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June 20, 2024

Maintain Your Home-Based Business & Your Sanity During the Holidays

As a mom and home-based business owner, you probably feel like one of those circus performers who can keep a dozen plates spinning on sticks all at once. It can be challenging from day to day, but most of the time you are pretty good at keeping your plates in the air. However, add the upcoming holiday season to the mix—which, of course, includes shopping, decorating, incoming guests and kids bouncing off the walls with anticipation—and it might seem like those carefully balanced plates will all come crashing down.

Fortunately, we have some work life balance tips to help. With some planning and preparation, you can make it to 2015 without losing your business or your sanity.

Adjust Your Schedule and Your Expectations

Accept the fact that your usual schedule will be disrupted for awhile. Once you’ve accepted this, look for pockets of time during the day and night to fit in shorter spurts of work. For example, if your kids are watching “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” for the thousandth time and dinner’s in the oven, head to your computer and knock out some emails or invoices. If you are an early bird, set your alarm an hour or so earlier and try to crank out some work before the kids and company get up. If you are more of a night owl, work a little after the kids go to sleep to catch up on some of your projects.

Prioritize and Push Back

Schedule some specific times and activities with your family and guests during the holiday season, and post the calendar in a place where everyone can see it. Whenever possible, schedule things to do during the times when you wouldn’t normally be working anyway—that way, you won’t feel as stressed out about missing work time, and you can really focus on your kids. You could swing by your local coffee shop for hot cocoas to go, and then drive around your neighborhood looking at lights.

Also, try to push back at least some of your work and deadlines into January. Chances are good that many of your clients are also trying to juggle their lives and the holiday season, so depending on what type of at-home work you do, it may be possible to reschedule at least some of it until early 2015.

Shop Online

If your to-do list is already three pages long, you might wonder how you’ll find time to get to the mall to shop. You don’t have to fight the crowds and parking lots to get toys and gifts for everyone on your “Nice” list. Pour yourself a cup of coffee or a glass of wine, put on your comfy flannel jammies, and when the kids are asleep, take care of your holiday shopping online. Walmart always has some great Black Friday deals and it seems like every online retailer offers shipping deals this time of year. If you are planning on sending out holiday cards, you can also upload photos to sites like Snapfish or Shutterfly and order them from there.

With these work life balance tips, you will be able to skate through the holidays having a fun and relaxing time with your family.

Check out these other great articles about productivity / time management as a work from home professional. Also check out our current job postings for mom professionals.

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August 10, 2017 0 Comments

4 Tips for Healthy Eating in the Summer

Staying healthy in the summer is typically easier than any other time of year. Between family and friend activities, vacations, and sporting events, we’re on the go more. Additionally, produce is more readily available, and it’s often too hot to eat big, heavy meals.

It’s a perfect time to embrace wellness in our diets and stay healthy. This way, we don’t miss any of the fun and excitement of this time of year! Read along for some best tips for optimal, healthy eating in the summer.

Think seasonal

Eating seasonally is a great way to save money and load up on nutritional value. Yes, you can find watermelon in some other seasons, but it’s more expensive and not nearly as tasty! Between tomatoes, watermelon, mangos, and all the fresh berries, summer is a time for all our favorite produce.

These fruits and veggies are also loaded with water content, so they’ll help you stay hydrated and feeling light.

Produce first

Think produce first! When you go to make a plate or plan a meal, fill your plate (or recipe) with produce first. Ideally, half of your plate should be fruits and/or veggies. You can also sneak fruit and veggie purees into casseroles, popsicles, and smoothies! From here, add your carbohydrate and protein sources to make up the rest of your meal.

Pack the protein

Protein is always a key component to any healthy diet. It keeps you full, supports your muscles and bones, and helps to stabilize blood sugar. When the weather is nice, grilling is a great, fun option to get your protein. Here are some best tips for successful grilling.

Select healthy meats and spice them up with unique seasonings, marinades, and dipping sauces. If meat isn’t your thing, there are plenty of fibrous bean and grain salad recipes that will keep you healthy and satiated. Here are a few options to get you started.

Lighten up

In the hot summer months, we’re typically running around more and certainly spending more time outdoors. Because of this, we need more hydration, water, and electrolytes. Focus on foods that provide this and keep you feeling good. Watermelon is a great option, along with coconut water for balanced electrolytes.

It’s easy to feel sluggish and rundown in the summer, and you can avoid this with diet and lifestyle choices. Make choices that keep you feeling light, healthy, and satisfied. It’s a great time of year for those lightened up recipes, as well as an abundance of colorful fruits and veggies. Indulge in nature’s seasonal offerings and stay healthy with seasonal offerings!

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August 10, 2017 0 Comments

5 Ways to Fit Exercise Into Your Day

Fitting exercise into our already-busy lives can be quite the challenge! We want to stay fit and healthy, but work, family and friend obligations keep us pretty busy. There are only so many hours in the day, but taking the time for exercise is very important for a long, healthy life.

Read along for some best tips on fitting exercise into your busy day.

Use the morning

It’s not for everyone, but working out in the morning can be a great use of your time. Your family is likely still asleep, and you’ll be able to give dedicated time to your workout. Whether you workout or join a gym, working out in the morning is a great option. This is an especially effective option if you’re a morning person. If not, it may take a few early mornings to get into the groove – but don’t give up!

Lay out your exercise clothes the night before, lay out your water bottle, snacks, headphones, and anything else that you need to grab and go. Not having to think in the mornings makes it much easier, and seeing your items will make it more likely that you go and do your workout. The more that you complete your morning workouts, the more your body will get used to them. Don’t be surprised if you’re a little tired and slow moving at first! It just takes some time for your body to adapt to moving first thing in the morning.

Use your lunch break

You can use your lunch break (or any break during the day) to complete your workout. Go out for a walk, meet up with a friend, or hit up a group fitness class that takes place during the day. Breaking up your day with exercise can really boost your energy, mood, and fitness levels. A lot of us feel more awake midday, so it can be the perfect time to fit in some fitness.

Make it social

Exercise doesn’t need to be painful or isolating! It can be really fun to involve your family and friends and make it a social event. Exercise also doesn’t need to take place at a gym or involve a workout video. You can get in a few miles, squats, or dumbbell exercises during your kids’ games or activities!

When you’re waiting around at practices, instead of playing on your phone, do a quick workout. It will make the time pass without taking away from family and friend time outside of the practice. Fitting fitness into your life is a great way to make it a habit that sticks!

Multitask

Multitasking can be very helpful when it comes to your new exercise routine. If you find yourself ready to watch TV at the end of the day, you can combine both activities. Watch your favorite show on the treadmill, or do strength training exercises in your living room while your movie is playing. You can also listen to music during your workout. This can also be a great distraction that gets you into the workout zone, and you won’t feel that you’re missing out on anything. You get the best of both worlds – fitness and your other favorite activities.

Keep it realistic

Realize that fitness might not play a huge role in your life right now. It can be hard to workout with small children or a lot going on in your life. You might not have time for an hour, but can you spare 20 minutes? Most people have 20-30 minutes in their day to get healthy. Make it happen and stay in the groove. Once you feel better and see results, you’ll more than likely want to keep at it. Results and positive feelings are great motivators to keep going!

Utilize the tips below to keep at your exercise regimen long enough to feel great, and you’ll be well on your way to establishing a very healthy habit.

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July 11, 2016 0 Comments

5 Tips for Healthy Eating When You Work From Home

Even though working from home allows you to generally eat whatever you want anytime, sometimes that can make it a struggle to stay healthy! In a traditional work setting, the issues usually revolve around takeout and convenience foods, while working from home can create poor eating habits and all day snacking.  Read along for some tips to stay healthy as a home based worker.

Keep healthy food

Keep healthy food options in the house – and visible.  Buy a nice fruit bowl and keep fruit right at the kitchen entrance, or purchase pre-cut fruits and veggies for the week.  As long as you have healthy options available, it’s much easier to stay on track.

Avoid temptations

If you struggle with all day eating or simply snacking on the wrong foods, do your best to keep temptations out of the house during the week.  It doesn’t have to be painful! Think of what you can include in your diet – fresh fruits, veggies, whole grain crackers, protein – versus what you have to eliminate.  You can always have whatever you choose, it’s just better for health and productivity to make most of that food healthy.

Find something fun

Find something fun to look forward to! This doesn’t have to be food, but it certainly can be. Why not plan evening trips to a new park with your kids, or another healthy activity that teaches them good habits.  You can also meet a friend at a new healthy eatery – this is something to look forward to that fits your goals and allows you to socialize as well!

Structure it

Make a plan and stick to it! It’s much easier for your time and productivity levels to have meals planned out as well.  On Saturday or Sunday, make a plan for the week, create your grocery list, and head to the store.  You can do all of the cooking for the week in a few hours, and then everything is pre-packaged and ready to go.  When you make a plan with anything in life, your goals tend to get met and unexpected challenges that come up are much less likely.

Meal plans are also incredibly helpful for families, as your kids can also participate and give healthy meal ideas.  This also allows them to learn about cooking, clean eating, and fun snacks that are always available.

Remember your goals

Your goals do not need to have anything to do with weight loss, but feeling good while working from home is a noble one. When we eat better, we feel better! Shift your focus from “bad” foods and deprivation to really fueling your body for a productive, happy workday, and feel free to include treats whenever you choose.  This process is really about what you’ll do most of the time, and what will allow you to feel your best when it would be easier to simply avoid healthy eating in the home.

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December 22, 2014 0 Comments

5 Ways to Stay Healthy in a Home-Based Job

When you accept a home-based job position, you might envision days of work mixed with lots of movement and exercise. Imagine your surprise when the clock hits 5:00PM each day and you’ve barely moved! This is a common plague among home-based workers, and it’s something that can truly affect your health in the long term.

There are numerous recent studies proving how sitting is bad for our health, and when you work from home, you’re likely logging long hours on your computer. This isn’t really avoidable, but utilizing healthy tips and habits is a great way to ensure that you stay healthy when working from home.

When you’re making your 2015 resolutions, be sure to include these work at home exercises and tips to stay happy and healthy!

1) Stay active throughout the day: It doesn’t have to be anything excessive! Get up and walk around your house or neighborhood, stretch, lift light weights, or run in place for a few minutes. Do this approximately once per hour, and you’ll find that these little bursts are not only good for your body, but good for your mind.

2) Drink water: Working from home has its benefits here! Staying hydrated is key to health – you will avoid overeating and keep your energy high. Set an alarm on your phone or computer to remind you to drink water every hour.

3) Schedule your workouts: Whether you want to work out in the morning or the evening, working from home makes scheduling your workouts much easier. But you still have to do them! Schedule your workouts just as you would schedule a meeting or appointment. Write it down and stick to your plan.

4) Choose the right foods: If you’re used to having junk food around the house, do your best to stop buying it once you start working from home. If it’s in the house, it’s tough to avoid! At the very least, keep tempting foods out of view. Put healthy snacks such as fruit, trail mix, or protein bars out in a bowl, so you’re more likely to reach for them when you need a snack.

5) Take breaks: Mental health is just as important as physical health. It’s great to be productive, but not at the expense of your health. This will only lead you to feeling frazzled and burnt out – not a good combination. Take small breaks throughout the day to step away from the computer, get some fresh air, and relax your mind.
Incorporate these work at home exercises and tips into your daily schedule and start the new year out right.

Check out these other great articles about staying healthy as a work from home professional. Also check out our current job postings for mom professionals.

(Image courtesy of Serge Bertasius at FreeDigitalPhotos.net)

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October 27, 2014 0 Comments

Maintain Your Home-Based Business & Your Sanity During the Holidays

As a mom and home-based business owner, you probably feel like one of those circus performers who can keep a dozen plates spinning on sticks all at once. It can be challenging from day to day, but most of the time you are pretty good at keeping your plates in the air. However, add the upcoming holiday season to the mix—which, of course, includes shopping, decorating, incoming guests and kids bouncing off the walls with anticipation—and it might seem like those carefully balanced plates will all come crashing down.

Fortunately, we have some work life balance tips to help. With some planning and preparation, you can make it to 2015 without losing your business or your sanity.

Adjust Your Schedule and Your Expectations

Accept the fact that your usual schedule will be disrupted for awhile. Once you’ve accepted this, look for pockets of time during the day and night to fit in shorter spurts of work. For example, if your kids are watching “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” for the thousandth time and dinner’s in the oven, head to your computer and knock out some emails or invoices. If you are an early bird, set your alarm an hour or so earlier and try to crank out some work before the kids and company get up. If you are more of a night owl, work a little after the kids go to sleep to catch up on some of your projects.

Prioritize and Push Back

Schedule some specific times and activities with your family and guests during the holiday season, and post the calendar in a place where everyone can see it. Whenever possible, schedule things to do during the times when you wouldn’t normally be working anyway—that way, you won’t feel as stressed out about missing work time, and you can really focus on your kids. You could swing by your local coffee shop for hot cocoas to go, and then drive around your neighborhood looking at lights.

Also, try to push back at least some of your work and deadlines into January. Chances are good that many of your clients are also trying to juggle their lives and the holiday season, so depending on what type of at-home work you do, it may be possible to reschedule at least some of it until early 2015.

Shop Online

If your to-do list is already three pages long, you might wonder how you’ll find time to get to the mall to shop. You don’t have to fight the crowds and parking lots to get toys and gifts for everyone on your “Nice” list. Pour yourself a cup of coffee or a glass of wine, put on your comfy flannel jammies, and when the kids are asleep, take care of your holiday shopping online. Walmart always has some great Black Friday deals and it seems like every online retailer offers shipping deals this time of year. If you are planning on sending out holiday cards, you can also upload photos to sites like Snapfish or Shutterfly and order them from there.

With these work life balance tips, you will be able to skate through the holidays having a fun and relaxing time with your family.

Check out these other great articles about productivity / time management as a work from home professional. Also check out our current job postings for mom professionals.

Continue Reading