Working Mother Myths

The Washington Post had an op-ed piece in Sunday’s paper (May 30) entitled “5 Myths About Working Mother.”

1. Mothers today spend much less time caring for children than did their parents and grandparents.

2. Women’s jobs interfere with family life more than men’s.

3. Mothers with college degrees are more likely than other women to opt out of the workforce.

4. Women who work are less likely to have successful marriages.

5. Parents don’t experience discrimination in the workplace.

Current numbers show that close to two-thirds of women with kids under the age of 18 are working outside the home. And we know that a lot more of us are working from home with children.

Food for thought!

Until next time,

Sarah

Want to know about mystery shopping?

The May issue of At Home News, my free e-newsletter, delves behind-the-scenes of a mystery shopper. Sign up at the newsletter page and find out how you can become a secret shopper.

Until next time,


Sarah

Avoid Credit Card Financing

A recent study found that credit card usage to keep small businesses, including home-based businesses, afloat can be deadly to their well-being. "A recent study by Robert Scott of Monmouth University found that every $1,000 increase in credit-card debt increases the probability a firm will close by 2.2 percent," Alan Zell posted in SCORE's online Listserv, as quoted in a Herald-Tribune story about credit-card financing.

"Credit cards are more prevalent for funding start-up businesses because traditional sources of financing have become less available during the Great Recession and financial meltdown," the article says.

Instead of using credit cards for your at-home business, consider saving money before expanding, cutting expenses to the bare bones and growing your business slowly. I offer more ideas on how to finance your home-based business in my book, Hired @ Home.

Until next time,

Sarah

Juggling Act

Most women wear many hats, including work and mommy. I'll be doing a presentation on "How To Juggle Work With Family Life" during the Mommy In Training conference on Saturday, April 24, in Alexandria, Va. The conference is chock-full of helpful seminars on being a mother, so if you're in the area, please stop by.

For more information, visit the conference Web site.

Until next time,

Sarah

Spring Into Spring

With the flowers starting to bloom and the winds bringing warmer breezes, it finally feels as though spring has come to Virginia. With spring, my thoughts turn to spring cleaning both my house and my freelance writing/editing business.

To spring clean your at-home business, set aside a few hours to go through your file folders and toss or shred old paperwork. Clean out your email inbox and take a look at what electronic documents can be deleted. Make sure your computer's antivirus software is up-to-date. Jot down a list of things that might need replacing, fixing or upgrading in the near future.

Consider ordering new business cards or adding something to your Web site. Develop a spring marketing campaign. Review your potential client lists and start devising ways to reach those customers.

These are just a few ways to spruce up your business.

Until next time,

Sarah