Hi everybody, I’m very excited to announce that The Savvy Dreamer will now be featuring various guest posts by fellow awesome bloggers. Over the past I’ve come across great fellow bloggers and I thought it would be an amazing opportunity to invite some of them to post on my blog. If you would like to be featured on The Savvy Dreamer please don’t hesitate to get in touch via the Contact Form. Please make sure you include a link to your blog. I’m looking forward to collaborating with you soon.
The following post is the very first guest blog post and I’m very happy to introduce to you an amazing fellow blogger I have admired for quite some time. Her name is Kami and she’s the owner of a very informative and interesting blog called Life With Kami. Kami is a wife, mom to 3 kids, serial entrepreneur, blogger, a coffee lover, wanna-be-crafter, food enthusiast, fashion follower & nature admirer. Make sure you visit her blog to read more of her amazing content.
Since I’ve been following Kami for a while now I have come to respect her as a fellow blogger and entrepreneur. She’s been juggling many different priorities with great success. That is why I’ve asked Kami to share with my readers what is like for her to keep herself motivated as a Working At Home Mom (WAHM). Below is her very valuable advice to fellow bloggers and entrepreneurs.
Guest Post by Kami
I‘ve been a work at home mom for the last 10 years. How I stay motivated, as a Working At Home Mom (WAHM) is something I have struggled with for the longest while and on some days I still do. Let me be completely honest with you, there is no formula for this. Every mom is different; her goals, what motivates her, her kids, her household etc.
As my kids got older, I realized that they don’t need a perfect mother 24/7. The house doesn’t have to be spick and span cleaned, and I don’t always have to know what I’m making for dinner. Sometimes you have to roll with the motherhood punches. I manage several blogs, our household responsibilities and I’m raising 3 kids. I’m not doing it alone by any means either. I have a supportive husband and I rely a lot on those hours from 7:30am to 2:30pm when the kids are at school.
I realized that I must and should have something else while I stayed at home to keep my sanity. Something for me that I can feel proud of, so that’s why I wanted to work from home.
5 Ways I Stay Motivated As A Work At Home Mom (WAHM)
WAHM Goals
This is by far the most helpful tip I can share. I recommend writing your goals down on a piece of paper and putting it somewhere where you can see it every day. Set a reminder to check in every so often or have a buddy system with another WAHM. That way you can keep each other accountable.
Don’t Compare Yourself To Other WAHM Moms
For every perfect picture you see on Instagram with another mom there is a story behind it. Please remember that it’s a snapshot of a second in their lives and not their entire life. Please don’t by any means think your life should be like the ones you see on social media. That is not a true example of somebody’s life.
I Use The Pomodoro Technique
Work at home moms don’t sit at their desk or kitchen table for 6-7 hours a day working while they take scheduled breaks. I work 10-12 hours a day and I work in 25-minute increments. I have to be flexible with my toddler’s schedule, school runs, cooking and household chores. This also includes running errands, dr. appointments and post office visits. If I make my list and decide I’m going to complete this task in 25 minutes, then it feels good when I move on to something else.
Find A Balance As A WAHM
This is going to be hard, I won’t lie. I struggle with this a lot but I once I started to put in place a good work/home/play balance it felt so good. For example, I started to take Sundays off, no work stuff. Then, I started dedicating Friday night as family game night. We do afternoon walks after dinner with the kids. You don’t have to follow this pattern but you get the idea.
Looking Ahead To The Outcome
When you’re a WAHM, there are a lot of sacrifices. Don’t get me wrong; working moms have their own challenges. I am a firm believer that every mother does what she thinks is best for her family. But, for some WAHMs it’s not a job; it’s their lifelong dream. You may have a business with hopes to never go back to the outside workforce. Or you have discovered a hidden talent and want to make some side money. Whatever your case is, think ahead. Look for the outcome you want and work towards it.
End of Guest PostThank you so much Kami for your very helpful advice. I salute all the working at home moms out there as I can imagine juggling the little ones and many other priorities can be very hard. Staying motivated can be an issue for anyone out there but especially for someone faced with a multitude of life’s priorities. Your advice here will help many others faced with similar circumstances.
Are you a working at home mom (WAHM)? What do you think of Kami’s advice and work ethic? How do you keep yourself motivated? Do you follow any special techniques? Please share your thoughts in the comments below. I really appreciate your feedback.
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Seriously good at multi-tasking, love the picture at the beginning of your post,
Thanks so much Laura. Glad you enjoyed it!
Love reading your well rounded advice!
Oh thanks Marisa. I owe all this great advice to Kami!!!
Thank you so much for allowing me to guest post, the struggle is very real but I hope that my tips will help your readers in a small way.
Hats off to you Kami. You’re a true inspiration to me and I’m sure many others. Thank you again for your insightful post!
Great list! I use the pomodoro technique also as a WAHM. It’s the only way to get things done, otherwise we’re up late at night trying to get through a long list of to-dos. Thanks for the tips!
That’s great Alica. I have to implement the pomodoro technique more often! I get sidetracked easily 🙂
I enjoyed this. It has been hard for me working in short intervals with 2 little ones at home. When I get into the groove of things I tend to want to keep going. I still like growing my own business from home though. Thanks for sharing.
That’s exactly my problem Ashley. I’m like a maniac when I get going. It’s hard to stop but I must try to do that. It’s good for you.
Great Tips! I also work several hours a day in small increments.
Awesome. That seems to do the trick!!!
I love the tips in this post, very useful!
Happy you found the post helpful Envelle!
What great tips!! I have been doing things in 25 mins increments too!
That’s great Nicole. Good to hear that!
I’m a free and easy non mamma. But as a busy blogger and entrepreneur. Any time saving and tips to find balance is always welcome. Wahm are so inspiring to me ?
That is so true. I’m not a mom either but these ladies that juggle so much truly inspire me.
[…] You can read more of the post here. […]
I’m not even married but I can really understand the struggle to manage everything, be motivated and work towards achieving their goals. Hats off to all the WAHM. Respect!
Great post Kami & the Savy Dreamer 🙂
Thank you so much for all your kind words Kirit!
Useful and detailed article.
Glad you enjoyed it 🙂
So useful, for anyone. Comparing yourself to anyone is the worst thing you can do.
This is so true and I’m guilty of it sometimes!
Working at home can be quite tricky on its own… imagine when you add 3 kids! Such an inspiration 🙂
Yes Niki, I totally agree. Kami is a rock star!!!
Great post! I work from home part time and it can be stressful to manage and prioritize. I have to force myself to take a day off a week!
I totally understand. I work from home full time for clients and doing my blog and I’m totally guilty of not taking any time off sometimes. The lines of work and home can blur easily.
I’m a work from home mom and I can relate! Motivation is key and something I have started recently is a vision board. Goals are pictures and words that I want to be part of my business. I look at it daily to stay focused and motivated.
Wow, that’s great Lisa. Vision boards sound great. I should do one too!
I don’t have children but this could be helpful to apply to any work at home worker.
That’s so true Brooke.
I’m married, but not a mom… but this article is definitely one I’m gonna share with my mommy friends, who really wanna work from home 🙂
That’s awesome. Thanks for sharing it with your friends!
pomodoro technique sounds really good 🙂 loved your post!
Yes it does. I really need to stick to it!
Even though I’m not a mom yet, I’ve started using the Pomodoro technique for time management. I can imagine how challenging it is to manage three kids while getting work done. Kudos to all work at home moms “rolling with the motherhood punches.” 🙂
I completely agree with you Mercy. I’m not a mom yet either but I can definitely see how hard it can be. It gets overwhelming for me and I can’t imagine having to deal with kids on top of it. Kudos to those great ladies!!!
Working at home requires utmost discipline. Great tips!
That is so true Bhalo. Thanks for checking out the article!
Hard work obviously. Stay awesome!
Indeed. Thank you 🙂
Relevant and practical tips. I think, it’s relevant to anyone who works from home, single parent, dad on work from home and so on :). All the best for your new initiative of Guest Blogging, a good one I must say.
Thank you Abhinav.
Great advice for anyone who works from home, that was my case, I know it’s so hard to keep focus.
Glad you found the article interesting. Thank you.
There is some awesome advice here! Definitely some I’ll be taking on board. Thanks for sharing xxx
Glad you have found these tips helpful!
Great! I love the Pomodoro technique and its important as a parent one needs to maximise the time that one has as a parent in the time children are asleep or occupied. Helps in getting closer to a sense of achievement since outcome is prioritised.
This is so true Kartik!
useful tips for moms and dad 😉
Wonderful. Happy you found the tips useful!
Even though I am a man, my fiance want a child so bad so this article is very good for her
Great Andrei. Perhaps you can share the article with your fiance 🙂
Great information and definitely going to be relateable. Very soon I am going to be a WAHM well WAHD. Great guest post, thanks for sharing.
Thank you so much Matt. Congrats on soon to be WAHD. It’s hard but so rewarding in the end!
Moms are the real heroes, I’m always very impressed with women that can do all !
Me too. I completely agree with you!
Nice article & it will be very much helpful for people who want to work from home, thanks for sharing ☺️
Thank you for your kinds words Naren.
I love the POMODORO technique. Would definitely try that! 🙂
I really need to try it too Tahna. I have a hard time breaking away from my work 🙂
I’m not a mom, but I love any tips that I can get about motivation! Productivity is my jam!
Oh yes I agree Felicia. I need all the help I can get in that department too!!!
Great tips Kasia!!
Thanks Niki 🙂