Who works from home? (Full Version)

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MrsTracy72 -> Who works from home? (8/20/2008 4:48:10 PM)

Ok, we have threads for SAHMs and Mom's who work outside the home. But do we have mom's who work IN the home? Not a support, but just how did you end up working from home. I run a daycare in my home mostly during the school year, and I also have a L'Bri business which is both in and outside the home.

What about the rest of you? Did you want to stay home, but had to work so you made your own job? Share your stories.

Mine goes a bit like this. I was divorced not too long before, but I couldn't handle sending my son to daycare. I also hated my job and even remember telling one of the women in HR that I felt like eventhough I had adults working around me, I was in the middle of a daycare, and if this is how it was going to be, I could do that on my own. I worked for a major bank in their collections area and it was a bit hairy at times.

So that same day, I waked down to HR and told them I couldn't take it anymore and I left. The next week, I took in a child. Then two more. Then I went through County Certification, and I have been doing it for over 10 years now.

My L'Bri business came about because my friend kind of forced me to a party because you know how those things work. You have to have so many guests and hit your sales goal. I didn't want to buy anything so I booked a party to help her out. But then I tried the products and decided I loved them so I looked into the profit plan and saw that it didn't take much to keep yourself active and that my own personal use was enough and I signed on for the 30% discount.

Then I was asked to do a party and I did it and saw how easy it was to come home with actual money and no risk since all checks and credit cards go through the company, not me and thought that it would be good for when I am totally done with my daycare. I will still have a job. I am trying wind down my daycare, but I have one more child for 2 more school years and 2 more who only come once a month but one is a three month old baby. So I am committed for a while. Just with not so many kids.

Once my daycare is done, I plan on having my other business very ramped up and going so that it will be my job. I need to work to get out of the house and keep sane, so why not do something fun and on my terms?

Anybody else care to share?

I think there is a support thread for work at home mom's, but I want to know how we ended up working from home and what we do.



lexie -> RE: Who works from home? (8/20/2008 5:14:01 PM)

We decided a long time ago that I would be a SAHM, which is what I am, but over the last two years a few opportunities have come up to make money while still at home.

I currently look after one other child, two days a week. A friend of mine had to go back to work, and I told her I would look after her daughter until she found daycare (which can take up to a year here.)

I am also a freelance writer. I currently write for one magazine. I hope to get out there a bit more, but I'm not actively pursuing it right now. I got this job through a friend, who I met a couple of years ago while we were doing our graduate degree. She got a job as editor of the magazine and she called me to write for her.

I also occasionally do some admin work for a small business (research, customer letters, bookkeeping.) It's not all the time, but the owner calls me whenever he needs help. The owner is my husbands best friend, and because I have the educational background to do the job I offered my services and it made sense to him to get have the help while expanding his business.



MrsTracy72 -> RE: Who works from home? (8/20/2008 5:27:34 PM)

Way cool Lexie. I am cringing because we are putting together a book abour our family and it starts in the 1800s, but each of us "kids" have to write our bio for this book. I am not the greatest at writing so I am just putting this off and now only have 2 weeks to finish.



JJB1222 -> RE: Who works from home? (8/20/2008 6:25:41 PM)

I do. I do the books for our business, which is what I should be doing RIGHT NOW instead of hanging out in the forums. *sigh*

I would prefer to have a professional do it for us, but money's tight these days, so I just have to be patient and keep at it. I do go into our office once in a while to work, but mostly, I can do it from home or on the road.

It sure beats all the drama that goes with the typical office scene. I spent plenty of years doing that and have no desire to go back to it.



spitzu -> RE: Who works from home? (8/20/2008 7:55:08 PM)

Yep, I work from home. [:)] I am a business owner. My mom and I are partners in a jewelry design business. I design, make, and sell jewelry with my emphasis lately being in silversmithing skills.

We didn't do it out of necessity or anything, it just happened to turn into a business. I started making jewelry years ago and we officially opened 2 Belles & a Bead last summer. We love what we do, and turning it into a career has been both a fun and wise move. Unfortunately I don't enjoy all aspects of it, such as doing my own books and taxes and all that fun jazz, but the rest of it is rewarding.

Most of our work is done at home, and most of our sales are online. We do sell locally in a salon and are planning to expand more in the near future.



MrsTracy72 -> RE: Who works from home? (8/20/2008 9:18:08 PM)

I was wondering when the jewelry lady was going to show her face. What was that website again? It has been a while since I have seen you around, but I remember liking your website. I will put it in my favorites this time. If you don't want to post it, you can PM me.
Tracy



not_the_first -> RE: Who works from home? (8/20/2008 9:56:48 PM)

Hi Ladies! It is my goal to become self employed. I just posted this in the work outside the home thread, but I quit my job last Friday to pursue starting my own business. My last day at work is the 29th - whoop whoop!!!!

I have two business ideas. My plan is to take the next 3-4 months to research both ideas and then have a business plan done by January. I am taking some classes at a local tech. college that are designed for starting a business. The first one is literally called "starting your own business". I am so excited. I have been working for 10 years and I have had enough.

I've thought about selling something just for the time being to have some cash flow. I am really into natural health food and products so would love find something that fit's along those lines. I went to a Wine Shop at Home party recently and it was really fun!

How much time do you all spend on your business each week?



spitzu -> RE: Who works from home? (8/20/2008 10:14:43 PM)

I don't mind. :) Our site is just our business name: http://www.2bellesandabead.com/
We're also on Etsy: http://2bellesbeads.etsy.com

The number of hours I work each week varies. The past couple of weeks I've been spending most of my time doing stuff around the house instead of work, but the few weeks before that I was working pretty much all day.



29redballoons -> RE: Who works from home? (8/20/2008 10:51:08 PM)

I have a group daycare in my home. I keep eighteen children full time and 5 afterschool. I have three part-time employees. I have done this for 8 years.



MrsTracy72 -> RE: Who works from home? (8/21/2008 12:15:32 AM)

quote:

ORIGINAL: not_the_first

How much time do you all spend on your business each week?



That depends on what your business is. Many rely only on parties and you can't put your order in until the party is closed. Avon has campaigns and you have to put your order in just twice a month. Some other companies encourage you to simply keep stock in your home so people can just shop from you. Those are the businesses that you do have to spend alot of time on. You have to be able to sell the products while recruiting new consultants and sometimes that is a long process.

My business is mostly natural skincare, health care, and we do have a makeup line. I can spend as much or as little time as I want. It just depends on how much money I want to make. BUT at a typical party, I will sell anywhere from 600 to 1000 and I get 20% of that. My orders go directly to the customer because they usually get free shipping. And all I do is input the order, and check or credit card. At the end of each week, I get my check. When you sell over 1000 a month, you get extra bonus money, and as you move up in leadership, your personal discount moves up with you along with incentives.

I do spend alot of time on vendor fairs though. That is because I usually do very well in sales and am able to book parties, and get returning customers. When my customers go onto my website and put through an order, I don't know until I get my check in the mail. So mine is that easy. Plus I started it simply for my own personal discount.

If you are looking for something to sell, you need to look for something you absolutely love and will use yourself. Something that doesn't require a huge startup fee and make you buy some huge kit to bring with you. You also want to make sure that you are not selling things that are not consumable. You want them to come back. That is why good skincare and candles work out great for most people.

I pretty much took the summer off, but I was doing anywhwere between 2 and 4 parties a month plus vendor fairs over the winter. I am running two businesses so I have to divide my time, but whenever I know I would like to make some money, I just send out postcards or ask my current customers if they want to earn free stuff because we have a great program. My last 4 parties gave out each hostess no less than 300.00 in free products. But it takes a while to get there.

Have you thought of anything to sell? Have you looked around to make sure the market for that in your area is not saturated? Is it something you love and can support? Those are things to think about.



spitzu -> RE: Who works from home? (8/21/2008 12:37:17 AM)

My products are not consumable (or at least I strongly recommend against it LOL) and most of our customers return many many times. [;)] [:D]



OneOfHisJewels -> RE: Who works from home? (8/21/2008 1:23:06 AM)

I'm not a mom, but I work at home taking care of my disabled sister. Someday, when I get my own place, I want to do an in home day care/ preschool. I enjoy writing a lot too, but never knew where to turn it into something steady, so I'd love some pointers, hint hint, Lexie[:D].

I also help out with our church families a lot, both here and at home.

I tried selling Avon once, but I hated it.

I might like to sell Discovery Toys someday, though.



MrsTracy72 -> RE: Who works from home? (8/21/2008 10:13:26 AM)

I like Discovery toys. I have done the family daycare thing for quite some time now. You do get burnt out after a while, but it was very fun and rewarding. Now I am happy with the very few children I have and I can start doing more for my family. The daycare is something that your entire family has to be ok with because your house gets invaded daily by other peoples children, and you have to be able to cope well when your things get broken or stained or just dirty.



princesslady -> RE: Who works from home? (8/21/2008 2:18:17 PM)

I work from home. I'm a medical transcriptionist. I've been doing it for a year and a half, making pretty good money, and I love it!! I always have more than enough work to keep me busy.



MrsTracy72 -> RE: Who works from home? (8/21/2008 2:57:14 PM)

I have always wanted to do that, but around here, it is getting harder and harder to work from home with it. They want you in the clinics or hospitals.



Zhi -> RE: Who works from home? (8/21/2008 2:58:38 PM)

I'm a software engineer. I was intending to stop working when I had the baby and just be a SAHM, but then my company begged me to keep working on a part time, contract from home as needed basis. Then a friend of mine asked me to contract with his company too. Then a friend asked me to get into a profit-sharing development effort with him. Then my husband decided he wants to get his Masters and when he does he'll want to write software for his line of work as part of his thesis, with me doing the software interfaces and him providing the equations and testing. So, it mostly just kind of landed on me.

It's good to keep up with what's current in my field... and it's good mental exercise. Plus it pays pretty well, when I have work... and I can catch up on other things when I don't. hehe

I would also like to get around to writing some fiction someday (I'm a published technical author but no fiction so far). And I've been developing some knitting patterns that I might eventually see if I can package and sell.



MrsTracy72 -> RE: Who works from home? (8/21/2008 5:36:11 PM)

Wow, My DH is a software developer. Don't know what that means for you, but he is also able to work from home, but does work for a company. I would love to be a total SAHM, but then again, I am not sure if I could actually handle it. My kids are almost in school full time and while I love doing things around the house and cooking, I need to get out. What I do now is just enough. And when I know I need more money for something, I just book more parties. But if I am good, I just keep up with current customers. I am just confused most of the time because while I do run two businesses and am employed by myself, people tend to treat me like I am not employed and that I use those titles to "justify" staying home. Like I need to. I see nothing wrong with a woman wanting to stay home and take care of her family and home. I see nothing wrong with people who work and put their kids in daycare. That was my main means of income for 10 years. But I have seen so much doing that, that I just needed a break. I have seen parents who use their kids like a trophy. Parents who don't even take care of their kids. And then there were the parents who really didn't want to leave their kids but had to. I talked quite a few moms out of quitting their jobs and starting their own daycare or other type of business. I just think that if you want to stay home, you should. But if you can't afford to, you only have two choices. First, you can keep working and deal with it, or you can take a chance and try something from home. I am just so for daycare because it is very low risk because people are always looking for good daycare. I am never at a shortage for kids. At one time, I even had my mom get certified so that I could place kids with her because I had too many. Now we have a circle of providers, but like I said, I am trying to wind that one down and focus on the other business.



lexie -> RE: Who works from home? (8/22/2008 11:11:03 AM)

quote:

I enjoy writing a lot too, but never knew where to turn it into something steady, so I'd love some pointers, hint hint, Lexie .


I would love to give you some pointers but I literally fell into my current writing job. I have some ideas on ways to get into that I'll share with you.

Tracy - I always leave my writing until the last minute...that's when I do best!

quote:

How much time do you all spend on your business each week?


I'm all over the place. The magazine I write for is published every other month so one month I won't be doing anything. With the admin stuff, it's just when needed and sometimes it's a lot, sometimes it's just one quick letter.

All of my work from home isn't something that makes a difference in the family income, but it's pocket money which is nice.



MrsTracy72 -> RE: Who works from home? (8/22/2008 11:19:42 PM)

Lexie, you don't work for a food magazine do you? Just wondering.



OneOfHisJewels -> RE: Who works from home? (8/23/2008 3:33:22 AM)

Lesxie, where does Akeelah go when you teach ice skating?



uponeagleswings -> RE: Who works from home? (8/24/2008 1:09:09 PM)

I sort of work from home. [:D] I work in early intervention, which means I travel from house to house working with families who have special needs kids. I do a majority of my paperwork from home and only go into the actual office about once a week (and 1 long day/month) to get my mail and file papers. I also make and sell custom purses. Right now its just directly from my blog, but I'm thinking about opening up a website. Crystal, I'd love any advice you have about that. [;)]



spitzu -> RE: Who works from home? (8/24/2008 2:20:59 PM)

Hmm, advice.

Learn to code it yourself if you don't want to spend $$$$$ or wait a loooong time for family to do it for you. lol

Etsy is a good place to start with stuff like that, and any online selling will require some really great product photography, so be prepared to not only be an excellent seamstress, but a good photographer as well. [8|]



uponeagleswings -> RE: Who works from home? (8/24/2008 2:39:06 PM)

LOL- my hubby and I figure that between the 2 of us we could figure out the coding.
I looked into etsy, but I'm hesitant about the fees, which is why I'm considering just going straight for a simple-ish website. The photography could be tricky- I'm ok but not great, and we don't have the funds to sink into getting another camera at the moment.



spitzu -> RE: Who works from home? (8/24/2008 2:54:21 PM)

You should be able to get some good photos with a decent point and shoot, which I bet you already have. You can build a light box for under $10 (I'll have to dig up the instructions... I have them somewhere... I used my homemade one for about a year and only threw it out because I finally bought a real one that was portable) and use a couple of lamps, or take it outside and get really good photos that way.

Etsy's fees aren't too bad when you compare to hosting fees and such. I think our webhost for our site is something like $15/month... at the time that was the cheapest we could find with all the features we needed. A domain costs I think $10/year. Our hosting fees also include emails, shopping cart, newsletter capabilities and stuff like that as well. Merchant accounts are $$$, so that's why we use Paypal & Google Checkout. Even though people complain about Paypal's fees, they're less than a real merchant account, plus I don't have to deal with the issue of dealing people's credit card or banking information myself. That low part of our overhead helps to keep our prices low. [:)]

The biggest benefit to Etsy is you'll already have some exposure right off the bat. You'd still have to do some leg work in getting your name out, but Etsy is very quickly becoming a well known venue and already has a good bit of traffic. With your own site, you'll have to start from scratch. Not impossible of course, just a lot more work. Our first year on our site was pretty profitable, but we started out with a decent customer base... it took about a year before we started seeing sales from things like Google searches.

The hardest thing about being a business owner to me is I'm the entire business. Photographer, accountant, packaging/shipping, decision-maker, marketing specialist, web designer, search engine optimizer, customer service relations... and on and on and on. I just want to make pretty stuff, kwim? [8D]



uponeagleswings -> RE: Who works from home? (8/24/2008 3:15:38 PM)

Hmm...maybe I'll have to reconsider etsy then. The hard thing for me is I'm trying to decide how to balance making purses to order with having an existing selection of ones that are already made. I keep a stash of fabric on hand, and that factors in too. At this point I'd like something a bit more professional than directing people to my photobucket account. [8D]
I don't mind using paypal, although I do hate putting $$ into ebay's pocket. [:@] I'd much rather not have to deal with people's actual bank or credit card info, and almost anybody who buys stuff online has some sort of account.



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