All parents are striving for more balance?fewer hours at work, more downtime with our families. But in an effort to achieve career success and provide all the perks of a middle-class upbringing, parents are working harder than ever. A recent study showed that 41 percent of full-time working parents have seen their hours increase in the last five years.
This mismatch between what we need to earn and how much time we want to spend with our kids has led many parents to seek work-from-home opportunities?a chance to earn a living while being around for more of the milestones and special moments. When you take into account the high costs of daycare, some work-from-home parents find that they can work fewer hours for an equivalent paycheck.
My own work-from-home career started when I was already in the house on maternity leave. My steady job disappeared while I was away and a little extra money earned here and there while my son slept built up slowly into a profitable business. I now find myself working from home full time, sometimes in my pyjamas, while my son is at preschool or being cared for by others, and let me tell you, while it has some benefits, working from home isn’t the panacea I thought it would be. For one thing, WFH mom guilt is every bit as insidious as working mom guilt. In my three-year-old son’s eyes, I am always working and Daddy is the fun one. On Saturday mornings, when I announce that it?s the weekend and I won’t be working, he practically ...