For some parents, working from home while caring for a newborn or small child is the best option for balancing their job and family life. To keep yourself productive and happy, there are certain things to bear in mind if this is the path you decide to choose.

Forget Set Hours

Rather than focusing on how many hours you expect to put in, focus on what you intend to accomplish because following a strict schedule while caring for young children might be next to impossible. When you’re caring for a baby, there’s no such thing as a nine to five. 

Make sure you can work when your child is sleeping or playing, but equally, make sure you can stop work when they need you – it will be hard to get used to this flexible routine if you’ve never done it before, but as everyone starts to get a bit more practice, things will become a lot easier. 

In other words, work when you can, and when you can’t, don’t feel guilty about it. As long as everything gets done on time, having a set schedule really doesn’t matter. 

Light Work And Hard Work 

There will be moments when you have to deal with difficult work and projects, as well as times when you have to deal with lighter tasks. Save the most challenging and time-consuming tasks for times when you know you won’t be interrupted (for example, if your partner has the baby or if you can use a nanny or babysitter for a short period of time).  

Alternatively, you might discover that waking up early works well for you, but be careful not to overdo it and exhaust yourself if this is the case. Pretend you’re away from home and at a remote workplace, so any interruptions must be true emergencies before they gain your attention. In this way, you can get your work done and, because you will have had fewer distractions, you’ll have more time to spend with your baby and family after you’re done. 

Only Say Yes When You Really Can

The more meetings you have, the more your time will be taken away from you swiftly. Selectiveness is key when it comes to meetings since if you attend too many, your work and child could suffer. Before scheduling an appointment, be sure you actually need it and that you can’t resolve the problem via phone or email. Make it clear to the group that you have a certain amount of time allotted for the meeting and that you want everyone to stick to it. Don’t waver. That is of paramount importance.

Stay Local

Even though you work from home, it doesn’t mean that you have to spend all of your time in the house. Your baby and you both benefit from getting some fresh air by going for a walk together and using the best stroller you can find to ensure you’re both happy and comfortable. 

On workdays, however, you must remain pretty local. This is so you won’t be concerned about being out of the workplace – and potentially out of contact – for too long. If you travel further afield and are continually concerned about what you should be doing at work, you will find it difficult to enjoy your time with your baby, and they will notice that something is wrong too, since children easily pick up on these things. 

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