The Ultimate Make-Money-from-Home Guide for Mums

I've read a lot of make money from home guides, and frankly the advice falls into two categories, the phony get rich quick schemes or do surveys or other mind-numbingly boring computer work that you cannot possibly make a living from. If you are a mum, you know you can't just sit in front of your computer all day doing surveys and ignoring your kids. So here are real ways to make a living from home.

I've divided this guide into two sections, one for mums with very small kids and one for mums with school-age kids. None of the jobs below require qualifications or experience. The only things required of you is to be caring and sincere.

Making money from home for mums with very small kids

There is a desperate lack of affordable quality childcare almost everywhere in the developed world. If you love kids, setting up a daycare in your home requires almost no investment. You will need to contact your local authorities to find out if there are any restrictions on the number of children you can take. Decide on how many children you can realistically take care of, your hours of operation, daily and hourly rates, rules and rates for late pick-ups and so on. Stick up notices in your local shops, libraries, high-rise residential buildings, places where busy parents are likely to see them. The main advantage of this work is that you will be able to stay home with your children and make a living. The disadvantage is that it can be physically hard to look after young children, as there is daily preparation and clean-up involved.

A variation on the daycare is the Kids' Adventure Club. For this you can charge a lot more than daycare prices, $10 per hour per child is not unreasonable. You will need a car, like a van, that will fit a number of kids. You can buy (or borrow) a cheap old van for this purpose. Do a bit of research on all the attractions in your area. Each morning pile the kids in the van, load the cooler with drinks and lunches and bring some great music for kids to sing in the car. Then go and visit parks, rivers, beaches, museums, libraries, pools and whatever other attractions you have around you. Kids don't need much to be entertained. I took a group of boys to a train station, and they were happy to watch trains come and go for over 2 hours! The main advantage of this is that your kids will make loads of friends and have a blast! Sure beats spending days in front of the TV with a bored mum.

Become a nanny for a child/children similar age to yours. There are big advantages to this. You are at home with your child earning an income, your child has a companion and of course you can take them both out on outings (see above). Find out what the current nanny rates are in your area and post some ads in the local papers.

If you know other mothers in the same situation as yourself, you can join forces and do some or all of the above. You may be able to take on twice as many kids (depending on regulations your local authorities have). The advantage of this is that you will have another adult around to share the chores and talk to.

Whatever you decide, I would strongly advise you to do a First Aid for children course. If you can't afford to do the course, buy the First Aid book and read it cover to cover. Even if you don't do any of the above you will be equipped to deal with many of your own child's health emergencies.

Making money from home for mums with school-aged kids

Now that your children are at school, you may have anywhere from three to eight hours a day in which to earn an income. The decision now is what would give you most income for the hours you have available.

You can still do the jobs suggested above and make a living. However, if you're done changing diapers and cleaning sauce off the walls, here are more things to try.

There is a chronic shortage of carers and companions for the elderly just about everywhere in the world. Becoming a companion for an elderly person can be a very enriching experience. They often have a lot of stories and wisdom they want to pass on, and the friendships you form will sustain both of you. The relatives of many elderly are often too busy for regular visits and will pay well for a trusted person to do it for them. You will need to go around retirement villages, nursing homes and church-run organizations and make enquiries or leave pamphlets with some information about yourself and your contact details. There are also agencies that hire carers for these types of roles.

Become a preschool teaching assistant. Most of the time you don't need experience to do this. You will need to approach schools in your area before the end of each term to see what is available for the following term. Leave your details with them and call them regularly to check if a position is available.

Become a new mother's companion. For many mothers the first couple of weeks with a new baby can be pretty tough, both physically and emotionally. I think I would have given an arm and leg to have another woman around to help me get some rest, help me breast-feed, massage my shoulders, do some chores, a person, who would listen and understand exactly what I was going through. You would need to advertise your services in maternity clinics, local newspapers, supermarkets and library notice boards.

Become a busy executive's assistant. Walk their dog, water their plants, pick up their dry cleaning, run their errands, do a bit of cleaning and whatever else you can do in the time you have. Make sure you are clear about the tasks you will and will not do. If there is a lot of driving involved, you will need to negotiate a rate per mile/km to cover the costs of filling up your car. To do this job, you will need to approach companies in your area and offer your service to them. Often large companies (e.g. Google) hire assistants like this to relieve their executives of household chores and allow then to work longer hours and concentrate on what they do best. If company management does not take you up on your offer, ask them to put your advertisement up in their staff rooms.

Whatever you decide, present yourself well, do your research, charge reasonable rates, always have 'business' cards with you to give to people or notices to put up on notice boards (with a phone number people can tear off and keep).

Please note that most of the work above can also be done by stay-at-home dads.