work from home tips

July 18, 2022

3 Tips to Get Back on Track After a Vacation

Even if you love your job, there’s no denying that vacation provides a much-needed break from the stress of it all. However, returning to work after an extended vacation can sometimes be difficult to handle—the transition between your rejuvenating time off and your regular routine at work can be jarring, especially if you’re eager to return to your normal workload. For tips on how to get back into the swing of things at work after a vacation, read on!

1) Leave To Do Lists

Before you leave for vacation, break down all of your tasks into manageable chunks and make note of anything else that can help you get back up to speed. Don’t forget small details like, “get receipts from last trip for mileage reimbursement” or “cancel membership for extra security system monitoring when I get home”. Leave these items on your desk so that you don’t forget about them in your hectic schedule upon returning. The lists are there for a reason — use them! This will also help you from feeling overwhelmed when you get back because it will give you a starting point.

2) Prepare as Much as Possible Beforehand

If you’re leaving for vacation, take care of all your loose ends beforehand. If there are things that absolutely must get done before you leave, tackle them first so that your mind and body can relax when you’re away. This way, when you return from vacation, it will be easier to get back into work mode. When possible, delegate duties to other team members in advance. For example, if you know an important email needs to be sent out after you return from vacation, ask another colleague or co-worker if they would be willing to send it out while you’re gone.

3) Set Realistic Expectations For Yourself

When you get back into work after a vacation, it can be hard to get back into your normal routine. As you sit down at your desk with that morning cup of coffee, do not set yourself up for failure by creating impossible expectations for yourself. The end of your break is not going to be like riding off into paradise and then coming out two weeks later as if nothing happened. Instead, create realistic expectations for yourself by keeping some of these points in mind: take your time and don’t try to just jump back into the same amount of work you took on before you left; work through the to-do list you left first (unless an emergency has popped up since then); take breaks and don’t feel like you need to tackle it all at once.

What tips and tricks do you like to employ for returning to work from a vacation? Reach out and let us know!

Written by Lesley Pyle

June 6, 2022

7 Tips for Balancing Kids and Work as a Work-at-Home Mom

As a stay-at-home mom, you have an added obstacle when it comes to getting work done at home: kids! From wanting to play with you all day long to those household chores catching your eye when you need to concentrate, there are plenty of distractions that can get in the way of your work. Here are 7 tips that will help you get things done AND make the most of your time as a work-at-home mom while you balance caring for your kids, chores, and, of course, working!

1) Manage Your Time

Managing your time can be difficult when you are working from home, especially when little ones are involved! Sometimes, there’s so much to do that you don’t know where to start. Use apps like Asana or Todoist to help keep track of all your work, home, and personal tasks so you know what you need to focus on next. Manage your time by TAKING TIME to get your to-do list written down in a single location. Taking time to do something like that can seem counterproductive, but this also helps you see what you need to prioritize first. For example, if your kids have activities early in the morning Tuesdays, you can plan out to have meetings in the afternoon so you can still get your kids where they need to go.

It’s also helpful to use collaborative tools like Slack or Google Hangouts to share information with co-workers, family members, or team members who might be involved in various aspects of your projects. If you run into any issues with these apps, check out ClickUp, which offers a single solution for managing your entire business by providing an app suite that enables teams to stay on top of their work together. Use whatever tools work best for you; in a world full of technology, there are so many great things to help you stay connected!

2) Organize Your Life

Okay, so you just completed tip number one. You have all your information in a time management app. Now what? Get organized! You have your schedule laid out and priorities set. Time to work around that. Kids have camp Tuesday morning? Drop them off…then what? That’s where tip #2 comes in handy. Organize ahead of time that you will bring your laptop with you and sit in a nearby coffee shop to work so you’re close to pick up the kids when they are done. Plan ahead to bring your laptop, charger, etc.

Another example (and one of our favorite ways) of organizing your life and creating structure is with a weekly meal plan. Before work, spend time planning out your meals and snacks. You’ll enjoy more variety at dinnertime if you can plan your meals ahead of time, rather than reacting to what happens on particular days or nights. While many work-from-home moms struggle with finding time to get their jobs done and handle family responsibilities, many more have trouble setting aside enough time for themselves each day. Eating a healthy meal is included in that time!

3) Save Your (Emotional) Energy

Focus on your emotional bank account so that you don’t run out of reserves by getting into too many negative arguments with your kids. I’m not saying your kids will start arguments. What I’m saying is that maybe you have a meeting that doesn’t go well. You’re frustrated. Upset. It happens to all of us. It can be difficult to turn around and be positive — especially if your kids are a little hangry on top of all of that!

It’s important to save your emotional energy, which ties into tips #1 and #2. When you’re managing your time and organizing everything, give yourself a breather. Seriously. You deserve it. Don’t schedule a meeting right on top of picking your kids up from camp. Don’t stress yourself out by cramming your schedule as tight as possible. Most important of all, don’t be afraid to ask for help. Being a mom is hard. Working a job is hard. You’re doing BOTH. You’re amazing, and even you need help once in a while. Please don’t be afraid to ask for it!

4) DON’T Do Laundry

We all know that laundry gets done, but when you’re busy with work (and kids), it can get left behind. Partner up with your family members to divvy up household chores. Sometimes we can actually procrastinate by doing household chores. If this is you, definitely work with your family to split up tasks. Or, they might be distractions too because you just can’t stand it when piles of laundry are all over! Ask your family to help: that might look like putting laundry in a hamper in a closet, trading off who does the laundry, etc.

5) Get Help from Others

When you’re working from home, it can be hard to stay focused on your tasks when there are other things vying for your attention. A few words of advice: Get help! If you have young children, ask a friend or family member to babysit so you can block out time for work and get ahead of any looming deadlines. If you need some time away from your responsibilities but don’t want to travel to an office, use mobile apps like Skype and WhatsApp to set up virtual meetings with colleagues — you can make sure they don’t interrupt you while they can still benefit from your knowledge.

6) Stay Motivated

One of the biggest challenges for working moms is maintaining motivation to work, which can be hard to do when you’re tempted to break from it every time your kids cry or make a mess or ask to play. Setting boundaries is very important here, but so is asking for help! Re-visit tip #5 as many times as you need to. Also, use the community — there are plenty of online forums where other working moms share their tips, tricks, and stories (like ours!) — so that no matter what the mood or activity is at home, there’s always something motivating you to get back to work. Give yourself small daily rewards like gourmet coffee shop drinks or screen time on your favorite app (TikTok anyone?). And give yourself big rewards by going out with friends or getting a mani/pedi after hitting your goals like making a big sale or finishing a large project.

7) Stick to a Schedule

So you’ve put your tasks into a time management app. And you’ve worked on organizing your schedule to save your emotional energy. You even asked for help and split up chores. To top it all off, you set up rewards for yourself to stay motivated to work.

Great! Now what?

It’s time to put it all together in a weekly schedule that you follow. Sunday night work on getting your week into a time management app. Use that to organize your upcoming week. Assign chores on Monday. Reward yourself for making it halfway through the week with your favorite iced coffee on Wednesday. And repeat, weekly.

The unexpected will always happen, but if you have a framework to follow each week, you are sure to cut down on your distractions so that you can balance work, kids, and chores while working from home. Do you have a stellar tip that keeps you on track every week and well-balanced? Reach out to let us know what it is so we can share it!

Written by Lesley Pyle

May 23, 2022

5 Tips for Managing Finances as a Freelancer

You just started working as a freelancer. You have your first client…now what?

You’ve been a freelancer for a while, but finances are still a struggle…what should you do?

If you’re a brand new freelancer or a seasoned pro, finance tips are always helpful. We’ve compiled our top five tips for managing money below based on some of the most commonly asked questions we receive. Working as a freelancer can be incredibly rewarding, but it can also be a little scary when it comes down to finances, and we hope these tips help ease some of those fears.

#1 Keep Business and Personal Separate

As a freelancer, or even as a small business owner operating as a DBA, it can be easy to mix your personal and business finances, but this can make it tricky to create a true budget to cover expenses for both options. You can move money around as needed, but keep separate accounts, separate cards, separate receipts, etc.

Make sure you’re keeping track of business expenses which can be written off of taxes later…

#2 Make Quarterly Estimated Tax Payments

Tax season can be a tense time as you wait to discover just how much you owe, but did you know that you can make payments throughout the year so that you owe less at the end of the year? These are called quarterly estimated tax payments. Work with an accountant to get quarterly vouchers created, and then make the estimated payments. These will cut down on how much you end up owing once tax season rolls around. Quarterly payments are mandatory if your tax burden exceeds $1,000 per year, so be sure to use a 1099 tax calculator that helps you make more accurate tax installments.

If you’re self-employed, you’ll also need to pay self-employment taxes, which are similar to FICA taxes. You’ll be responsible for paying both the employer and employee portions of Social Security and Medicare taxes, which currently total 15.3% of your net earnings from self-employment. However, you can deduct half of your self-employment tax on your income tax return. Be sure to factor in these additional taxes when making your quarterly estimated tax payments.

Depending on how much you bring in, those quarterly estimated payments can still seem like a large sum. If in doubt, using an invoice generator to track your earnings and ensure that you’re paid by clients is a good way to keep up with your tax obligations, and to avoid any admin errors in the process.

#3 Save Money

Yep, you’ve heard lots of people say this, but we aren’t just talking about squirreling away money for a rainy day. What we’re really talking about is creating a budget. Take those quarterly estimated tax payments and divide out how much you need to save each month, that way when the quarter rolls around and you have to send a check in, it’s not a last minute scramble.

The same can be said for taxes, fees, and expenses overall. Look up tax rates to get a rough estimate of what you might owe each year, and then calculate how much you need to save monthly. If you do this, tax season won’t be as stressful.

But this only covers you from year to year…

#4 Invest in Retirement Options

As a freelancer, you don’t get the option for a traditional 401k in most situations, which means you might not have a long term plan in place for retirement. You still have options available! There are IRAs, HSAs, or even special 401k plans for contractors and small business owners. Make sure to do research on which option is best for you.

And make sure to protect your investments…

#5 Get Insurance

Protect your business as you see fit with insurance, but don’t forget about other forms of insurance such as life insurance. It’s important to have some sort of emergency fund in place in case something happens to you, but also create a cash fund for those small unforeseen things that can happen such as a laptop breaking, new software needing to be purchased, or even a higher charge from an expense! Work this into your budget each month.

These five tips are just a place to start. There are still lots of other great tips out there, but the number one thing we suggest is sitting down with a financial expert. They can help you sort out what sort of insurance, investments, and budgeting needs to take place for you to accomplish your dreams while running a successful business.

Have a favorite finance tip you don’t see listed here? Tell us about it so we can share it!

Disclaimer. The information contained in this site is provided for informational purposes only, and should not be construed as legal advice on any subject matter. You should not act or refrain from acting on the basis of any content included in this site without seeking legal or other professional advice.

Written by Lesley Pyle

February 28, 2022

Is Your Team Member Struggling? Here’s How You Can Help

As a leader, you know your team. You see them succeed and help to celebrate triumphs. But, sometimes, you can see that a team member is struggling. Not just a bad day or an off week, but an evident struggle. You may notice missed deadlines or a decline in work quality. Sometimes you may see tardiness or a reduction in overall attentiveness. As a leader, this can make you feel frustrated and helpless. And it can also harm your business.

When everyone sits together in an office, it’s often easier to know what’s happening with team members, making it easier to offer support. But, when your team is virtual, it can be challenging to know what’s up beyond feeling that the person is struggling.

Sometimes, employees face personal issues ranging from health concerns to family issues. In some cases, childcare issues or fraying personal relationships make it difficult for employees to concentrate. And, sometimes, your team member may be thinking of moving on to another job.

As a leader of a virtual team, there are tips and tricks you can use to help offer support to employees who are struggling, so you can steer your team members back to the right path, or in some circumstances, help her find the right off-ramp.

Here are our best tips to help support an employee who appears to be struggling.

Listen

The first step is to talk with the employee. Don’t assume you know the nature of the issue.

Set up a time to talk. Make sure the time you set aside is free of other distractions and is not bound tightly by meetings or other obligations at the start or end.

Begin your talk with a friendly chat. After a few minutes of pleasantries, ask how she is and how things are going. Don’t say that you are worried about her or that you sense a struggle. Just tee up the conversation with a casual chat and some general questions. Then, listen in a non-judgemental way.

You may be surprised by what you learn. The employee may provide important clues about the struggle you sense. For example, the employee may share that her kids have been home from school due to quarantine or that she’s had to take on care of an older relative. You may also hear that she’s struggling to learn a new skill that she needs for the job or that she’s wrestling with a work capacity issue.

Whatever you hear, avoid offering solutions right out of the gate. Instead, reflect on what you’ve heard and show empathy.

If you don’t hear anything that could cause the struggle, it’s OK to say something like, ‘You don’t seem like yourself lately, and I’ve been a little worried about you, so I wanted to have this check-in.’ This could open up a new line of conversation.

Some people are super private and will choose not to share concerns openly. That’s ok, too. But still, listen for clues as you can.

Consider options

Once you know more about the issue, consider if it’s something you can help resolve or if there are ways to alleviate the issue leading to the struggle.

If you learn that the struggle is rooted in family care or other time-based issues, consider:

Offering time off or a short leave of absence.
Looking at ways to make the work day more flexible.
Asking if scaling hours up or down could help.
Looking into online or phone-based mental health resources that could help.

If the issue appears to be skills-based, consider:

Spending extra time with the employee to offer hands-on support.
Providing a training program.
Getting a coach to help.
Assigning a more seasoned employee as a mentor.

In some cases, the issue could be thornier. For example, the employee may be thinking of changing careers or looking for a different type of job. In this case, consider if you want to retain the employees and what it might take to do so. Sharpen the pencil and see if you can offer more compensation or other benefits to keep the employee.

You may consider if another role on your team might be a better fit for the employee and explore if a role change could solve the problem.

In some cases, your conversation may make it clear that it may be better for you and the employee to part ways. The prospect of losing a valued employee can prompt feelings of sadness or anxiety about finding a replacement, But, don’t take this development personally.

People leave jobs for as many different reasons as there are jobs. As an employer, some of the transitions are expected and outside of your control. For example, an employee who finishes a degree may decide to move on to a job in her field of study. Sometimes people have new family obligations–or family commitments change–and they choose to scale back or increase work obligations. Likewise, sometimes interests just change or curiosity drives people to try new things.

In these cases, there’s not much you can do as an employer. But, there are things you can do to smooth the transition by helping the employee find a mutually agreeable off-ramp, thank the employee for her service and end the relationship positively. Doing so means you are poised to continue a good relationship with that person. In some cases, the employee may return to you later or suggest a friend as a resource.

Circle back

Once you’ve had a chance to think about options and how to support the employee, set up some time to talk again. In some cases, you may want to send an email in advance that says you’ve been thinking about ways to support her based on your last conversation and that you’d like a chance to discuss. You can even preview some of your ideas in the note.

When the call starts, begin with a check-in to see how things are going. Then, offer that you have been thinking about the situation and outline the support you have in mind.

Give the employee a chance to consider them and offer a follow-up call to discuss more fully, if needed.

Step Back

As an employer, you can’t solve everyone’s problems. But, it is in your best interest to help make sure that each employee can offer her best each day by removing obstacles that can make it difficult.

Tell us about a time you helped an employee through a difficult time or what recommendations you have.

Written by Lesley Pyle

January 31, 2022

How to Expertly Blend Homeschool and Work from Home

As more parents choose to work from home, many also choose to educate their children at home. School closures, pandemic disruptions, an opportunity to design learning around particular interests, and a desire to have more control over time and learning are all factors driving the trend.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, homeschooling increased sharply in 2020 when the pandemic abruptly changed the face of school. And, parents report being increasingly open to different types of schooling beyond neighborhood schools–a sign that homeschooling is a trend that will likely continue to grow.

Homeschooling can offer many benefits–like the flexibility to take time off when it suits you and the opportunity to have more direct influence over what, when, and how your children learn. It can also reduce the chaos that marks the mornings as families scramble to get everyone dressed and off to a day at school.

But it also comes with a fair number of challenges–especially for parents who work. Adding homeschool to the mix can be challenging for moms who work from home. But, with some patience, a plan, and a big helping of grace, it’s totally possible. Here are our best tips for merging home life with working at home and homeschooling.

Set goals

If you are already homeschooling and adding work to the mix, or if you are already working from home and adding homeschool, take a few minutes to set some goals.

Your goals don’t need to be lofty. In fact, you might make establishing a baseline routine one of your goals or select a set amount of books to read by a specific date. But any goal, no matter how large or small it is, will help direct your actions and give you a greater sense of control over your time.

Allowing enough transition time and space to feel a little uncomfortable can help you adjust to the role you are adding to the mix.

Set up a school space and a workspace

We’re big fans of designated workspaces. Having a space set aside to do your professional work is key to helping you focus and feel ready to tackle your to-do list. The same goes for your kids.

Identify an area where homeschool activities will take place and make the space conducive to learning. This doesn’t necessarily mean you need a dedicated school room in your house. But, having a place where you gather to do school work with supplies and books at the ready will increase your effectiveness as you embark on your school lessons and help your children know when it’s time to work.

If you don’t have an extra desk or table to set up a school area, consider a portable desk, a box or a backpack to store all schoolwork and supplies, so it’s easily accessed when it’s time to dig into lessons.

Create routines

When you work at home, it’s essential to give your days a rhythm. When you work at home and homeschool, a routine is doubly important because it helps your kids know what to expect.

You don’t need a routine that’s as rigid as a school uses, but giving shape to your days will help you and your kids function on a more automatic level and reduce some of the cognitive load that goes into working and schooling at home.

For example, a routine for a day when everyone is home may start with breakfast, kitchen clean-up, and bed making. From there, have a short family meeting to discuss what’s on the docket for the day. Try to keep the general shape of the day similar to the previous day, so your kids know what to expect. This makes it easier to fit everything into the day.

Also, don’t hesitate to add outside free time, a quiet reading hour, or a rest period to the day so that you can carve out quiet time to do work that requires deep concentration. Adding these periods to each day can make it easier for your kids to go along with the plan because they know what to expect. In our experience, it’s easier to front-load the day with academic work rather than trying to pull kids into work later in the day once they settle into free-time activities.

Plan

Once you establish routines, layer a weekly and daily plan over the routine. Many homeschool curriculums lay out a week’s worth of lessons for you. Others let you pick what to cover in a week. Before each week begins, look over your plan. Then:

Consider if the outlined week is feasible based on your other responsibilities for the week. If so, great. If not, identify what needs to change and write it down.
Gather all the supplies you’ll need for the lessons and have them handy.
Consider your work responsibilities and make sure you have everything you need to succeed, including support from your spouse or childcare, if required.
Communicate with your kids about how the week will work and outline how they can help the family meet objectives for the week.

Be flexible

Despite creating routines and planning efforts, things will happen that require flexibility. Someone may get sick, an emergency house repair could pop up, or a work situation could change the way you funnel your attention for the week.

This is all normal and part of life. Sometimes days and weeks will go great, and you’ll marvel at your efficiency and accomplishments. Some days and weeks will be more challenging. The key is to be flexible and go with it. Trust that your efforts will come together to achieve your professional goals while giving your kids a solid educational foundation for the future.

Find support

Working at home can be lonely–many moms miss the camaraderie of the office and the support that comes from co-workers. When you work at home, it’s crucial to build a professional network that can help support you.

Networks are also essential to your role as an educator and your children’s role as a student. Many communities now offer homeschool enrichment classes, library services, co-ops, and other ways to connect with local homeschoolers. You can also find support online.

Making these connections will help you and your kids feel more comfortable learning and growing together.

Share the load

Remember that you are one person trying to do a lot of things. When you work at home and homeschool, you are a mother, wife, teacher, and professional. It’s essential that you communicate with your spouse and discuss ways to share the load.

But, know that even the best team needs outside help from time to time. There may be times when you need to call in support to help you manage the load. Here are some ideas:

Tap extended family members to help with teaching. If grandparents or aunts, or uncles are nearby, see if one (or more of them) can help pitch in for teaching duty.
Consider a tutor for some aspects of school work. Bring in a tutor if you struggle in an area or prefer not to be hands-on for a subject. Many tutors are available during the traditional school day, and having that help can help lighten your load, free up time when you can work, and introduce your children to another partner of their learning journey. This works exceptionally well with older kids.
Use childcare for a portion of the day. If your children are young, a few hours of childcare can really help free up time for you to get work done. There are plenty of options beyond traditional daycare centers–especially for homeschool families. Check out these ideas.
Outsource home tasks, such as grocery shopping or hire help with laundry or cleaning. Here are some tips to get started.

You tell us!

We’d love to hear your top tips. Drop us a line and tell us how you manage the responsibilities of work and homeschool.

Written by Lesley Pyle

January 27, 2022

How To Write An Invoice For Freelance Work

Freelancing is an emerging industry, as many companies realize that outsourcing saves money, but outsourcing to freelancers saves even more. The 2010s became the decade of freelancers and as more money was involved in the field that is yet to grow and mature, so did the interest of different countries into new sources of money to be taxed. While an average freelancer is no expert in finance and taxation, practice proves that ignorance can cost more than a month’s wage for those who are self-employed.

How to write an invoice for freelance work? – becomes a question asked more often than not. An invoice is a form of the official statement of earnings for a specific job that has been done and is as far from your regular contract or a paycheck. As such, the law sees an invoice as a form of communication between you and the taxing bodies in your country and should follow a more or less specific form that ensures all the relevant details are there.

How to form a clear invoice

Making, writing, or raising an invoice are all the terms you may hear. In a sea of (mis)information, let us sift through those and see what we can make out. Read on to find out all about the required invoice information:

Title,
Name and Logo (optional),
Contact Details,
Client’s details,
Invoice Date,
Invoice Number,
List of Services charged for,
The Amount Charged per Unit of Work,
Tax Rate (if applicable),
Total Amount due,
Payment Details, and
Signature (optional, in some cases, a digital signature applies).

Obligatory parts of an invoice for a freelancer

Title

All invoices must clearly state that they are an ‘invoice.’ Always check with your local authorities, the municipality office, or a bookkeeper for a more detailed explanation. Paying for an hour to consult a professional can save you thousands of dollars in fines further down the road.

Name and Logo

Every invoice should contain the name of the freelancer who did the work and who is getting paid. The invoice should also contain your agency’s name if you have one, as well as the logo. You should also sign your invoices if you keep them in printed form.

Contact Details

Your invoice should contain your contact details as well. The 2020 standard is the email, although it can also contain your phone number in some cases. Ensure that the email stated on the invoice and the phone number are registered if you have registered an agency, and make sure that they are correct. The contact details of the client should be present as well.

Client’s Details

The client’s name, address (if available), and contact details, are all of paramount importance. They signal to the IRS that they can verify your invoice on both sides of communication – you and your client being at the opposing poles of the transaction. This is simply a good practice in doing any business, having clear paperwork that you can rely on at times of need. Being able to quickly and efficiently retrieve client data can save you a lot of time and stress in the long run.

Invoice Date

Dating your invoices is an important thing as well. The invoice date should follow the standard format of MONTH / DAY / YEAR. However, if you work with clients from elsewhere, such as Europe or Australia, be careful not to confuse them:

2/3/2021 – the third of February 2021 in the USA, but:
2/3/2021 – the second of March 2021 in Europe and the majority of the world.

You can avoid the ambiguity by using the first three letters of the name of the month instead of the number, so:

3rd MAR 2021 – this would be a more appropriate and international standard.

Invoice Number

Every invoice should be numbered in the following format: THE NUMBER OF THE INVOICE IN THE CURRENT YEAR / YEAR. So, the first invoice you write in 2021 should be numbered as 1/2021; the second should be: 2/2021, the forty-seventh: 47/2021, etc.

List Of Services Charged For

This list can be as simple or as complex as you want it to be. Maybe you work for a writing service and have done one more service that makes your client come back for more. In that case, you can list Social Media Marketing Services (usually charged by the hour), or online research (either by volume or by the hour). You can group your services under these headings or be more specific, adding details about Milestones and individual segments of work.

The Amount Charged Per Unit Of Work

Besides this, you can also write the quantity (1, 2, 5, …) and the price per item. You can also charge per page, word, 100 words, or even 1000 words to standardize your practice. In this case, the quantity should state 2.5 for 250 words or 134.6 for 13,460 words. Be as specific as you can with these.

Tax Rate

Always bear in mind that the tax rate comes ON TOP of your service charge. You should never include it because this would mean you are getting paid less for your work. Always charge your worth.

Total Amount Due

Total Amount Due is the sum of all the services you have provided to your client. This amount is the amount that you expect your client to pay and the amount you will present to your local authorities.

Payment Details

Nothing to be scared of when speaking about payments, as this can be as simple as the number of your bank account number you want to be paid to, as well as your PayPal account. Since PayPal is a recognized means of payment in the USA, you should have no issues entering these details in an invoice in a legal way.

Simply type in your email and let the clients use it for money transfers. In some cases, you can even leave several options, if you have several ways to get paid. This gives your clients comfort and can even save them some money, as they will choose the option with the lowest fees.

Author:

Nicole Garrison is a part-time contributor to TrustMyPaper. A busy, aspiring person, she works on her skills pretty much daily. She hopes to establish her own writing agency one day and understands that managing skills are a must to do so.

HireMyMom does not provide tax, legal or accounting advice. This material has been prepared by a guest author for informational purposes only, and is not intended to provide, and should not be relied on for, tax, legal or accounting advice. You should consult your own tax, legal and accounting advisors before engaging in any transaction.

Written by Lesley Pyle

January 24, 2022

How to Improve Your Health and Fitness While You Make Money From Home

As a new year dawns, many people set health and fitness goals. It’s certainly a popular theme around our virtual water cooler, and we bet it’s trending in your life, too.

You know the basic advice–make health and fitness a priority, move more, sleep better, plan meals. But, working at home throws up some challenges to even the best-laid health and fitness plans.

With years of collective experience working at home and working to stay fit, we’ve put our heads together to share our best tips for success. In each category, we include our favorite small changes that make health and fitness success easier from a home office and build up to more significant changes that have helped us find success on our fitness journeys.

It’s easy to let caring for yourself slide down the priority list as you manage home and work concerns. Sometimes slipping 15 minutes of extra work into your day instead of doing something for your wellbeing is the difference between meeting a deadline or missing it. We get that. But, we also know that ignoring your health can backfire, which is why it’s critical to make it a priority. We hope these tips help you on your journey.

Move more

Working at home offers many advantages, including the 10-second commute, the flexibility to address family issues, and the ability to work comfortably in casual clothes. But, it also offers challenges, like easy access to a kitchen and fewer reasons to go outside or move much.

At home, it’s easy to avoid the type of incidental movement that happens organically when you work in an office. For example, you don’t have to walk in from the parking lot or train station. You never need to stroll down the hall to see a coworker or dash across town for a meeting. In addition, popping outside for a quick walk is more difficult if you have a sleeping baby or a young child who needs you nearby.

Scheduling a workout as part of most days is the surest way to prioritize exercise. We understand this doesn’t always work–and can be a little demoralizing if you miss a workout. But, it’s still essential to move. Here are some of our tips for quickly adding movement to your day:

Prop your computer up so you can stand for a portion of your workday. Standing while responding to email or doing light reading can help you feel more powerful and in control of your time.
Walk around your house while chatting on the phone. You’ll be surprised how many laps you can take around your home office during a 10-minute chat. Bonus: You won’t be tempted to multi-task by checking emails or sneaking a peek at your favorite website.
Set a timer to remind you to get up each hour. When the timer goes off, walk around or stretch for five minutes.
Learn two yoga poses you can do in your home office space. Do one when you start working and one when you stop working. If you work in spurts throughout the day, this light approach to exercise can pay off while helping you get more focused.
Keep light dumbbells next to your desk. Pick them up for some curls or chest presses when your hands are free.
Do 20 jumping jacks between tasks. You’ll get your blood flowing, switch tasks more quickly and find that your focus is better when you return to work.
Start and end your workday by doing planks. Use the time to transition from mom mode to work mode.
Use your office wall to do standing push-ups.
Sprint up and down your stairs a few times between calls or projects.

When you finish work, scoop up your kids and head outside for fresh air and fun. Even if it’s not a full-on workout, a little light movement with your kids can help you transition back into family mode and give everyone a chance to reset and destress from a busy day.

Plan your meals and snacks

Working at home means unfettered access to your kitchen. This can be a great money saver because you can always brew your coffee and make your lunch. But, it can also lead to mindless snacking and stress eating. Paradoxically, we sometimes find ourselves skipping lunch because we are really in the flow of work. This sets the stage for heavy (and often unplanned) afternoon snacking, sabotaging health and fitness goals.

Here are our best tips to avoid the pitfalls of having such easy access to all of your groceries all of the time.

Make a list of healthy snacks and meals that you find satisfying and have them on hand. We like pre-portioned items because they are easy to grab and having a pre-portioned amount makes it easier to control your portion size.
Pack your lunch and snacks the night before so you don’t have to make eating decisions during the heat of the business day.
Take a planned lunch break, especially if you work a full day. Leave your home office to avoid eating at your desk during your lunch break and multi-tasking through your break. You’ll enjoy your lunch more and will feel more refreshed. Bonus if you do a few exercises at the start and stop of each work period, as you’ll add two workout segments to your day.

Also, we have found that it’s essential to have a meal game plan at the start of each week to avoid a scramble for an evening meal. Apps, meal planning services, and grocery delivery can help you work smarter, not harder, in the kitchen and make it easier to achieve your fitness goals. Check out these tips to help ease family meal planning.

Finally, let’s talk about how the food needs of other family members can derail your plans for healthy eating. If your kids are like ours, you likely frequently answer questions about what’s for dinner and what snacks are available. Stops and starts to field snack inquiries can distract from your work and make you hungry.

We’ve found that creating a weekly menu that covers all meals and snacks and hanging it on the refrigerator helps make this easier.

Direct your children to the menu when hunger strikes. (Make sure that some of the snacks can easily be grabbed and opened by young kids. For really young kids, include pictures of items they can select and make them easy to reach.) Having a posted menu reduces the discussion around what’s available to eat, eliminating a distraction for you as you work. Frankly, this one action will buy you untold peace of mind, help you reclaim time every day and make it easier not to snack every time a kid asks for one.

Maintain a good sleep schedule

We often advise rising early or burning the midnight oil to squeeze extra work into the day, reduce child care expenses and make the most of your days. However, that advice comes with an asterisk that you are still getting the sleep you need to be productive. Sure, it’s possible to rise before dawn or stay up well past your bedtime occasionally. However, making a habit out of it will leave you feeling depleted and tired. Here are some of the ways we make sure to get enough sleep:

Set a bedtime for yourself and stick to it. If you know you need to get up at 6 to add some work time to your day, be sure to count back and make sure you get to bed early enough to get enough sleep.
Maintain a consistent sleep schedule. Try to go to sleep and wake up around the same time most days. This will help you feel better and make deviations easier when they do happen.
Turn off all screens an hour before bedtime. Transitioning to a book or other non-screen activity makes it easier to fall asleep.

Please share!

Please tell us what tricks work for you! How have you found success working from home while focusing on health and fitness?

Written by Lesley Pyle

January 10, 2022

Our Top Tips to Make This Year the Best Ever for Your Business

The start of a new year reminds us of the possibilities ahead. And, at this moment, there are so many possibilities for small business owners. The economy is growing and changing quickly. People worldwide are rethinking how work fits into their life. Virtual work continues to grow, changing the complexion of teams and the way businesses find staff and customers.

The Hire My Mom team is excited about the year ahead–and based on our conversations with the entrepreneurs we work with, we know you are, too. We’ve all learned a lot about flexibility and resiliency in the last two years. We’ve learned a lot about ourselves, our goals, and our businesses.

As we embark upon the first few weeks of 2022, we know that many of you are doing some future planning. To help, we’ve gathered our top tips for business planning and dropped additional resources into each suggestion to help you refine your business plans and tackle your goals this year.

Let’s dig in!

Take inventory

January is a great time to look back at last year and complete an honest assessment of what went well and where you might want to change tracks. It’s tough to do this in the heat of each project, but the start of the new year and the planning that goes with it is the perfect time to reflect.

One way to do this is to perform a SWOT analysis. SWOT stands for strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. This type of analysis is quick and gives you a good sense of where you are right now, where you are heading and insights about how to make the most of every opportunity before you. You can complete a basic one at your kitchen table by hand, dash one out on your computer, or take advantage of our free template.

Set goals

Frequent readers of the blog know we often suggest goal setting as a first step–and with good reason, the process works! After the craziness of the last two years and the unknowns about the future, you might be tempted to set only one goal–going with the flow. We get it! It’s tough to make solid plans these days.

However, in our experience, setting a few practical and achievable goals and sharing them broadly with your team is a key component for success. Goals create the yardstick that guides you and your team along the way when the unexpected happens. Setting SMART goals–those that are specific, measurable, actionable, relevant, and timely, can help to shape your day-to-day actions and guide your longer-term thinking. Check out our tips for setting SMART goals with remote teams.

Brush up your leadership skills

Leading a team is hard work. No matter how long you’ve been doing it or how many people you lead, the work takes a toll.

But, like any muscle, your leadership skills get stronger with knowledge and practice. As we head into the new year, check out this blog about traits all great leaders share. It’s a quick read, but it offers concrete ideas about improving your leadership skills.

Get support

Consider adding your own development to the list as you think about your business goals. As a leader, it’s easy to lose focus on growing your own skills. And, leadership can be lonely. A Mastermind group can help you get the support and guidance that can take your skills and your business to the next level and open up new possibilities for you.

In 2022, Hire My Mom is offering a Mastermind group for small business owners. The group will meet virtually twice a month. One meeting each month will focus on growth in a specific topic from a coach or professional in the area. The other meeting will function as a think tank to collaborate, brainstorm, discuss and offer suggestions, ideas, and problem-solving to one another.

Learn more here. Then, you can mark one of your goals complete. (We love that feeling!)

Find a coach

As an entrepreneur, it’s easy to let your business goals take center stage over your personal goals. When that happens, many people, especially moms, feel guilty. But, one thing we have learned over the years is that finding meaningful success without sacrificing family time is a team sport and like all teams, a coach is a critical part of the team.

We all need support in business and life. It’s easy to feel stuck or overwhelmed–especially as you raise a family, navigate career space and build a business. An experienced, independent, outside voice can help provide feedback on what’s working and what’s not working and give you the clarity you need on the best way to use your time and energy.

Coaching can work with a Mastermind group or without. You can find a coach to help you focus on your business or to help you grow your leadership and other soft skills. Hear directly from two coaches with different focuses, learn more about how they help their clients get results.

Lighten your load

As you started your business, you likely did much of your work yourself. You managed your calendar, pitched products, booked travel, invoiced clients, monitored social media, and built and managed your team. But, as your business grows, it becomes more challenging to shoulder all that work alone.

What’s worse, doing all the things can prevent you from investing the time and brain power needed to grow your business in meaningful ways. Enter the Virtual Assistant.

Virtual assistants (VA) can save the day–and your sanity. Knowing how to find and use VAs can change your life as an entrepreneur and help you take your business to the next level. As you plan for the new year, consider if it’s time for you to find a virtual assistant.

Build a system

After conducting a SWOT analysis, many entrepreneurs find that efficiency is one of the areas of potential improvement for their business. An easy way to improve efficiency is to create a system for portions of your work.

A system is a set of processes, tools, people, and strategies that work together to solve a problem or achieve a goal. Creating a system for portions of your work can help you achieve a level of automation that lets you work more effectively on the things that matter, add predictability to your business, gain some time back, and make your life easier. Here’s how to get started.

Show your team some love

In the hustle of daily life, it’s easy to take your team for granted. After you read this blog, spend a few minutes dashing off notes to your team members telling them how much you appreciate them and why.

Then, consider making recognition a practice this year. If the idea of creating a more formal recognition process daunts you, check out this blog for ideas about how to recognize your team members, why it matters, and to learn ways to make the process feel more natural.

Also, consider conducting performance reviews for your team. Performance reviews are an essential tool and can lead to rich conversations and serve as a catalyst for growth for you and your team.

Think about your team needs

If you’re like many employers right now, your team is likely on your mind. The members of your team are critical to your success. In the midst of the great resignation, you may be worried about finding your next team member and thinking about how to prevent your best employees from walking out the door.

In the next few weeks, set aside some time to think about your staffing needs in the new year. Perhaps there are opportunities to let current team members grow in new ways. Maybe, you need to add roles or reorganize the way you work.

Investing some thinking here early in the year can help give you a leg up if you need to grow or change your staff. If you think hiring may be a part of your future, check out these tips to make your job stand out in a crowded field.

Cheers to a great 2022!

Drop us a line and share how you plan for the new year!

Written by Lesley Pyle

January 3, 2022

Three Easy Things to Stop Doing and Three Smart Things to Start Doing Right Now

Our team at HireMyMom works with amazing small business owners every day, and we see all the love, sweat and tears that go into running and building a small business. We know that it’s a labor of love.

Every business is different, and every leader has her own style. But, we also see a few consistent practices across all our partners. A few guiding principles apply universally, whether you run a small Virtual Assistant business, a thriving online store, or a quickly growing accounting firm.

Here are three do’s and closely related don’ts we’ve observed over time.

Do Remember Why You Got Started

No matter how successful a small business is, there will be tough days, rough weeks, and even difficult years. Likewise, there will be beautiful moments, incredible months, great projects, and unbelievable years. No matter the season of your business, it’s important to remember why you went into business. The memory of your initial inspiration and drive can help sustain you as your business ebbs and flows and your life changes over time.

Don’t Lose Sight of Why You Keep Going

Your reasons for getting started may be different than the reasons that keep you going. Maybe a desire for more time with family prompted you to launch your business. Or, perhaps you felt constrained by the more traditional career routes. As time goes on, your reasons will likely change. Maybe that initial desire to spend more time with family becomes a plan to pass on a legacy, and a passion for a different type of career becomes an effort to open new career avenues to other people.

No matter the reason, when the going gets tough, remember why you signed up for this line of work and why it matters to you now. This will help ground you as you work through the day-to-day noise.

Don’t Go it Alone

Running a small business can be lonely. You make many decisions and often do the job of several people–especially when you are getting started.

But, no entrepreneur is an island. Finding the support of other people can make the journey easier and more enjoyable. It takes some effort to locate the people who can support you on your path, but we promise it’s worth it.

Do Cultivate Resources and a Network

Here are some ways to get started:

Connect with the U.S. Small Business Association. The SBA is operated by the federal government. The service and information are free and top-notch. Its excellent website features information to help you plan, grow and manage a small business. Visit the local assistance tab to find out more about resources in your area.

There’s a special section for women-owned businesses and an opportunity to get free business counseling from a partner organization.

Your local Chamber of Commerce is likely another good source of information and contacts. Often, the chamber keeps a list of retirees or seasoned executives who are willing to mentor business owners. Getting this level of support can help you clarify your thinking about your business and gain new perspectives.

Go to conferences and events to help you make industry contacts and to meet people involved in the same business. A deep bench of industry contacts will make it easier for you to know what’s happening in the field, provide an expanded group of people to reach out to with questions, and help you meet like-minded entrepreneurs.
Join a group like HireMyMom’s Mastermind for Small Business Owners or get a coach. We are excited to offer both coaching and a Mastermind group for small business owners. HireMyMom’s SBO Mastermind program can help bring out the best in your business and your life. You may benefit from one or both of these programs in your business journey.
Coaching: An experienced, independent, outside voice can help provide feedback on what’s not working and give you the clarity you need on the best way to use your time and energy. A coach like our own Founder and CEO, Lesley Pyle, can help you define what success means for you and guide you as you grow your business.

Research shows that working with a coach is the most effective and efficient way to experience the breakthrough you need to grow personally and professionally. You can benefit from Lesley’s 25 years as an entrepreneur and her insights into balancing work and family from a wife and mother who’s been down the road you are traveling.

Coming soon! Small Business Owners Mastermind, which is designed to support entrepreneurs as they grow their business. The group will start in 2022, but you can sign up for the waitlist now. When you join this group, you’ll have access to a peer group that knows what you are going through because they face similar challenges.

Through weekly meetings, you’ll develop authentic relationships with like-minded entrepreneurs who will become friends as you support each other and grow together.

Don’t Try to Do it All Yourself

As you launch your business, it’s tempting to want to do everything yourself. And it makes sense on one level–you are passionate about your business. You care deeply about its success, and you know you’ll work hard at any and all tasks. What’s more, it’s challenging to spend money on staff when your work is in the start-up phase.

But, even the most talented entrepreneur needs help and support with some tasks. (Think social media management, operations, routine administrative work.)

It makes sense for you to focus on the things you do best and the things that will make your business succeed, especially as you grow. You don’t need to focus on mastering every task. As the executive and founder, your focus belongs to the core business and making it succeed.

Do Hire The Right People

When you run a small business, your team is your ride or die. Whether you are a team of two or a team of 20, the people you hire are key to helping your team grow. One of the best ways to find the right people is to look for moms who want to work flexible jobs from home.

There’s an army of highly-skilled professional women out there looking for flexible jobs that help them support their families while working from home. When you tap into that network, you get access to a vast swath of top-notch talent that can help your business soar.

To find mom professionals interested in remote job opportunities, partner with a niche job site like HireMyMom to access a dedicated pool of professionals looking for remote work. Because HireMyMom charges job seekers a fee to access job listings, all our job seekers are serious about finding work. And, the volume of resumes that flow in is more manageable than the numbers that arrive when jobs are advertised on free job sites.

Employers love us because they know they can find high-quality, highly motivated candidates who want to work from home by partnering with HireMyMom.

Share Your Do’s and Don’ts

Does this list sound right to you? Tell us what you’d add!

Written by Lesley Pyle

December 20, 2021

One Simple Thing You Can Do to Ensure 2022 is Your Best Year Ever

The last two years have been tough–especially for moms. We’ve learned an entirely new way of life. Many of us cared for ill family members or got sick ourselves. We shepherded our kids through a once-in-a-lifetime pandemic, kept the meals flowing, and loved our families through it all. Oh, and we also worked from home to keep our professional ambitions alive.

On the cusp of 2022, it’s time to look back and say: “Wow! That was a lot.”

But, life is returning to a pace that feels more typical and liveable. It’s time to exhale, peek our heads up over the horizon, and consider what’s next.

Given everything you’ve done the last two years, the HireMeMom team thinks it’s time for you to focus on yourself in 2022. It’s not selfish. In fact, it’s selfless to invest in your happiness and interests because it creates a deeper personal reserve you can draw from and give to your family.

But, we get that it’s not easy to make yourself a priority–whether you are focusing on health and fitness, financial or professional goals.

We know that support makes a difference. So, we’ve created a series of programs and offers that can help you focus on your goals next year. HireMyMom’s new Elevate You: Mastermind & Coaching programs are just the thing to help you get unstuck and take a fresh look at the possibilities for your life and career.

This blog explores why we created these programs and how you can use the new year’s fresh start to make 2022 your best year yet.

Moms are our passion

At HireMyMom, helping moms find meaningful work-from-home opportunities is our passion. It’s what we think about and where we put our energy.

As you can see from our blogs, we cover everything from questions to ask yourself to determine if a work-from-home job is right for you to helping you develop habits to be more productive each day. We share ideas about how you can save money on childcare, show you how to level up, and offer guidance on how to turn your idea into a business. And, we celebrate your success, highlighting moms like Jessika Soto and Nicole Smith as examples of how the system works.

Over the last few months, the HireMyMom team has heard from several moms looking for more personal coaching and support.

We see (and have heard about) the desire for moms to be part of a group of women who want to move ahead in life and business.

But, you aren’t just looking for any group–we understand that you are looking for a group of women outside of your immediate social and professional circle who can help you gain clarity and focus as you pursue your dreams and goals. You’d like to find a group of women to connect with over time as you explore what it means to find meaningful growth and success. You want to find a group of women you can cheer for as they cheer for you.

Good news: HireMyMom’s new Elevate You: Mastermind & Coaching Groups are forming now, and they are just what you need.

Invest in you

These programs, built around virtual meetings and an app, can help you gain the clarity and focus you need to pursue your dreams while connecting with a community of like-minded moms.

Through the program, you’ll find the path for meaningful growth and success based on what matters to you. You’ll create deep and authentic relationships with women on the same path and benefit from coaching from our founder and HireMyMom CEO, Lesley Pyle. We will also have fun while supporting each other.

The program offers two levels:

Cultivate is specially designed for moms looking for remote work, transitioning from a traditional job, or hoping to start a freelance business.

This group will meet weekly and focus on resume and cover letter writing as well as interview guidance. We will talk about the basics of starting a business–including finding the right productivity tools. Our private group app will help you track weekly events, connect with other members and quickly access all of the tools and resources that are part of your membership.

As a member of a Cultivate group, you’ll participate in group brainstorming, get support, offer encouragement, and enjoy the accountability and networking opportunities that come from meeting with other moms who share your goals.

If you are considering transitioning to a work-from-home lifestyle or launching a new business endeavor, Cultivate is for you. Join us in a Cultivate group, which is forming now for an early 2022 launch.

Flourish is perfect for moms who already have experience working at home and are ready to level up and grow personally and professionally.

This group will meet weekly to discuss business growth, discuss ways to expand, and explore marketing ideas. The peer group dynamic will help fill you with fresh ideas and unique perspectives so you can develop new viewpoints and see your business with fresh eyes.

The group will explore ways to improve business systems, build better processes and automate your work.

A private group app puts all the tools and resources at your fingertips. Group sessions will provide an opportunity to share thoughts, get support, and find encouragement.

What’s more, the group sessions will help you stay accountable to your goals and will offer you a chance to network with other like-minded moms who you might not have otherwise met.

Consider coaching

If you aren’t ready to commit to a group program, individual coaching may be right for you. Working with a coach–even just for one or two sessions, can help you move to the next level. As a work-at-home mom who deeply values family time, finding the right coach is essential.

We all need support in business and life. It’s easy to feel stuck or overwhelmed–especially as you raise a family and navigate career space. An experienced, independent, outside voice can help provide feedback on what’s not working and give you the clarity you need on the best way to use your time and energy.

If you want to balance working at home with your family life, there’s a good chance Lesley is the right coach for you. You can benefit from Lesley’s 25 years as an entrepreneur and her insights into balancing work and family from a wife and mother who’s been down the road you are traveling.

Research shows that working with a coach is the most effective and efficient way to experience the breakthrough you need to grow personally and professionally.

A coach can help you define what success means for you, guide you as you start or grow a remote career or business, and help you work through roadblocks or fears that hold you back. If you know you want to make a change but aren’t sure what you want to do, the proper support can help.

Join us!

We hope that reading about these programs has you as excited to attend them as we are to offer them. We think this is the ideal time to invest in yourself and consider what’s possible for you in the next year.

We can’t wait to celebrate your success!

Hire My Mom

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