It’s been about 5 months since my unexpected lay off. Since then I’ve been working diligently on building a business that will actually make sustainable money for my family. It’s not there yet… certainly not because I haven’t been trying.

I’ve learned a lot since trying to create a work from home situation that works for me and the family. So I thought I’d share those things as well as a little update on some exciting news for the future. Here’s a few of the things you don’t realize until you start working from home.

I DON’T OWN ENOUGH PAIRS OF SWEATPANTS:

I lived in corporate causal clothes. Even when I came home I usually cooked, ate dinner, and did home things in my work clothes so as not to miss out on time with the kids. I probably took off my jacket and necklaces. But now that I don’t have to wear these clothes anymore I realized I am sorely lacking comfortable clothes that I can also be seen by my neighbors in.

THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS 9-5:

My busiest client is from the West Coast so their 3:00pm is my dinner time. I find myself writing the best blog posts at midnight and I’m waking up in the middle of the night with some amazing idea or a light bulb of something I forgot. My brain is on constant go mode. Between juggling the kids home for summer and feeding a toddler literally all day long I have to use all of the hours- at the strangest times- to get everything done.

NOTHING GETS DONE ALL AT ONCE:

I mean that unless I specifically tell my kids to go away and leave me alone no task gets completed from beginning to end all in one sitting. If only you could half scratch something off your list I’d be a pro at that. Someone always needs a sippy cup or a band-aid or permission to go the park. Or like today I was typing away when an entire bag of goldfish spilled onto the floor. Thankfully I caught her before the toddler tried to pick it up and continue to spill the rest of the bag!

YOU DON’T MOVE ENOUGH:

All of my past corporate jobs included some sort of kitchen or work space or banquet space. Those were never right next to my office. I was up and down, in and out all day long. Now I move from desk to table to couch to chair. Well, in between picking up the goldfish off the floor and diaper changing that is. The couch is way more comfortable than my office chair though… that’s for sure.

ADULT INTERACTION DOESN’T EXIST:

Now given my last situation, taking a break from people has been a much needed respite. But for the few people I met in the corporate environment that I did enjoy speaking to and getting to know- I miss that little bit of human interaction. Lunch with people. Laughing about something only adults understand. Having a to do list that gets done in it’s proper order. You know… the things that don’t happen when you’re holed up on a computer at home.

I’m sure if you’re a WAHM then you totally understand what I’m saying. I am so incredibly grateful and happy that I am able to do this. I even wonder if I really ever want to go back to the corporate world. I think it might be better to just invest in a few more pairs of sweatpants.

A Note for My Regular Readers: 

My virtual managing business, iDo Collective,  is getting busy and I am finding people who find my knowledge valuable. All of that is very rewarding and it’s caused me to have to start reevaluating my time and energy. A while back I asked many of you if you felt that I was writing too many articles in a week. You all wanted to keep hearing more and so I made a point to provide content three times a week. But what I’m actually finding is… THAT IS HARD. I know it seems like I’m just typing some words in a doc and hitting publish but there is SO much more to that. Growing your following, promoting your posts, engaging with your readers, finding photos, creating matching graphics for all of your social media, making calendars, being a photography pro, learning how to click to tweet, and mail chimp etc etc etc… it’s just so much more than typing a fun story.

Most popular bloggers publish 1 blog post per week and spend the entire week promoting the same article. Sometimes, I’ll write something awesome and I’ll promote it for one day and I know it would be well received for a few more days but I’ve been moving onto the next article. Needless to say, I might be overdoing it. SO… in order to be awesome for my clients… and in order to keep putting out things you actually want to read… I’m going to back off 1 day of posts per week and move down to 2 per week. Starting this week. I’ll still write awesome stuff you want to read just a little less of it. And hopefully… it’ll be even better.

Last note! If you want to talk with me every single day or be involved in a group of awesome women who want to live an unfiltered life join us in our free facebook group where I visit every day! It’s a place to keep it all real and be totally yourself!! If you want to meet and talk with people who are looking to remove all of the cotton candy and filters of social media then this is the place for you! Consider joining!

So there it is! All good news though! This means business is getting busier! As always I so much appreciate your support and your faithfulness in reading the blog. You are all my favorite people in the world! I can’t thank you enough!

#sonottogether