How to Work from Home with Kids

Balancing parenting and working from home is one major challenge because 42% of remote workers report increased stress levels when trying to manage work and family life. Parenting is a bliss. But entrepreneurship is a pleasure too. Balancing them both when you work from home is super crucial. As a parent who's been juggling both for years, I've learned some surprising lessons. 🚫 Multitasking between work and parenting can reduce productivity by up to 40%. But don't worry, I've got some game-changing tips to share. ✅ Embrace the "power hour." ↳ Wake up an hour before your kids to tackle your most important tasks. ↳ It's amazing what you can accomplish in peaceful silence! ✅ Set clear boundaries. ↳ Use visual cues like a closed door or a special hat to signal "work time" to your kids. ↳ It sounds silly, but it works wonders. ✅ Involve your kids in your work. ↳ Let them "help" with simple tasks or create a mini workstation next to yours. ↳ It keeps them occupied and makes them feel important. ✅ Flexibility is key. ↳ Some days, you'll nail it. ↳ Other days, you'll feel like you're failing at everything. ↳ That's normal! Cut yourself some slack and celebrate small wins. ✅ Lastly, don't forget self-care. ↳ Even 10 minutes of "me time" can recharge your batteries and make you a better parent and entrepreneur. Balancing parenting and working from home isn't easy, but with these strategies, you can make it work – and maybe even thrive! #Parenting #SolopreneursGrowth #BusinessDevelopment

I had 2 babies 14 months apart while bootstrapping to $13M ARR as the only salesperson at a 5 person startup. It was INTENSE! Here are the 9 things I did to balance new motherhood with high-growth sales: 1. Master Your Mindset It’s going to be HARD. You are going to feel like you are giving too much to one area or not enough to the other. The guilt will try to get you! We started Retention.com one month before I got pregnant with my daughter, and my mindset has always been that I am working FOR my kid’s future. This may have meant less time together when they were babies, but almost 6 years later, the extra flexibility and freedom I have to spend time with my family is unmatched. 2. Pick Your Uniform This is a page out of Zuck’s playbook. Minimize decisions in your personal life. Those who work with me know that I wear a hooded sweatshirt every single day. I like to be comfortable and it’s one less thing I have to think about. 3. Communicate work priorities with your Partner/Family Keeping everyone (partner, family, and family help) updated on your work priorities is crucial. This has helped my family feel like they are accomplishing my goals with me, and helped them better understand when I might need some extra help because of a pressing work matter. 4. Set Clear Goals for the week This will include weekly sales activities such as prospecting, number of meetings booked/completed, target accounts touched, contracts out, closed revenue, and more. If the goals are set, it will keep you focused with your time. 5. Have a Running To-Do list Combining set goals with a running to-do list will help you shut off at the end of the day when your list is complete. Choose a “shut off time” (this is 5pm for me), and knowing your list is complete will help you separate work from family time. 6. Set boundaries with your time Review your schedule before the day starts and make sure the majority of your time is for revenue generating activities. Minimize internal calls and if you have a call you aren’t sure about the goal, find out what it’s about before you commit. Every minute matters! 7. Spend 5 mins on email before bed This has been key to me going to bed without any loose ends and starting a new day caught up. 8. Work remote from home (if possible) Remove wasted time commuting and be close to the family all day. Although I was working, I would take breaks to see the kids and help out. This made me feel like I had the best of both as I still saw them and didn’t feel like I was missing time. 9. Be Open to working weekends Mom/Dad needs a break, but an hour early in the morning or during nap time on Sat or Sun can go a long way. Spend this time reflecting on the past week and planning for the next. Mon-Fri is going to be busy, so it’s best to get ahead with planning.  Bottom line: Empowering others to help and setting up your support system are essential. If you're a working mother (or soon to be!) AMA in the comments.

Being a working parent does not mean you have to give up your ambitious goals, but it does mean you have to do things differently. In the next 12 days I have to complete my manuscript, execute "camp mommy" and enjoy my kiddos, be on top of my fractional CMO work and prepare for an international trip with my partner. Here's how I'm doing it ⬇️ 5 Things I'm doing differently to achieve my goals as a working parent: 1. Two do list. Focus on the 20% of work that gets 80% of the results. I only attempt to accomplish 2 BIG things a day. Write one landing page, edit one chapter. Then I take a break for a workout or excursion with kids. Then I come back and do two more. How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time. 2. Control the night. Win the morning. My evening routine is crucial to unlocking deep work in the morning. - Write my two-do list - Close out of my tabs - No eating after 5 - No screens after 9 - asleep by 9:30 3. Communicate & Punt When it's crunch time and I need to get something done, I communicate it to those around me. "I'm heads down for the next 4 weeks to ship a project. Can we resume this recurring meeting on September 5th?" They know when they will hear from me and why. That's usually enough. 4. Kill the mosquitos Every time a to do starts to buzz about in my head, I add it to a list in my notes app. Open loops take up a lot of cognitive load. You must close them quickly. I have 1 hour a week dedicated to killing these mosquito tasks and closing these loops. 5. Quality > quantity I'd rather be a present mom for 2 hours than a distracted one for 4. We have an activity planned everyday from 9-11 and then home for lunch. My meetings start at 12:30. Steal my schedule for the next two weeks -------- 5:30-7:30am Deep Work 7:30-8:30am Get kids up, ready, fed 9:00-11:00am Camp Mommy 11:30am Home, lunch 12:30pm Meetings begin 3:30pm Meetings end 3:30pm Workout together 5:00pm Dinner 6:00pm Admin work while kids shower 7:00pm Family time 8:00pm Evening routine 9:30pm Bed I hope this helps any stressed out working parents. Would love to hear what questions or friction you experience in achieving your goals while juggling kids.

10 ways I’m a present mom and strong product leader 👇 (How I stay grounded at home and focused at work) 1. Morning time is mine. I meditate, work out, and shower while my husband gets the girls up. Then I eat breakfast and play with my kids (phone is another room). 2. Preschool drop-off is sacred. I almost always drive my daughter to school. If a meeting pops up, I take it from the car. No Slack or email until 9am. My team knows to text if something’s truly urgent, but most things can wait. 3. In-person time matters. When my team or manager is in town, I head to the office. If there’s a happy hour or dinner, I go without guilt. That rare face time is critical for building relationships. 4. Work mode means full focus. During the day, I’m locked in. Phone stays away, notifications off (except emergency preschool calls). I don’t squeeze in chores between meetings, I use that time to work or recharge. 5. Lunch break is a reset. I usually eat with my husband and say hi to my younger daughter before her nap. It’s a screen-free moment that helps me reset. 6. Evenings are off-limits. No meetings after 5pm. Our family eats dinner together and then we play. I do bedtime with the girls and sing them a special Ukrainian song. 7. Evening check-ins, not marathons. Most nights I’ll log back on once the kids are asleep. If something’s on fire, I handle it. If not, I let it wait until morning. 8. One night “off” each week. My husband handles bedtime solo, and I take that space guilt-free (next day, we switch). I use it to catch up on work, meet a friend, or write. 9. Sick days are shared. When a child is home sick, my husband and I split the day. No one cancels everything. Sometimes the girls join my calls, and I don’t apologize for it. 10. Sleep is non-negotiable. My 9pm alarm reminds me to start winding down. I don’t do late-night emails and definitely no all-nighters. My energy is a resource I actively protect. Being a hands-on mom and an effective leader aren’t in conflict. They fuel each other, because I’ve built a life where both can thrive. When I’m with my kids, I’m WITH them. And I still show up clear and confident at work. This is what all-in looks like at work and at home.

The best productivity hack I use as a mompreneur? ↓ ↓ ↓ TIME BLOCKING Welcome to the series: “Diary of a Real Mompreneur” I’ve been running a marketing agency for 13 years. I’m also a wife and a mom of 5. It’s a constant juggle. Some weeks, I have to miss dinners. Other weeks, I have to reschedule client calls. But here's what saved me from burnout (and breakdown) ↳Time-blocking based on my energy, not just the clock Here’s how it works 👇 Mornings = Deep work I batch strategy calls, writing, and hard decisions when my mind is fresh Afternoons = Flex time This is where I handle lighter tasks and quick emails. Evenings = Boundaries This time belongs to my family. No notifications, no client calls. I stopped trying to “fit into” 5 am routines or hustle culture. I started creating a rhythm that respects my season of life. Since then, I’ve stayed consistent. I’ve felt less overwhelmed. I’ve actually enjoyed building my business again. You don’t need more hours in the day. You need more intention in how you use them. This is your reminder: You’re allowed to do it your way More real-life mompreneur lessons are coming soon. Stay tuned ❤️ P.S: If you like tips like this, join 11,000 more Executives who binge my Newsletter https://lnkd.in/g_eEur6c

Expanding into the role of a mother has brought about significant changes in my work style.  📝 Ruthless Prioritization: Learning to prioritize tasks effectively and savagely has become an essential skill. ⚡ Focus on Productivity: Testing and committing to productivity hacks has become more crucial than ever. 📈 ROI: A preference for tasks that directly contribute to revenue. I've discovered that I have around 4-5 productive hours daily for deep work. Whether in a single stretch or fragmented, these hours are dedicated to focused, deep work. There are other moments, but I reserve those for surface/shallow work - e.g. I can reply to emails whilst breastfeeding, I can respond to slacks whilst contact napping, I can post this whilst on a walk. My ultimate mom-hack is inspired by Tim Ferriss’ the four hour workweek. I ask myself each day “if this is the only thing I get done today will I feel accomplished?” if it’s a yes I do that one thing, if it’s a no I reprioritize. I also gamify my focus time, I pick an amount of time I think a task will take and I race myself to it.  I still don’t have it figured out, & I often feel like I have too much on my mind but focusing on 1 thing each day and viewing anything else as a bonus has been a really great way to build healthy focus/productive habits.  Would love to hear everyone else's mom/parent hacks!