SAHM's I need advice

Bride Jackie · January 2011

My bosses are discussing me working from home and will give me an answer at the end of January. However, they are asking me how I am going to handle phone calls. They do not want a crying baby in the background.

I need to come up with a couple ways to make them know that will not be an issue. I have a couple ideas but thought you ladies could help me!

What I am going to bring to the table:

1. put the call on mute and just listen

2. only take and make calls while baby is sleeping

Please help me ladies working from home is very important to me, my 3 year old and baby on the way!

Thank you!

CBonBoard · January 2011

I work for a family where the mother works from home. From 7-12 I babysit her kids, and she makes the phone calls she needs to make for her job. You might consider having a babysitter for part of the day, thus giving you more time to be able to handle all the calls.

GracieLou Freebush · January 2011

I WAH and plan to send baby to FT day care after my maternity leave. I need to be available for phone calls throughout the work day so it's not realistic to think the baby wouldn't be crying just b/c I have to take a call.

You could have a nanny if you want the baby home with you and instruct the nanny to keep the baby away from your office when crying.

Disneygeek77 · January 2011

I think what your bosses are trying to tell you is that the only way you can work from home is to put the kids in child care. MY sister WAH and they made her sign a contract that her son wouldn't be there during work hours.

babyrusty · January 2011

What do you do/will you do with your 3-year-old?

Bride Jackie · January 2011

He is going to go in to PreSchool/Daycare for most of the day.

JessC28 · January 2011

When I was in college, I would babysit in the mornings for a WAH mom. She would make conference calls, etc., in the mornings while I was there and then work on her computer in the afternoon during the kids' naps when it was just her home.

I know someone else who just hired an au pair who is a college student. She watches their child and cleans their house in exchange for room and board.

Planning on making phone calls while the baby is sleeping is a little risky if it's really a concern to your employers. What if the baby doesn't get on a regular sleep schedule/ doesn't nap well/ wakes up early?

Iamsmalls · January 2011

GracieLouFreebush*:

I WAH and plan to send baby to FT day care after my maternity leave. I need to be available for phone calls throughout the work day so it's not realistic to think the baby wouldn't be crying just b/c I have to take a call.

This. I will be going work from home in a few weeks due to my office closing and never even considered having my kids home with me during working hours.

LittleEgypt · January 2011

stw_77:
I think what your bosses are trying to tell you is that the only way you can work from home is to put the kids in child care. MY sister WAH and they made her sign a contract that her son wouldn't be there during work hours.

That seems unnecessarily invasive. You would think they could tell by her performance if she was unable to do her job! I also disagree that you need to dump your kid in an outside daycare just to get some work done, although I do think you need help.

I used to WAH two or three days a week, under agreement with my management chain. I was a software engineer, so I didn't have to take calls. However, I still would not have been able to work without the helper I hired. Especially if you need to take calls, you need to find a "mother's helper" of some sort to come and pick up the slack when you need to work. I did spend lots of time rocking DS with my foot (in his bouncy seat) and writing code, but there were other times that I needed someone to play with him while I got some work done.

A mother's helper does not need to be as well-qualified as a nanny, since you will be home supervising. I think a trustworthy teenager is a good choice, if you know one, especially if they have baby experience. You want someone who can rock your baby, help with chores like laundry and dishes, and that you can trust to take baby out for a walk when you need some quiet.

Christine&Chris · January 2011

DH and I both work for ourselves and can be at home most of the time. But it does depend, I think, on what type of work you do - if you are doing all analysis/research or data entry or reconciling/AP with little client contact it might be easier than if you were working directly with clients on calls and with tight deadlines.

Given our work, we are looking in to having a babysitter at home from 10-4 (our busiest hours), working out an arrangement with my mom, or sending her to an in-home nanny caretaker.

GracieLou Freebush · January 2011

LittleEgypt:
I also disagree that you need to dump your kid in an outside daycare just to get some work done, although I do think you need help.

Oh wow. Did you intend to come off so offensively?

LittleEgypt:
stw_77:
I think what your bosses are trying to tell you is that the only way you can work from home is to put the kids in child care. MY sister WAH and they made her sign a contract that her son wouldn't be there during work hours.

That seems unnecessarily invasive. You would think they could tell by her performance if she was unable to do her job!

I agree with stw_77, your bosses are concerned about whether or not you will be able to answer the phone reliably. I don't think "I'll mute the line or work when he/she is sleeping" is going to cut it. It wouldn't cut it in my line of work anyway...maybe OP's work is more flexible.

Disneygeek77 · January 2011

GracieLouFreebush*:
LittleEgypt:
I also disagree that you need to dump your kid in an outside daycare just to get some work done, although I do think you need help.

Oh wow. Did you intend to come off so offensively?

LittleEgypt:
stw_77:
I think what your bosses are trying to tell you is that the only way you can work from home is to put the kids in child care. MY sister WAH and they made her sign a contract that her son wouldn't be there during work hours.

That seems unnecessarily invasive. You would think they could tell by her performance if she was unable to do her job!

I agree with stw_77, your bosses are concerned about whether or not you will be able to answer the phone reliably. I don't think "I'll mute the line or work when he/she is sleeping" is going to cut it. It wouldn't cut it in my line of work anyway...maybe OP's work is more flexible.

Hey thanks for the back up. All I know is that my sister works for a major corporation and the told her they had to do the contract thing because they had problems in the past when people worked from home. It was either make people sign contracts in order to emphasize how important their work was, or do away with that program all together.

All I know is that a company isn't going to pay you to stay at home with your baby. Now I don't know the in and outs of OPs work, but I was just giving advice on the closest person I could relate to.

redfish08 · January 2011

GracieLouFreebush*:
LittleEgypt:
I also disagree that you need to dump your kid in an outside daycare just to get some work done, although I do think you need help.
Oh wow. Did you intend to come off so offensively?
LittleEgypt:
stw_77:
I think what your bosses are trying to tell you is that the only way you can work from home is to put the kids in child care. MY sister WAH and they made her sign a contract that her son wouldn't be there during work hours.
That seems unnecessarily invasive. You would think they could tell by her performance if she was unable to do her job!
I agree with stw_77, your bosses are concerned about whether or not you will be able to answer the phone reliably. I don't think "I'll mute the line or work when he/she is sleeping" is going to cut it. It wouldn't cut it in my line of work anyway...maybe OP's work is more flexible.

Agree with Gracie. I work from home occasionally, and I never do it with my DS here. There's no way I could be a productive and responsive employee with a child home and no help. Most WFH positions require you to have full time child care. It's fair to your employer, but it's also the right thing to do for your child. You wouldn't want your child neglected or left alone while you had to tend to work matters, would you? Especially as they get older and need a lot more attention, it will be hard to balance the two.

But, you may be in a very flexible job. I have conference calls, projects and deadlines to meet, so it's not very flexible.

Good luck figuring out the best solution.

augustjam16 · January 2011

Its not feasible to work from home without help and be truly productive. I have my own business and do some consulting and I managed to get by until DS was 6 months without help but it was very, very difficult. I scheduled my phone meetings during naps and prayed that he would stay asleep. I didn't really have anyone to answer to or a job in jeopardy so if I had to get off a call, it wasn't the end of the world but if I was working for a company, I would be very nervous. Working from home is not easy and not everyone is cut out for it. It takes discipline and I imagine your bosses are going to be keeping a close eye on you for a while.

BaumMom · January 2011

I've WAH part time for the past year, and have no child care available for DS who is 1.5 years old. I can see what other posters mean about it being impossible to work full time from home without childcare, but if its possible to go part time you may actually be able to save more money since you won't have to pay for childcare. It really all depends on your line of work, but I work usually about 20 hours a week and have no problem. I work during naps and after he's in bed at night (I have flexible hours), and very occasionally take a call or send an email while he's awake. Works perfectly for me, and I intend to continue after DC#2 arrives.

Temp38995750004016 · January 2011

I don't really understand how you can do your job and do it professionally if you are also taking care of your baby at home. I think you need to set aside hours to work and find childcare for those hours.

maple2 · January 2011

When I WAH for a short while after DD I did what a pp suggested and had a person come to the house to watch her while I was still there. That way I was available to nurse on demand (mostly) and help out with any situation the helper couldn't handle, but I was also able to focus on work without having to deal with every need of an infant. I was able to schedule most calls during the hours the helper was there then be flexible about when I got other work done (in the evenings and/or during naps and nursing) so that I didn't need full time help. If I had had to be available for calls anytime during business hours (like in customer service or something), I would have needed more full time help. I could not have done it without the help at home.

Want a personalized experience?

SAHM's I need advice

Re: SAHM's I need advice

Choose Another Board

Search Boards