The Darling CEO

Money, Business, and Life Tips for the Working Mom

How to Work from Home With Kids

How to Work from Home With Kids

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While it’s not desirable to work from home with kids, the need sometimes arises. Like for examples, the occasional snow day or a global pandemic.  Things happen that are out of our control and working parents have to do what we have to do.
Over the years I have had several times when I  was forced to work from home when my kids were home.  When this situation arises, no need to panic. Here are a few tips to make working from home with kids as enjoyable and productive as possible.

Don’t Stress

 The first tip is to relax. Things will not always go smooth and that is okay. Just do the best that you can.  I’m a huge believer that everything happens for a reason. At this moment, you are simply meant to spend a little more time with your family. Take advantage of this wonderful opportunity and enjoy. You will likely find that you are able to get just as much done, you may just need to be creative to find the time. 

Reschedule Important Calls or Presentations 

Murphy’s law of working from home with kids is that the moment that you have an important call or presentation, your kids will turn into wild banshees. I    swear they have some type of radar to know when you need them to cooperate. For your mental well-being, try to move any call that may require you to speak to another day.   If you can’t do this,try being up front and letting your coworkers know that they may hear some background noise. Don’t worry, we have all been there.  Everyone will understand.

Pull out the Big Guns

Sometimes we just need to get something done and be able to concentrate on the task at hand. With kids at home that can be difficult.  Don’t be afraid to pull out the big guns when you are working from home with kids. Big guns meaning special treats, activities, or shows that your kids don’t normally get. You can also loosen up the screen time limits for the day.  The novelty of such an occurrence and certainly buy you some time.  No judging but once I gave my kids ice cream at 9 am so I could hop on a conference call. Moral of the story is that sometimes you have to do what you have to do.

When you are going to be working from home with kids, make sure you are stocked with some things that can keep their attention. One thing that I do is  stash away some of of my kid’s Christmas and birthday gifts, Throughout the year when I  am working from home, I have a secret stash of toys that can keep them amused for a while. I also try to keep some special snacks on hand for this reason as well.  A good snack can buy you 20 minutes at least.

Get Them Involved

Depending on how old your children are, get them involved in your work and look opportunities to teach them things.  You can have them proofread your emails,  double-check your math, read and summarize an article relevant to your industry, etc.

If they are on the younger side, you can have them do literally anything and say that they are “helping”. For example, If I’m reading a report I will print one for them as well and give them a pen to make notes.  They always get super geeked to help their mommy work.   Another time, I had my kids serve as my audience while I was practicing for a presentation. Believe it or not, doing a practice run in front of the kids did help me feel more comfortable with the material and calm my nerves a bit.

Getting your kids involved when you work from home will also make them feel more connected to you and the work that you do. Some of my favorite memories were hanging out with my parents while they were working.  It really allowed me to see a different side of my parents that I     really loved and respected.  It also helps spark my imagination and feel super important to be hanging out at their workplace.

Communicate

Make sure that your boss is in the know. Be up front if you need to work from home with kids. You don’t want them finding out that you are at home with the kids by hearing them scream in the background of your weekly status call.The best thing you can do is to call your boss and let them know that you need to work from home with kids. Reassure them that you plan on hitting all of your targets and commitments.  

Be cautious about trying to hide the fact that your kids are home.   Going back to Murphy’s law of working parents, your boss WILL find out in the most awkward situation imaginable.  Trying to hide this from your manager is super stressful and can distract you from what you need to do.  Being honest and upfront will help build trust with your manager and allow you to relax and focus on work instead of hiding your toddler.

Tackle 10 Minute Projects

At the beginning of the day, make a list of 5-7 tasks or projects that will take 15 minutes or less.  This is your game plan for the day.  Most kids can keep themselves amused for 15-minute increments so you should be able to knock these tasks out without too much interruption. You are  likely not going to be able to draft a 20-page report on days that you are working from home with kids, but you can knock out some smaller tasks that you may have been putting off. Some examples include: cleaning out email inbox,  updating distribution lists, sending out recognition emails, customer follow-up emails, reading industry articles, expense reports etc.

Make it Up Later

If you really can’t afford to fall behind when you work from home,  see if you can get some help later in the day. See if your partner can come home a little early from work, see if your parents can come and get the kids for dinner, have the babysitter come over and help out.   Take this time and “turbo-work”.  Knockout as much work as you can during this time period. Chances are that you will find you accomplished just as much, if not more,  by laser-focusing on the tasks at hand.

Working from home with the kids is not always ideal but it can be enjoyable and productive as long as you are relaxed & strategic.  Think of it this way, you likely won’t remember an ordinary day at the office, but you will remember the days that you worked from home with the kids.
What are your strategies for working from home with the kids? What have you found to work well and what doesn’t work well? We would love to hear your strategies for being productive when you work from home.

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Mobile Office Must-Haves: 5 Gadgets You Need!

You may find this article contains affiliate links. Purchases thru these links support the ongoing efforts DarlingCEO. 

I spend a ton of time in the car. In fact, my car is like my second office as I spend a good chunk of my day driving between offices. This can be incredibly uncomfortable and inconvenient if you aren’t set up properly.   Luckily,  I’ve put together a list of items that will help you make the most of your mobile office.

Car Office Organizer 

This is super helpful!  If you are like me, your car is a hot mess most of the time. I have receipts, water bottles, cords, pens, and goldfish crackers strewn all over my car.  Rather than have this chaos on four wheels, this organizer helps me keep everything organized and all in one place.  It is always a good idea to keep an extra phone charger, earbuds, pens, notepads, and a spare wireless mouse in your mobile office. This keeps those items nice and organized so you never have to go digging through your purse or computer bag when you’re late for a conference call!

Power Inverter 

This is a total game changer for so many reasons. It never seems to fail, you are rushing on an important Skype call and your laptop battery dies leaving you completely helpless. This little gadget ensures that you always have the power you need in your mobile office.  You can charge your laptop, iPad, cell phone, essentially anything you would need! Also, as an added bonus, it is also so very helpful when you have kiddos.  You will never have to hear your kids whining like Calliou because their iPad died. For that reason alone, this thing is pure gold.   I seriously can’t believe I went so long without it!

A Nice Mug

I’m a huge fan of saving money. The more that you can make your own coffee or tea rather than purchase it, the better! A nice steel mug is very nice to have and will keep your drink hot or cold while you are on the go. I have tried so many and this one works the best. In addition to functionality, it is also sleek and attractive! The perfect addition to any mobile office!

A Good Planner
I’m a sucker for a good ole’ fashioned planner. There is just something to be said of taking pen to paper and jotting down your goals and accomplishments. I LOVE this productivity planner. It helps you strategically plan your day/week and prioritize your tasks. I love the combination of paper planner and technology so I use this in conjunction with my Evernote app. If you need to be more intentional with your time and focus, this is the planner for you!

Ear Buds with Mic
If you need to talk a lot on the phone or have a lot of conference calls, you will want to invest in a pair or nice earbuds or wireless headphones. The sound quality is much better than if you were speaking on the phone or overhead speakers. Keep a pair in your purse, workbag, and car. You can even splurge on a pair of Apple Airpods!

What other items can you not live without for your mobile office?  Let us know in the comments!

Also check out 5 Ways to Make the Most of Your Commute!

 

 

 


5 Ways to Make the Most of Your Commute

A long commute can be grueling!  Unfortunately, I am in expert in them. On any given day I am in the car for at least 3-4 hours.  I cover about thirty different locations spanning three counties so there is a TON of driving in my day.  It’s important to note that we are not talking carefree back-road country driving,  I’m talking city bumper to bumper stressful driving.
My pain is your gain!  Luckily, I have been able to perfect the art of the commute. If you follow these strategies not only will your commute be less gruesome, but it will actually be a productive & enjoyable time of your day.
5 Ways to Make the Most of a Long Commute
  1. Waze–  This was a total game changer for me. Waze is a community-based traffic and navigation app. I have tried different navigation apps but this is by far the best in my experience. Waze factors in current driving conditions when determining the best route for you. Users can even alert you to speed traps (not that I ever speed or anything). It has saved me literally HOURS of time each month.  The best part is that the app is free.   Head over to Google Play or the App Store to download.
  2. Phone Calls–     I am very strategic with my follow-up calls and conference calls. I try to schedule as many calls as I can during my commute hours so I can kill two birds with one stone.  Added bonus, being engrossed in conversation will help make the drive fly by!  It is also much easier to focus because you are not tempted to multi-task while you are talking. Win-win!
  3. Podcasts–   I am a HUGE fan of podcasts. They are free and come packed with a ton of information in an entertaining format. Whatever your interest,  they have a podcast for it.   Right now, I am totally into Side Hustle School with Chris Guillebeau. It is a short 10 minute or so podcast that highlights various people’s side hustles. I love hearing all of the ideas and strategies that are showcased from the listeners.    In fact, it helped inspire me to start this blog. You can check out podcasts via the Podcast App on iPhones.  Android users can download an app to listen to their favorite Podcasts. Check out the article titled “10 Best Podcast Apps for Androids” by Joe Hindy for a review on the top apps.
  4. Audiobooks- I’m also a big fan of audiobooks.   Using an app like Audible helps you find audiobooks that fit your interests. (A quick note on Audible- if you are an Amazon prime user you get free access to Channels which a collection of talk-show like content on various themes).  Another great place to find audiobooks is through your public library. Many of them offer audiobook CDs or a virtual library where you can download them.
  5. Mindfulness–  We live in a crazy, busy, hectic world.  What better time to practice mindfulness than when you are captive in your car.  Take this time to just sit still for a moment.  Reflect on your day. Open the window and feel the warm breeze.  Be fully present. Try to enjoy the time to yourself. I’m totally not good at this but I find myself getting better each time I try.
What strategies do you use to make the best of your commute?  Share in the comments, we would love to hear!
Make the Most of Your Commute, Productivity, Driving DarlingCEO