyone to rinse and reuse cup so that you don't have as many dishes to do.

Don't fold socks; rubber band them!
Assign everyone in your family a color and get rubber bands. Require everyone to band the socks before they go in the dirty clothes. You can pull them from the dryer and sort by band color. There's no matching and folding required, and there shouldn't be any single socks either!

Get more pairs of scissors.
If you're always running to the living room to get scissors for the kitchen, buy a pair for the kitchen. Double (or triple) up on all common items and put them wherever they are needed.

These quick time-saving tips won't save you hours a day, but the concepts will help you to begin to shave time from your day.

Breaking Down My Goals

As part of my One Serious WAHM site, I've decided to share with you my goals and how I progress toward them. I will admit that it's tough for me, and I'll tell you why. First I find that sharing your goals with anyone can seem silly. Perhaps you think others will laugh and think you're a dreamer. Or maybe they'll think you're not ambitious enough.

Second, the thought of public humiliation can be downright terrifying! In the past, I've come up with grandiose plans that never work out. I'm trying to change that by forcing myself to write my goals. If I do that, then perhaps I will know when I've hit the right spot with the plans.

So I'm going to share with you - starting tomorrow - how I've divided my goals for 2006.

As a writer, diversification is key. I couldn't make it on only one of my projects or even one type of writing. Instead I'll break it down for you step-by-step what I'm going to do. I hope that you’ll get as much out of it as I imagine that I will.

What I Do

Now that I've shared a few things with you about what I've learned so far working from home, it's time to tell you all about what I do.

I am a writer, but it's much more complex than that. Being a writer means being able to diversify my income sources so that I can make something that begins to resemble a living. Right now, I write web content for 2 companies on a regular (weekly) basis. No, I won't tell you who they are. It isn't that I want to keep it a secret, but they're not hiring right now. Trust me, if they ever let us know they're looking for new people, I'll share that information.

I'm very interested in helping other people learn about web writing. I've written a booklet to do just that. I'm also working on more booklets since the first one has gotten a bit of a good response from very little advertising.

Over the next weeks, I'm sure I'll share more about my writing plights - after all, that's the point of my WAHM blog.

Plus, I have 2 new ideas for business ventures, and I want someone along for the ride with me. I'm going to try selling at online auctions, and I have some craft ideas that I want to put into motion.

5 Money-Saving Tips

Being a work at home mom means that most of you will be giving up an income. You need to learn to use your money wisely. Fortunately (or not) for me, I decided to work from home only a year or so after getting my first post-graduate school job. I've never experienced not living on a budget, but having my son has made me aware of more ways to save money. Try out these money-saving tips for your work at home lifestyle.

1. Cut down the wardrobe.
You don't need a full professional wardrobe if you're working from home. If you meet with clients, you can stick with one business suit. Otherwise, you should get business casual but comfortable attire. That doesn't mean that you have to toss everything you have, but think about how many outfits you really need when you're considering buying more clothes.

2. Start making more foods from scratch.
While you won't necessarily have more time, you can learn to use the time you do have better. You can learn to bake cookies and put on bread at the same time or to make dinner dishes from scratch - only now you're home all day. That means you can make more food and freeze it to eat later. You can learn to save by cutting down on pre-packaged convenience foods.

3. Buy used furniture for your office.
While you may want an office that rivals what you had in the corporate world, it isn't necessary. Who's going to see it? Go for inexpensive or used for your office. I purchased my desk for $10 at a yard sale, and I've been using it for 18 months now. It's worn but stable, and when my son colors on it, I don't mind. Your home office won't stay pristine, so go used and save some green.

4. Reuse. Reuse. Reuse.
Many office environments have a sparkling look. Everything's new. Office supplies are gobbled up like there's no tomorrow. You don't have that luxury now. Learn to reuse manila folders by using file labels. When you need a new binder, check to see if the information in one you already have can be filed elsewhere or tossed. Check around your house for makeshift containers so that you're not spending a fortune equipping your office.

5. Buy snacks.
While it may sound counterproductive to save money by spending, it isn't. If I don't have snacks on hand, I'm more likely to make a sandwich or eat leftovers. If I have a canister of peanuts, though, I'll eat them instead. It saves money to prepare for eating throughout the day.

WAH Jobs Versus Businesses

A lot of people get confused between working from home and running a home-based business. There are work at home jobs and work at home businesses out there. Pay close attention to the difference because sometimes businesses will sell themselves as jobs to get you to buy in.

With a business, you will have to invest money upfront. If you are joining an established company, such as Mary Kay or Avon, you are paying a franchising fee as if you were buying the right to open a McDonald's in your neighborhood. Self-run businesses will require capital to set-up, marketing, and run.

With a work at home job, you should not be asked for any money upfront. Let's go back to McDonald's. You don't pay to fill out an application there. You don't pay to work for someone. The company pays you to work for them.

A business will require sweat, blood, and tears (and maybe a couple of years) to earn any significant profit.

A job will start earning you money now in the form of a weekly or monthly paycheck.

A business has an undetermined income. You, your product, and your marketing efforts determine how much you make on a monthly basis.

With a job, you will make the same hourly wage every week. You will know how much you will earn, which means there are no lean months. Neither are their any fat months.

Many people begin a work at home job while building a work at home business, and that option works for a great number of work at home entrepreneurs. The job pays the bills until the income from the business takes over.

Take some time to check out any company you are considering for either a job or a business opportunity. Ask questions and be sure you understand everything before committing anything.

I'm Not Crafty! Waaaa!

I wish I were crafty. No, I mean it. I've tried so many craft ideas it isn't funny. My husband finally said, "please realize that you're not that kind of woman."

It was hysterical because it took him so much time to work up the courage to say that. I've tended to be very good at everything I try except crafts, so I'm sure it's tough for him to have to be the one to break it to me.

The problem is that I don't have patience. I know that. I just don't know what to do about it.

Candle-making is the best I've been at any craft-type hobby, and I wasn't all that great. Still my candles stay together, and we burn them. They look beautiful when they're burning.

I just always think there's go to be some craft I'm good at out there. I look at other people who make great returns off their items, and I think, "I could do that."

I have two new ideas. They're both cheap, so if they mess up, I won't be out more than $5. I'm going to try making bath salts and wine glass charms. Hey - nice bath and a glass of wine! What's better?

I'd love to have a small craft site or even to list them on a craft site that gets more traffic - as if I need more work to do. One of the things I've learned about being a WAHM is that I have the time and desire to try new things all the time. It keeps the creative juices flowing.

A New Venture

Well, I've decided to go ahead and take the plunge. I'm going to try online auctions. I talked to hubby about it last night, and he thinks it's a good idea, too.

I was going to do online auctions a while back, but I never got around to it. I ended up selling the things I was going to put up for auction at a yard sale. We went through our things a few weeks ago, and we've been stockpiling stuff for a yard sale. When I was looking through it, I realized there's some really nice stuff in there.

I've decided to give online auctions a try. For right now, until I see how it goes, my plan is to just put the money away in my son's college fund. I figure that our family doesn't need the money for living expenses, so we might as well put it to good use elsewhere. Plus it's easier to do it if I know that the money's going somewhere good!

I'll keep you posted on how it goes!

5 Business Ideas for WAHMs

In my time as a WAHM, I've considered (and even tried!) a number of businesses. Although I knew I wanted to write, I didn't give myself permission to focus only on my writing. I kept thinking that I needed something else. Here are a few of the businesses I've tried.

Multi-Level Marketing

I joined Melaleuca. This Idaho-based wellness company sells products that the company reps claim are non-toxic. What I learned was that you build the business by building your sales down line. You have to recruit people to make money. I discovered I'm not the recruitment type, but if you have a sales personality, you may be able to succeed in this type of business.

Online Auctions
This idea never got off the ground. I thought that I'd sell on eBay and other online auction sites. I even purchase a few items for the venture. What I discovered instead was that I wasn't organized enough yet to make it happen and make any considerable money. Right now I have three items that I'm going to test to see if I can start earning money for my son's college fund through online auctions.

Crafts
What was I thinking?!? The truth is that I'm not a crafter. I'd like to be. I envy people who are, but I'm not. My mother-in-law has a knack for seeing a few items and being able to put them together into something beautiful. I need to buy things ready-made. Crafting is a lucrative home-based business, though. It's very common for moms to make their crafts in the evenings and sell them online or through craft shows. I just wish my husband had the courage to tell me to give up that idea.

Bookmarks
Perhaps this idea could work. I would need better printing equipment to make it happen, though. I came up with a few bookmark ideas and even designed them. Then I got stumped. I hadn't thought through my plan, and I didn't know how to market them or where to sell them. I also couldn't make enough per bookmark because I'd have to pay someone else to print them. If you have a quality laser printer and a laminator, then this business idea could work. You'd need a niche market, but if you can find one, then you're in business.

Disciple's Cross
Yes, this is technically a craft, but the crafts in #3 were my own designs. I bought the kit for Disciple's Cross with the intention of selling them through the buy-back program. I discovered that not only could I not make the crosses well, but the buy-back program isn't what it's cracked up to be. They're months and months behind in paying people. The people who succeed with DC are the ones who use it as a supplier. They make the crosses and then sell them on their own.

Reasons I Love Being a WAHM

Being a work at home mom is an amazing adventure. I feel that I get the best of both worlds. Although I had anticipated leaving my child in daycare, I cannot imagine doing so now. Instead I get to be home with my son during the day, and my husband is with him in the evenings. Our son gets quality time with Mom and Dad alone and time with us together. My husband and I also have time to ourselves after our son goes to bed.

I also get the satisfaction of having a career. A career is very important to my identity, and there is no way that I would be willing to give that up for anything. It was very vital to know that I could begin a new career journey once my son was born.

Being a WAHM also gives me great flexibility. If we have something to do or that we want to do, we can. It just means adjusting our schedule, but there's no boss hanging over me to tell me that I will have to take comp time in order to hang out with my little man. We can go eat lunch with my husband whenever we'd like or take a day to go to the pool if we want. Although I know it means a long night ahead, the sacrifice is worth it.

My Schedule

It has taken 20 months to work out a schedule that fits. Before my son was born, I worked all the time. I got up and worked. I had lunch. I worked more. My husband got home. We ate dinner and worked. Then we went to bed. The next day was the same routine.

Since my son has been here, it's been harder to get together a schedule. It seems that during the first year, every time he gets into one routine, it's time to move on to another one. It's very frustrating for me.

We now have a schedule that is working for us. I think he'll stay in one place developmentally long enough for it to become routine.

One of my promises to myself in 2006 was to get serious about my career. I set specific, measurable, and realistic - yet challenging - goals. Being serious depends in part on having a set schedule.

I am now logging my time. I work 40 hours a week. From the time I get up until my husband gets home from work, I try to fit in three hours of work time. That varies depending on my son's needs for the day. Plus we do errands and such on at least one day per week. Then I work for three hours in a little upstairs alcove office. I do that every weeknight. On the weekends, I work five hours on Saturday and five hours on Sunday.

This schedule is working really well so far. I've found that I actually have more energy because there's a clear delineation between work and play. I know when I've finished my work for the day, and I can turn off my computer and be done.

5 Ways to Entertain Your Children While You Work

Entertaining your children while you're working can be tough. You may find that while you don't ever want to shove your children off to entertain themselves, you sometimes need to in order to meet a deadline. These are some of the tricks I've learned with my son to help keep him occupied when I'm busy.

Set up a desk for your little one.
I gather up junk magazines and other mail that I don't want. Then when I need to work, I bring it out and let him play. He’s big enough now to write, so he gets a pen as well. He’ll stay occupied for a few minutes with his office work.

Purchase special toys.
I've bought three or four inexpensive little toys that I bring out only when I'm working and need him to stay busy. Because the toys aren't always available, they're more interesting. It’s important if you use this method to keep the toys stored away where you can get to them easily, but your little one can't find them.

Allow them to get into something.
Okay, I'll admit it. I've handed over a box of tissues to be taken out one by one when I was on a tight deadline. Though it isn't a good solution long-term, it is a way to keep the kids at bay for a few minutes. You can allow them to look through a box of craft stuff or to pull out the movies. Pick something that you can clean up in 5 minutes or less, and you won't feel so guilty about it.

Let them in on the action.
Obviously this idea works better for some home businesses than others. Still even with writing, there are ways my son can "help." When I'm preparing queries to send in the mail, I let him play with extra envelopes or empty books of stamps. We're sitting on the floor working together, so he thinks that we're playing together. I know that we're getting work done, and we're spending quality time with each other.

Get them a snack.
I'm not suggesting that you gorge your child. Instead part of your job as a work at home parent is to work around your child's schedules. That's the office politics part of what you do. When your child's having a snack, you can be reviewing paperwork or setting up the next day's tasks. When your child's taking a bath, you can wipe down the counters and sink (as long as you're paying attention to the bath, too!). There are plenty of ways you can learn to work around your child’s activities so that you're making the most of your time.

How I Got Started

I never imagined myself as a work at home mom before I decided to get pregnant with my son. Before that I had anticipated owning a web-based business, but that's about as far as it went. I left my job as a reporter in June 2004 to launch an online company. My husband and I worked on the company for about three months before we launched a site.

The sites did not go well for reasons I am sure I will tell you about later. I landed my first job writing web content in October 2004. Until that time, I had worked a little on writing fiction and a bit of non-fiction here and there, but I had never been serious about it. I didn’t have a plan for my writing.

I trudged through 2005, after giving birth to my son in January, and worked at any and all web content jobs I could find. We needed the money, so I didn’t have the luxury of turning anything down. Instead I took every job I could get. I worked through bid sites and by answering ads posted on free job boards. Sometimes I got in contact with people from message boards who hired me. I posted my information everywhere I could and got a fair number of jobs out of it.

I learned two important lessons, however, that would change the way I look at writing. First, I got stiffed by two people who just never paid for their work. One guy pretended that he thought he’d paid and never did. The other one just said he didn’t have to pay (what was I going to do?), so he didn't.

The second lesson came when I began preparing my information for my taxes from 2005. I realized that I had worked hour upon hour with little to show for my effort. I was devastated when I saw how little I really made, and I knew that it would mean getting serious about my career in 2006.

Why I'm Serious

As you can see, I've named my blog "One Serious WAHM." That is because my goal is to make a full-time income from home. Many people who work from home only need (and want) to make $100-200 a month. If that works for them, I'm not judging that decision. It's just that I need and want to make a full-time income. Okay, I guess I don't technically need to anymore, but I do want to. It's very important to me. Last year, I made a little money, and I'm on pace to come close to doubling that this year. If so, I'll be making about half of what I made when I was a reporter.

The thing is that I never intended to be a WAHM, so I do have the desire to be able to support myself completely. Making enough money is important to me. Being good at my chosen career is vitally important to my identity, and that is why I'm a serious WAHM.

Welcome!

Welcome to my WAHM (work at home mom) blog. I hope you'll come back!

Brandi Rhoades