As many people have lost their jobs during the pandemic, it has startled a burst of entrepreneurial spirit. Many are starting out to achieve their goal of financial self-reliance by investing in themselves. If you’re one of these people who is looking to start an at-home business and you have kids, here’s our guide to help you get started with a bang.
Figure Out Your Business Plan
Many people find it too easy to skip over creating their business plan and don’t realize their mistake until they’re too far in over their heads. Just like everything else worth starting, you need to create a plan that you can enact to reach your goal. Your business plan should include your mission, goals, funding, and so forth. Basically, you’ll want to include all the who, what, when, where, and hows so that you can always refer back to your business plan in the future.
Determine Your Equipment Needs
Your equipment needs are going to be different from the next entrepreneur’s needs. Take out a piece of paper and determine everything that you’ll need to successfully run your business. There are many resources online that you can reference to determine what other individuals in your particular industry started out with. Don’t forget to include your home computer and workstation. These are going to be expenses that you’ll need to account for as well.
Know What Utilities Need
You may find that your home utilities aren’t sufficient to cover your business needs. This can include electricity, gas, or water if you are making and selling products or running power-hunger equipment. More likely, you will want to upgrade your internet service plan to one that includes unlimited internet. Starting an at-home business means a lot more done online than if you are going into an office building every day. It’s easy to pass the basic package data caps, so make sure you are covered.
Determine A Schedule and Stick to It
This is going to be one of the hardest steps for many. It’s very easy to get engulfed in the prospects of what your future business may hold, that you forget to take time away from it. Good work and family balance is hard to achieve, especially for those who are working from home. For this reason, it’s necessary for you to determine a schedule. Specify specific times that you’ll be working. You may need to change this around for the first few days until you get into a schedule that works for you. Once you fit it, stick to it. There should be no exceptions.
Get Child Care Arrangements Planned
While you may think that working from home will allow you to watch your kids and work on your business, that’s not the case. Your kids need constant attention, and you need to have someone who can give them that. Whether it be school or daycare, you need to make arrangements for your children. It’s very hard for a parent to fully focus on growing a business when they’re worried about what their children are doing in the other room.
Starting your own at-home business can be an exhilarating experience. As a parent, you’re going to have to work on creating a good work-life balance. By following the steps we outlined for you above, you’ll be well on your way to creating a successful business that you will be sure to love.