The Reality of a Stay at Home Entrepreneur Parent

How To Be A Stay At Home Entrepreneur

 

The world is changing and it is now everybody’s dream to be a stay at home entrepreneur.  With that we decided to give our best parenting advice for exactly this scenario.

It seems like it would be the dream of every parent to be able to work from home. When you’re a work-at-home parent, people tend to say things like “You’re so lucky you get to spend so much time with your kids!”  Or “It must be nice to work in your pajamas all day!”

But if you’ve never had a glimpse into the day of a stay at home entrepreneur, you might be surprised how difficult working from home can be.  And most parenting advice doesn’t offer help on how to work while your baby is crying next to you.

Nowadays, many full-time workers are enjoying the benefits of working-from-home instead of going into the office.  But the flexibility this kind of work life offers is a bit different for those who have children.

The reality is being a stay-at-home entrepreneur parent is like having two full time jobs and trying to do them both at the same time.

Many who have had this experience will tell you it can be the best of both worlds.  They get fulfillment from their job while also being at home with their kiddos, but that doesn’t mean it’s an easy gig.

If you’re considering making this change in your work life, we hope this parenting advice will help.  You can read all about the many benefits of being a stay at home entrepreneur here.

 

 

How to Prepare For The Reality of Being a Stay At Home Entrepreneur

Whether you’re trying to get out of your stuffy office job, spend more time with your kids, or you’re already a stay-at-home parent.  Even if you would like to start your own business, it’s important to know the reality of what you’re getting yourself into.

If done right, you can truly experience success and financial freedom while being a stay-at-home entrepreneur. But going into it without preparing and having a plan means many obstacles along the way that could have been avoided.

In order to be successful, you’re going to have to prepare yourself financially, mentally, and emotionally.

 

Have a Financial Plan

Starting your own business or becoming self-employed can be a tricky transition for anyone who is currently employed.   As a stay at home entrepreneur with kids it’s important for you to have a financial plan.  How you will cover all the necessary expenses as well as making up for the shift in your income?

If your income is going to change drastically, the best parenting advice is to have money in savings.  This will allow you pay expenses and cushion the blow until your income returns.

Being self-employed can be extremely rewarding.  It also means you’re the boss and there’s many details to take care of that you might not have thought about before.

Many experts recommend you have some money coming in before you completely quit your job.  We know that’s not always a possibility for every family.

If you’re currently a stay-at-home parent looking to add some extra income you need a thorough financial plan.  Be aware that you’ll be spending money before you’re making any and factor that into any budget.

Making a simple business plan for what growth you expect in the next year can help.  This plan will allow you to stay on track and push through the challenges you’ll face.

 

Have a Child Care Plan

Being a stay-at-home entrepreneur parent doesn’t mean you can’t enlist any help with your kids.  In fact most parents who have walked this path already would tell you you’re going to need it.

If your goal was to work from home so you could spend more time with your kids, that’s okay.  You’re still able to do that even if they’re not with you one hundred percent of the time.

Many parents who work from home get help with child care at times to focus solely on their work. The reality of this type of job is that your little ones won’t always sit quietly or play by themselves while you’re working. You may understand the difference between your work and play time but they will not understand that boundary.

Getting help with child care for a few hours/days means you can focus entirely on your work without feeling guilty. 

This leads to our expert parenting advice of really focusing on spending quality time with your kids.

Maybe a grandparent or neighbor is willing to watch them for a few hours.  Any time you have to focus without distractions will benefit you in the long run.

 

Set Boundaries

With work, kids, marriage and everything else going on in your life it is sometimes hard to balance it all. It can often feel like you’re constantly juggling and having to put down one thing in order to pick up another.

New parents often ask seasoned parents how to fit everything in. The best parenting advice we can give you is there’s no way to get a perfect balance between work, marriage, and family. The truth is you must be flexible, making priorities and set boundaries that are openly communicated to everyone in your family.

If you’re planning on being successful as a stay-at-home entrepreneur, you need to learn how to set these boundaries. This can be particularly difficult when you live and work in the same place.

But you have to protect both your time for work and your time with your family in order to avoid stress and burnout.

This process looks different for every family.  Setting boundaries might look like your partner taking care of the kids on Saturday mornings so that you can get some work done.

It might be keeping your work email off your phone so you’re not distracted by it when you’re spending time with your kids.

Setting boundaries means saying yes to putting your family before your work and saying no to things you don’t have time or mental energy for.

 

Don’t Feel Guilty As A Stay At Home Entrepreneur

No matter how long you’ve been a parent you’re probably familiar with the guilt that often comes with the job. It sneaks up on you when you’re most vulnerable and sometimes it’s hard to push away. Being a stay at home entrepreneur means finding ways to get your work done and spend time with your kids.  Accept that every day is unpredictable.

It’s common for experienced parents to address guilt while giving parenting advice, but parenting guilt still happens to the best of us.

If you don’t get all your emails finished because your child needs you, don’t beat yourself up.

Set realistic expectations for what you plan on getting done each day. If you’re not able to spend every waking moment with your child, don’t feel guilty about that either. It will take time to get used to.

Before you know it you’ll find that this stay-at-home entrepreneur gig is possible if you don’t give up.