Children in the Home Business EnvironmentCopyright © Power Affiliates Pro Teamhttp://www.poweraffiliatespro.com/15faqDear Hussein mohammed muritala,Operating a home business is seldom easy and interruptions comein all shapes, sizes and forms.Between the family, friends and neighbors who call or come by,and the telemarketers who insist on ringing your number off thehook, getting through the workday can be a real challenge.When you introduce children into the home office environment,your productivity and patience can be seriously tested.For example, right now my three-year old daughter is pulling onmy shirt and begging me to read her a story. Clearly, Im in themiddle of something important here, but how can I say no tothose eyes? Ill be right back...Ok, that wasnt so bad was it? Shes happy, Im happy (havingbonded with my daughter) and now Im back to continue myconversation with you :-) Whats the lesson here? Flexibilityis a major key to balancing your home business priorities withyour familys needs.I can tell you from first-hand experience that maintaining adeep level of concentration on work in a home business for longperiods of time is next to impossible. Naptime does offer somereprieve, but any break from the kids is usually short lived.Even with older children, summertime introduces new challengeswith kids running in and out of the house all throughout the day.I would like to share with you some of the tips I havediscovered to help manage your home office with children in yourmidst. Since children of different ages pose differentchallenges, I will present my tips in terms of age groups.OLDER CHILDREN AND TEENSWe will look at older children first since they pose the leastchallenge to our work productivity.Children, who are old enough to understand the idea of schedulesand chores, are old enough to understand the needs of your homebusiness. Explain to your children that you do your work at homeso that you can be near them when they need you. But also besure they understand that you must do your work so that you willhave the money necessary to keep your house, feed the family andto provide them with money for entertainment.Once your children understand the necessity of your work, thenoutline a work schedule and explain it to them. Do make surethey understand that emergencies are definitely an acceptablereason to interrupt your work. Then make sure they understandthat between hours x and y, you will be doing work --- and thenhold them to respecting your schedule.INFANTSInfants will never understand your needs for work. Butfortunately, babies do well under a schedule or routine. Insteadof expecting your child to work around your schedule, scheduleyour work around the needs of your baby.It is simple. Babies eat, sleep and poop. Sometimes they play.Fortunately, babies sleep more than they do anything else.Naptime offers the best advantage for getting your work done.Get your baby into a routine of eat, sleep and play, and youwill experience unexpected levels of productivity.TODDLERSIf you have a toddler running around the house while you areoperating your home business, then you may find that your hairturning gray or disappearing altogether. But, gray hair is asign of character, right. ;-)I am venturing to guess that the person who devised the doorlock for the inside of the house did so because he had toddlersin his own home. Inside door locks should only be utilized whenyou are making that important phone call and your toddler isscreaming for your attention. At all other times, your doorshould remain unlocked with your door open.Develop a routine with your children for meal times, naptimes,and play times. Work these times into your work schedule andadhere to them. If you fail to keep appointments with yourchildren, your children will have less respect for your work anddo more to prevent you from the completion of your work.Don`t be afraid to let your children sit in your lap while youare working. It helps them to feel wanted and it helps them tobe a part of your daily life. There are times when it is okayfor them to be sitting in your lap while you work, and at othertimes you need them out of your lap. Don`t be afraid to tellthem to get down and go play or read a book so that you canresume your work.Permit your children to have their toys in your office. Oftenthey will sit contently and play while you work. Just knowingyou are near is enough to keep them happy.Be prepared to take an hourly break to deal with your toddler.Try to do potty breaks at your hourly break and to do drinkrefills. This can help your child grow into a routine that willwork well with your home business. At each break, spend a fewminutes with your child giving hugs and kisses and talking withyour child about what he or she wants to talk about.Toddlers don`t always do well with the routine, so be preparedto take a few minutes when needed to give the attention thatyour child so desperately needs in the moment.IN CONCLUSIONI hope these tips serve to help you in the challenge ofoperating a successful home business.My home business permits me to fulfill my financial obligations*AND* see my children grow up. I would never contemplate tradingmy home business for another kind of business. Even with theadded challenges of dealing with toddlers in my home office, theupsides far outweigh the downsides.Growing my own home business with children around has definitelygiven me a new respect for all people who successfully run ahome business with kids in the work environment. I tip my hat toyou... You deserve it!