Pros and Cons of Being a Work at Home Mom

Today's workforce is allowing more moms to be able to work from home. Some people think working from home is the ultimate dream job, but there are several pros and cons of being a work at home mom. Here a few pros and cons.

1. No daycare costs

Being able to work from home allows you to be able to be with your child(ren) without having to pay someone else to watch them. You get to see your child(ren) all day and spend quality time together. Also, you don't have to pay the extra money that some daycare facilities charge for early drop off and late pickup. For some children who are in school there is after school care costs that can add up as well.

2. Save money

You will be able to save money by not having the wear and tear of your vehicle and save money on gas. With the rising cost of gas prices, it will be much easier on your wallet. You will not have to worry about eating out for lunch. Eat out daily gets really expensive. Also, you don't get out and deal with the morning and evening traffic that cuts into your family time. Another way to save money is that you don't have to have an extensive wardrobe to keep up since you can practically work in your pajamas all day.

3. No supervision

You can work without having a boss constantly over your shoulder. It makes it for a much more relaxing environment. For some people, they are more productive with their work unsupervised. Another great thing about being unsupervised is that you can set up your own work schedule and work whatever hours you want.

There are cons to being a work at home mom. These cons can affect your job performance.

1. Easily distracted

It's hard to get the work done when things are easily distracting you. Crying baby, noisy children, barking dogs, and a messy house can keep you from your getting your work done. So, you may have to have yourself set on a schedule of sorts to get your work done. It may be harder to complete deadlines when you are not able to focus on the task at hand.

2. Isolation/no adult interaction

No adult interaction can be lonely when you work from home. We, as a society, thrive on social interaction.. There is no motivation to fix your hair, put on some makeup and dress nice when you don't have to go to a job every day. For some work at home moms getting up to go to their home office means getting dressed every day, putting on some makeup, and fixing their hair to get them motivated for that day's work.

3. Time management

If you are not disciplined to be able to work unsupervised, it will be easy to not get your work done and play around all day. It's easy to say there is always tomorrow and put off the work you need to get done. Then the work will pile up and at the last minute you'll be trying to catch up getting all of your work done. It also is important to separate your family life from your work life while working from home. Since you have your work at home it's easy to get caught up in the work.

There are advantages and disadvantages to being a work at home mom. If you can overcome the cons, manage your time efficiently, getting out to interact with other adults, and focus on the work at hand then you can be a successful work at home mom. Receiving that paycheck while still be able to spend time with your family is one of the many sweet rewards.