Although much of the Internet is riddled with misinformation and even fraudulent opportunities for work at home moms, there truly are legitimate business ideas for the mom who wants to stay at home with her children while also earning an income.
Depending on your skill set, if you have a bit of a creative mind, there really is no limit to the type of business or service the serious work at home mom can provide.
By using the following information, you’ll be able to quickly determine which type of work at home career may be right for you, and also how to move forward with it.
Business Owner or Freelancer?
The first decision you’ll need to make will be whether you’d like to own your own business or provide a freelance type service by working for another person.
Each, of course, has its own set of pros and cons. By owning your own business, you may have the opportunity to for a higher income, but you’ll also need to be able to market yourself as well.
You’ll have no one to look to for a weekly paycheck, except the image you see in the mirror, and that thought can be extremely overwhelming to some mom’s.
Working as a freelancer often provides a more steady stream of income.
Finding Your Work at Home Niche – Make a List of Your Skills
The next order of business is to consider your skill set. You probably have many more marketable skills than you give yourself credit for, so asking a few friends or family members for advice on this one is a great idea.
For example, you may be a whiz at the sewing machine, always hemming and repairing your friend’s and relative’s clothing, but it’s a skill that’s such a part of your life that you just don’t give it much thought.
By asking others for a list of your skills, you may be able to discover something you can do as a work at home mom. Be sure to commit your list of skills to writing. It may take a couple of weeks to think of all of the things you are good at.
Are you an excellent public speaker? Are you the fastest typist you know? Are you able to speak a second language?
Include everything. Once you have your list, it’s officially brainstorming time.
How to Brainstorm for Work at Home Business Ideas
Now that you have your list of skills, start brainstorming for marketable business ideas. Below is one we’ve created for you as an example.
Skills Business Ideas
Great with Children Home Daycare Owner, Tutor
Speaks Spanish Document Translation Service, Tutor
Organized and Creative Party Planning Service, Wedding Coordinator
Fast Typist Transcribing Service
Great Writer Freelance Writer, Blogger, Copywriting Service
Plays the Piano Piano Teacher
Knows Photoshop Photoshop Tutor, Graphic Design Service,
Other Types of Home Based Business Ideas for Moms
Other work from home jobs available for moms are only limited by your imagination. Certainly, there are the common and most popular jobs, which are listed below, but take the time to find your own unique niche, so you’ll ultimately be doing something you love and believe in.
- Writing
- Photography
- Internet Marketer Selling Affiliate Products
- Web Developer
- Home Daycare
- Tutor
- Customer Service
- Virtual Assistant
- Transcription Services
- Consulting
- Personal Coach, Life Coach
- Travel Agent
- Financial Planner, Financial Advisor
Balancing Work and Family Life
Once you’ve found your niche, other considerations you’ll need to tackle include balancing work and family life. A few tips for this include:
- Setting up an office or work station – Having a designated office or area that divides work from family life is best. This will help you to clearly separate work time from home activities in your mind. Balance is a key component to successfully working from home.
- Define your hours – Depending on what type of personality you have, the work at home mom has two pitfalls to watch out for. The first is the workaholic who sacrifices family life to continue working long hours, while the second type may have trouble getting motivated and focusing. Defining clear work hours is the key to tackling this problem, as well as having a specific work space. Treat your work at home career as you would any other job, beginning and ending your work day at specific times. Of course, there are certain time periods where your work load may be heavier and you may need to put in a few extra hours, but you can avoid burnout by defining specific work hours.
- Setting healthy boundaries with family, friends and clients – Another area that may become a problem is the fact that family and friends may not respect the fact that you have a legitimate career even though you work from home. Guard your time and set boundaries to avoid trouble in this area. Friends and family may want to “drop by” during the day or even ask for favors which infringe upon your time. You may have to show some tough love and remind them that you are indeed working, and your time should be respected. Clients may need boundaries set as well. Some may want to discuss business in the evening or during other family hours. Being a work at home mom is challenging, but it can be done with a bit of self discipline on your part and the ability to say no to distractions.
Resources for Work at Home Moms
Resources for work at home moms will be dependent on the type of career you are starting. There are many work at home forums and even government websites that can assist you in your new career.
Although accessing others in your chosen field is a good idea for some, again, beware of becoming too entangled with others who may distract you from actually performing the duties that will bring the income in. Building your business is your main goal.
Funding for Your New Home Business
According to the Small Business Administration Office of Advocacy, over 50% of all businesses today are home based. Most of these have been started without funding or any type of business loans.
The sba.gov website (U.S. Small Business Administration) is an excellent source of information on loans and grants available for the new small business owner. In order to apply for any grant or loan program they offer you’ll need to write up a business plan, figure out the exact finances you will need for start up, and follow the government application process.
Government loans and grants include:
Information on each can be find on the SBA website, although you shouldn’t count on a loan to start your small business. The beauty of work from home jobs is the fact that most can be started with very little additional finances and most of the loan and grant programs are difficult to gain approval for.
We’re not saying it’s impossible, but it may be in your best interest to simply live frugally, save for the equipment you need, and make your own way.
For example, start up costs for a Home Day Care involve the cost of state training, which is approximately $150 total, license fees and FBI background check, which is an additional $100 (approximately).
While you are taking your classes, you can purchase educational toys, children’s books, and play mats from your local Goodwill store. Save the receipts and all of your purchases can be taken off of your income taxes at the end of the year.
Sure, you could apply for a business loan that would help you renovate your garage and turn it into a giant play room or purchase outdoor playground equipment, but those things aren’t absolutely necessary to start your business. Start your business slowly and realistically, only purchasing what you absolutely need, and you will be able to steadily grow into your new career.
For the online writer or graphic designer, you may think you need a business loan for the latest software programs, a new computer, or a huge marketing campaign, but do you really?
Determination and working with what you already have are signs of a frugal business owner who is on the path to success. There are plenty of graphic designers who start their home businesses with their current equipment and a small but professional portfolio that they put together themselves.
Marketing your Work at Home Business
Since we discussed funding and loans, let’s touch on marketing ideas. You’ll need to get the word out that your new business exists and with a bit of creative thinking you can advertise your new career for free.
- Business Cards – Vistaprint.com offers business cards for free on their website. All you’ll need to pay for is a small shipping fee.
- Social Networking – Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook are excellent places to advertise your new business. Simply start an account on each, upload your portfolio, and continue to talk about your line of work. You’ll be surprised at how many bites you’ll get.
- Free media coverage – Do you own a home business that is also helping the community in some way? Don’t be afraid to toot your own horn. Let’s say you are running a small hair salon out of your home. By offering free back to school hair-cuts for underprivileged children in the community, you could easily gain some free coverage in your local newspaper or on the daily news. Don’t be afraid to make the phone call to let them know about your event. Free news coverage is one of the best forms of advertising.
- Partner with other businesses – Hitching your wagon to a more established, successful business is a great way to establish yourself and gain recognition. Find a complimentary industry and develop a business relationship. Let’s say you are a guitar instructor. Call your local music store (as long as they don’t provide lessons) and ask if you could leave your business cards on their counter. Talk to the guitar salespeople and let them know you’ll be happy to give them a “finder’s fee” for referring clients to you. Be sure to live up to your word. If someone finds a client for you, be generous and they’ll continue to do so. A $50 referral fee is a small price to pay for a long term client and free advertising.
Work at home moms have many challenges, yet many rewards. If you desire to stay home with your children while also earning a living for yourself and your family, a work from home career may be right for you.
Before diving in, follow the steps and insights we’ve provided above, and you’ll be on a solid path for success.
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{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
This is great and I would love to get started in my own home business. I think I would really enjoy the life coach idea, but I don’t know how well I would do at that. I am going to start with step one in your article and make that list. Thank you for the ideas and the information on the next step in the process. I’ll let you know how it turns out.
I think it is wonderful that there are grants and loans which take into account the importance of helping mothers, younger and older, to get ahead in their career. Women deserve to get more help than they do because afterall, they are the ones who have to bear children and it is just not fair to leave single mothers on their own. They need assistance – more than what is available to everyone else. It is only right.
The most traditional types of jobs which a mother (or any other person for that matter) are jobs like medical billing or general data entry, telephone customer service, web designer. I consider the most unpredictable type of work from home job is (in terms of not guaranteed to be legit) that of taking online surveys. I say this because there are just so many scrupulous as well as legit companies and you have to find out which ones are true.