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April 16, 2018 0 Comments

4 Summer Activities for Kids

Summer is coming up quickly! It’s getting warmer and pretty soon, the kids will be home for summer break.  While it’s obvious that the pool, having friends over, and local sports are great activities for this time of year, what else can your kids do during their time off?

We’ve compiled a few ideas that can be inexpensive fun for your kids this summer!

Get creative

You don’t have to do crafts to be creative! The summer months are often spent outside, but once in a while, you’ll encounter a rainy or just “too hot” day.  This is a great time to get creative!

Look up some new recipes and bake or cook something fun with your kid, like their own pizza dough for individual pizzas! You can also bake play items such as homemade play dough and slime.  Other crafts can include painting pottery and creating jewelry. Exercise their minds by planning creative activities that get them thinking and participating!

Another option is to make a stand, such as a lemonade, Kool-Aid or popsicle stand.  This can be a fun craft that takes a few days or weeks to complete, and also teaches your kids about money and sales.  Teach them how to run the stand, create it, and what they need to be successful. It’s not only a good way to spend time, but also includes teachable moments.

Get in nature

This is the time to be outside! Barring those really hot and rainy days, kids benefit from a lot of time in nature.  While the local pool is a great option beyond the iPad, being in true nature is also something to strive for this summer.

There’s everything from camping, the local trails, swimming at the beach (if it’s nearby), and much more.  Let your kids explore and get dirty! Look up local paths and trails that lead to hidden places in your area.

Another great way to expose your kids to the more natural life is to garden.  Have them participate in the planting of trees, veggies, or flowers. Most kids love to get involved in this type of activity!

Free local activities

Local websites will often list free activities! During the summer, local attractions like museums, zoos, art galleries, splash pads, and small amusement parks will have free days, afternoons, or discounted days.

This is a great way to save money while still indulging in the fun! Look into these options a few weeks in advance and make plans to meet up.

Learn something new

Just because school is out doesn’t mean that your kids can’t be learning! Whether you want to teach your young child to read over the summer, or teach your 10-year-old how to throw a football, this is a great time to introduce new skills.

Additionally, there are beginner language courses via phone, TV or computer, or you can teach them yourself, if you have the time! Create flashcards and make it a fun, family-friendly immersive experience to learn a new language over the summer.

Summer doesn’t need to become a second school year, but you can foster new skills and interests during the break.  This way, they’ll go back to school having expanded their knowledge and used their brain!

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April 9, 2018 0 Comments

5 Tips to Avoid Work Burnout

Work burnout is a real thing! According to MayoClinic.org, it is defined as “a state of physical, emotional or mental exhaustion combined with doubts about your competence and the value of your work.”  It can cause mental, physical, and psychological stress, and there are many signs of it.

According to Forbes.com, if you’re experiencing burnout, you might have: exhaustion, lack of motivation, frustration and cynicism, cognitive problems, problems at work and home, lack of care for yourself, and more.  These are clearly issues that need to be addressed, and working to avoid burnout is the first step.

Stick to office hours

Since we have our phones and computers constantly at our fingertips, it can be tempting to answer emails and requests at all hours.  While this is possible, it shouldn’t be the case most of the time! Sure, there might be a late night every once in a while, but it should be the exception – not the rule.  Make time for yourself and stick to your office hours.

You can set office hours by figuring out how much time it takes you to do your work on a daily basis, and then you should only be emailing, texting, and answering calls for work during this time. Work will only sleep if you let it, so make a boundary here to keep your own sanity.

Make time for fun

Fun is important! It’s crucial to have things to look forward to, and it’s up to you to make those plans sometimes. Set up social events with friends or family, schedule a fun night with girlfriends, or make a standing walking date with a local mom who also works from home.

When you’re scheduling fun into your everyday life (not just vacations!), you can come back to work refreshed.  Bonus points if your “fun” activities include relaxation, such as a spa treatment, yoga class, or meditation group.

Say no

We get it – it’s hard to say no.  We want to do it all and we don’t want to miss out on anything.  While saying “no” can be difficult in the moment, it’s truly important to keep space in your life for the things you want to do, as well as space for simple rest.  We are all very “busy” these days, which makes us productive, but much more prone to burnout.

Say “no” when you can, and don’t feel guilty about it.  There are plenty of other opportunities to say “yes,” and it’s important to be discerning about where your time and energy goes.

Take a step back

Vacations are another way to put something to look forward to into your life! But while a full blown vacation isn’t always a possibility, taking breaks is equally important.

Schedule your breaks like you would schedule anything else in your day.  Take 10 minutes for a walk in the late morning, a 10 minute sweeping break in early afternoon, and 30 minutes to pick up your kids in the late afternoon.  Breaking up your day can make work feel more refreshing when you come back. Just stepping away for a bit – whether 5 minutes or 1 week – can really make a difference in your attitude.

Take a tech break

We already discussed that having all of this technology in our faces all day can be a challenge.  We’re productive, but are we happy? Or are we burning out? It’s not always possible to shut off your phone or computer, but you can put it down for a few hours in the evening.

When you break from technology, you’re breaking from seeing things that are work related. This gives your brain a chance to disconnect from the phone and internet, making it easier to connect in the morning.  You might even find that you come back much more eager to work when you haven’t spent your evening staring at a screen too!

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April 2, 2018 0 Comments

3 Social Life Tips for Work From Home Parents

Working from home provides more flexibility and time with family and friends, but it can also be isolating if you’re not careful.

When work is home and home is work, you can easily fall into the habit of rarely leaving the house, or rarely being social.  If you’re a parent, the issue can be compounded by a lack of time. Although it can be difficult, making time to be social is a very important component in your quality of life.  Read along for some tips to stay social as a work from home parent!

Involve the kids

Not all social events have to be kid-free! Especially if your kids are very, very young or a bit older, this can be a great option.  You can set up fun play dates for your kids while you and your friend(s) grab a cup of coffee or take a walk.

Set up an afternoon in the park while the kids play on the playground and enjoy time chatting with the other moms.

Make it a date

Create a standing date! Set up weekly or monthly time with girlfriends or a group, and make it non-negotiable.  A social life can truly make the difference between happiness and feeling isolated and lonely, so it needs to be a priority.

Your spouse, whether they work in a traditional office or not, will also need some time to socialize.  If you watch the kids on Monday night, maybe they can do the same on Thursday evening. It’s important to trade off so you’re both doing things that bring you happiness and socialization.

Additionally, social events don’t need to be all day.  You can take a few hours to attend a happy hour with a friend, walk a few loops around the block while you chat, or simply meet in a park for an hour.  The goal is to socialize on a consistent basis; it doesn’t need to be extensive or expensive.

Create your own group

If you don’t have many friends or aren’t finding the right groups in your area, create your own! Sites such as Meetup.com allow you to create a custom group.  You might set one up based on a certain age group, hobby or common interest, or make it for moms only.

When you create your group, you get the added benefit of choosing the activities you love to do.  You’ll meet like-minded people who likely share a similar lifestyle and enjoy doing the same things.

Being social as a work from home parent may take a little bit of work, but once you create a schedule that works for you and your family, it can become something you truly look forward to.  Create the social experiences that interest you and work for you and your family!

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March 26, 2018 0 Comments

HireMyMom Success Story: Whitney Shutt

What’s your success story with HireMyMom.com?

I am a bit of a rare situation, I was at a full time job when I got pregnant and wanted to stay home with my son so I became a member of Hiremymom.com in May/June of 2015 and it only took me about a week or two to land my first interview and was hired on at the company that I still work for today (going on 2.5 years) in August of that same year.

What’s your educational and experiential background?

I have my bachelors in Corporate Communication and have about 1 years worth of experience in a non-profit organization and 2.5 years of experience if business development, web organization, ghostwriting, transcription, and other various virtual assistant tasks.

What is your top tip (or tips) for landing a gig on HireMyMom.com?

Be open to anything, even time zones. I work on pacific coast time, but live in central. If you are willing to put in the work and be flexible then you should more often than not find exactly what you are looking for.

What’s your favorite thing about HireMyMom.com?

The ability to have a website where the jobs have been vetted. I know I can go to this website and know that I won’t get scammed and that everything that I see listed are honest employers looking for employees.

What’s one fun fact about you?

I love to read when my husband takes over toddler time 🙂

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March 19, 2018 0 Comments

4 Resources for Remote Teams

Successfully managing remote teams is becoming more necessary as telecommute jobs are more widely available.  There are countless tools and options to make this possible, and we’ve narrowed down some of our favorite options.

Whether you’re looking to track time, communicate with your team, or send professional invoices and billing notes, we have something for you!

Slack

Slack is a great communication and messaging tool that keeps everything in one place.  According to Creative Boom, with Slack you can “hold conversations that are open to others or private; organize and prioritize conversations based on topic or project; share files; connect up your favorite tools; search the archives later” and more.

It also integrates with several other productivity products and allows your workflow process to be more streamlined.

Google Drive

Google Drive offers everything you need to communicate! You can create documents via Google Docs, spreadsheets via Google Sheets, forms via Google Forms, slideshows through Google Slides, and so on.  It also automatically saves and updates, so you can make changes in real time with your team.

You can search for and share files, create folders, and generally work together on projects as they’re happening.  Google Drive offers “online storage, so you can keep photos, stories, designs, drawings, recordings, videos – anything,” according to their website.

The first 15GB of storage is free, then goes to $1.99 per month for 100GB.

Moon Invoice

Moon Invoice is a simple billing and invoice tool that lets you complete tasks such as businesses accounting, estimates, purchases, payment reminders, and so on.

According to their site, “Not only you could add and manage multiple business but you can also create unlimited invoices.  Irrespective of the nature of business, whether you are trying to simplify the complex business model and process, maintain databases, remove errors and simultaneously increase the efficiency online invoicing, Moon Invoice lets you do it all effortlessly.”

Moon Invoice offers a free trial and then costs $14.99 to purchase with unlimited invoices.

For Windows: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/store/p/moon-invoice/9wzdncrdchr8

For Mac: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/moon-invoice-easy-invoicing/id1109397812?mt=12

Basecamp

Basecamp is a great tool for teams, and it comes with many features.  It’s a great project and client management tool that offers messaging, to-do lists, schedules, file storage, document storage, chat, and more.  You can share information with your team and/or your clients, and it keeps everything in one convenient location.

You can also sync it with Google Docs, so if you want to take notes in a separate location, it can all be stored in Basecamp in the end.

If you’re looking for more tools with helpful descriptions, check out this comprehensive list from Creative Boom.

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March 12, 2018 0 Comments

5 Tips to Prepare for Spring

Spring is just around the corner! With warmer temperatures starting to become more and more frequent, it’s only a matter of time before spring is here.  We associate spring with new beginnings and a fresh start, so it’s the perfect time to implement some of the ideas below for a great start to the new season.

Get outside

Fresh air equals a fresh mood! Get outside as much as you can during this time of year.  Start looking for local outdoor events and festivals. Go see a sporting event, attend an outdoor concert, or simply make time for a daily walk around the block.

Nature gives us positive energy and an energy boost, so it’s only fitting that it would be a perfect start to the warmer season.

Clean it up

It’s a great time to get that old dirt and dust out! From your living room to your office and pantry, use this time to get it all into shape.  Do a fresh coat of paint in your office, bring in some organic plants, or simply do a thorough cleaning.

You can also air out your house when it’s nice enough! Get the dust out. Start fresh for spring. Clean out clutter and donate, sell, or give away items that no longer serve you. This is great for your own energy and gets you into the feeling of a lighter season.

Refresh your resume

Homes aren’t the only thing that you can clean up this time of year.  Take a few hours to refresh your resume and hiring materials if you’re seeking employment.  Warmer weather tends to give us a more positive perspective, so use that vibe to restructure, edit, or redo your materials.

If you already have a job or business, you can update your website, order new business cards, or simply revise your business plan.

Lighten it up

While you’re lightening your burden in your home, be sure to do the same for your body! Get more exercise in the fresh air and choose lighter foods.  Our bodies typically crave lighter foods this time of year anyway, so fill it with hydrating, nourishing options.

It’s an ideal time of year for fresh fruit, healthy smoothies, and cooking nutritious meats and veggies on the grill.  Use seasonal produce for even more health and nutrition!

Take note of your schedule

How was your winter schedule? Did you cram too much in, or did you have a lot of extra time? Before spring comes, take a few minutes to examine your schedule.  Cna you better allocate your time over the next several months? You might need to fill some work space, or you might need to unload some work.

If you’re seeking a freelance, part-time or full-time work from home job, take a look around HireMyMom.com for some options that will fit into your schedule!

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March 5, 2018 0 Comments

4 Tips for Boosting Effectiveness

Becoming more effective is not just applicable to work.  The more available time you have for your family and friends, the more your quality of life increases.  However, effectiveness at work is also important, and can make your work day much more manageable.  Working to be more productive or effective means saving time, money, and leaving time for those things you love most, all while producing quality work where you need to.

Read our blog for some of our best tips and advice for boosting effectiveness in and out of the workplace.

Where’s your time?

To become more effective, it’s very helpful to know where your current time is being spent.  Spend a few days taking inventory of your time, from business to personal.  If you find you can cut a few unnecessary hours in front of the TV, or eliminate a meeting that you no longer enjoy attending, you might find more time for the things you need and love.

You can avoid wasting time by taking inventory, prioritizing the most important tasks first, and truly listening.  Many mistakes and wasted hours can be saved by really listening to what a client or employer is looking for.  This eliminates hours of edits, re-dos, and spending time on projects that could’ve been done correctly from the start.  This can also be helped by asking a lot of questions at the beginning! Work smarter, not harder, and you’ll boost effectiveness quickly.

Focus on quality

Even though you’re trying to be more effective, quality is important, and focusing on it can save you time down the road.

Don’t just speed through your work – take your time to do it right.  When we want more time for ourselves, we can often speed through work, but it ultimately does not save us time.  Focus on quality in everything you do, and you’ll end up saving time in the end.

Set a timer

Break up your tasks! For example, exercise for 40 minutes, work on freelance job #1 for 60 minutes, break for 10 minutes, then work on freelance job #2 for another 60 minutes.  When you break up your day into sections, it helps you to focus directly on the task(s) at hand, and you know that you’ll get to other things later. Set an actual timer for these tasks, so you aren’t tempted to keep working when it’s time to move on.

This is also a great way to fit in the things you want to do! When you know you’ll be working on freelance work for 3 hours, but then have a 60 minute walk with a friend later, it makes your day that much better.  Not only are you being effective, you’re adding some more enjoyment to your day.  Your whole day does not need to be mapped out, but once you do this for a while, you’ll get into the habit of focus and effectiveness – one task at a time.

Take a break

Breaks are so important! As we mentioned in the tip above, you should even factor them into your schedule.   Breaking up your tasks and your day makes you more productive and keeps you fresh, leading to less mistakes and less chance of burnout.

We’re often believing that more work is always better, btu keeping yourself healthy – mentally and physically – is the first key to success.   You know how you feel after a vacation; you often feel refreshed and ready to work again.  Breaks in your day can do this on a smaller scale! Breaks can be 5 minutes to do a meditation video, a 10 minute walk, or a nice hour and a half lunch break with a friend from time to time.  The more you add some ease into your life, the more zest you bring to your job and your life.

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February 26, 2018 0 Comments

Hire My Mom Success Story: Shannon Culp

What’s your success story with HireMyMom.com?

I cannot stop shouting HireMyMom.com from the rooftops! I’ve enjoyed introducing it to so many moms out there looking for exactly what I found through hiremymom…my DREAM JOB. It’s hard for people to believe there’s a site out there focused on helping moms. When in fact,  the companies who advertise jobs here have a strong understanding of what career moms like myself are looking for. I wanted to find inner peace and perfect work/life balance that allows me to put my family first and not lose sight of my career goals.

I joined the website and actually got two awesome jobs in the span of 6 months!

For me, my career aspirations included finding the “diamond in the rough” position I just knew was out there. I wanted something I could be passionate about and proud of. I found BestSelf.Co’s posting for a Project Manager and instantly fell in love with this company and everything it stands for. Their post told me I could work 100% remotely, have fun at my job, and be a part of something truly amazing?!? Was this company for real? So, I checked out the website and learned all about Cathryn and Allen. They created an insanely successful business out of a need for organization and accountability. Not only was I going to focus 100% of my efforts towards landing this DREAM JOB with a company that was clearly cooler than I was, I found myself actually wanting to buy and try the products!

I got the job with BestSelf.Co. around the middle of September and less than a month later I joined my new team in Key West for my first (of hopefully many) bi-annual team retreats!

HireMyMom.com fatefully connected me with a company and a job I didn’t even know existed! Never in my life have I truly gotten to tell people about what I do with such amazing passion and pride. I have so much gratitude and thanks towards HireMyMom.com. What a perfect season it is to reflect on that!

What’s your educational and experiential background?

My education is in Business Management & Accounting, and up until very recently the majority of my work experience was in Property Management.

What is your top tip for landing a gig on HireMyMom.com?

  • Set your career search goals high and thoroughly read each career posting that intrigues you.
  • Take the time to learn what they are looking for and promote yourself in a unique way that will make you memorable over hundreds if not thousands of other applicants:
  • Tell a short, yet intriguing story about yourself.
  • Find a way to relate reading and/or education that you’ve completed in a way that will make you shine in that position.
  • Bottom line, in your cover letter, don’t repeat your resume. Find a new and interesting way to tell your prospective employer about yourself.
  • Take care in every. single. application you submit. Don’t phone this in. If you expect to land an amazing job – you have to put amazing effort towards achieving it.
  • Don’t copy/paste for multiple positions. Research each company and reflect on that in your application.
  • Many of the jobs on HireMyMom are with aspiring startup companies who embrace the “work productively from home” mantra. If you want to be part of something amazing from the ground up, HireMyMom.com is an awesome place to find that!

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February 19, 2018 0 Comments

4 Tips to Stay Healthy This Winter

The holidays are over and we’ve been back into our healthy grooves for a while now.  However, it’s that time of year that a lot of sickness is going around! Watch or read the news and you’ll hear that the flu season is running rampant.  It’s important to do your best to stay healthy and keep your immunity high this winter.

Read along for some of our best tips to stay happy and healthy!

Keep it clean

It goes without saying that cleaning is a crucial component in staying well.  Wash your hands as soon as you come home, remove shoes inside the house, and wipe your phone.  It’s been said that phones are as germy as public bathrooms!

Other important tasks involve being mindful of coughing and covering your mouth, disposing of tissues immediately, and generally avoiding passing your germs if you’re already rundown or ill.

Natural options

Medication isn’t the only way to get and stay well! There are plenty of holistic options that will be more beneficial for your body – and keep up your immunity to colds and the flu:

  • Hot tea

  • Bone broth

  • Apple cider vinegar

  • Raw honey

  • Green juices

  • Vitamin C supplements

  • Plenty of water

  • 5+ servings of fruits and vegetables daily

  • Natural immune supplements such as Wellness Formula, that includes several immune-boosting ingredients

 

Get your rest

Rest is so crucial to your immune system. You know that when you start feeling rundown, it’s only a matter of time before illness takes hold. Exercise and being active is so important, but you don’t need to take it to extremes! Be kind to yourself – take breaks and don’t cram in a ton of things without down time, especially this time of year.

Make it a priority to get 7-9 hours of sleep per night. Take time to wind down in the evenings – relax and give your immune system a boost.

Cancel it

If a friend or someone’s kids are sick, do your best to cancel plans. It’s not fun or always convenient, but this helps to eliminate the spread of sickness. Illnesses can stay active for 24 hours to weeks after exposure – on surfaces and inside the body.

Click here for a helpful resource for parents that will tell you when your children are safe to return to school and activities.

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February 12, 2018 0 Comments

5 Ways to Achieve Success

Success looks different for everyone, but it’s something we all strive for.  Whether success is a career goal, or a certain way of flexible living for you and your family, you can take specific steps to get there.  With a clear plan and a few tips, you can achieve the success you’re seeking.

Define it

What does success look like to you? Just because someone you know feels successful in their life, doesn’t mean you ought to achieve the same things just because.  This can lead you down a path of striving for things that truly don’t mean much to you.

How do you enjoy spending your time?  What would a successful life look like to you? Take some time to write these thoughts down.  Once you know what you’re striving for, it makes it easier to prioritize and eliminate those things that don’t fit on your path to success.

Set goals

Goals are always very important and very motivating! Start by breaking down your vision of success into achievable goals.  For example, if one of your definitions of success is more flexibility in your workday, you might strive to work from home.  Goal #1 would be finding work from home sites, Goal #2 could be applying to at least 3 jobs per week, and so on.

Work on yourself

Working on yourself first is the best way to gain momentum and improve your outlook.  A positive outlook is always conducive to greater success! Start by doing what you really want to be doing, as much as possible, even if it’s on the side at first.  For example, you could start a side job or business, or paint or do another hobby on the side.

Another way to work on yourself and make yourself happy first is to work on self improvement, if that’s your thing.  This can look like a spiritual practice, getting deeper in your faith, meditation, etc.

Make time for social

According to Time.com, “socially isolated people are more than twice as likely to die from heart disease as those with a solid social circle.”  Despite your outlook on what success means, maintaining a healthy social life is key.

When you’re focusing heavily on your goals and successes – career or personal – you can start to neglect your social world.  It’s a really important part of health and life, and may even be another key to success.  Socializing is another part of networking as well, which can lead to job opportunities, business ventures, and so on.

Always keep learning

The smartest, most successful people are lifelong learners.  You can start a book habit – one new book per week (or month), depending on what works in your schedule.

Take time to read news or pursue an interesting hobby on a daily basis.  Take interest in new things.  Subscribe to information magazines and publications.  Take a local course.  Always work to grow your knowledge base! You never know what will strike a cord, change your path, or simply boost your perspective on your way to success.

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