How to Actually Get Work Done with Kids in the House

By Melissa Batai

Part of the joy of working at home is that you get to take care of your children during the day.  If you have young children or you homeschool, getting your work done can often be a challenge, though.  Sure, you can hire a babysitter for uninterrupted work time, but if you can't afford a babysitter or chose not to hire one, there are strategies you can use to draw more time out of your day to get work done.

1.  Get up before the kids do or work after they go to sleep.  If you can get up an hour or two before your kids do, you'll find that you can get a lot accomplished in a still quiet house.  If you're a night owl, try doing your work later at night, after the kids have gone to bed.

2.  Train the kids to have quiet time.  This will take some time and effort, but you can train your children to have quiet time.  For 30 to 60 minutes, have the kids do something quietly.  To make this work best, each child should have a separate place to work independently or read books quietly.  During this time, you can get work done.

3.  Work during television time.  Most kids are allowed one or two shows a day to watch.  Rather than using this time to cook or clean, use this time to work.  I sit out with my kids and do my work while they watch Arthur or school related videos.  If you give the kids more than an hour, though, they tend to get restless (at least mine do).

4.  Work while the kids are playing well together.  My kids like to bicker just like other kids, but there are those moments when all 3 play together cooperatively.  During that time, squeeze in some work time.

For many moms, their children are the reason why they work at home.  Still, finding time to work while the children are around can be challenging.  Use these strategies to get more work done during the day.

What's your favorite strategy to squeeze in more work time during a busy day?