The demand for remote roles continues to rise. A recent survey found that fully on-site roles are trending downwards, although there has been a slight slowdown in the number of employers offering flexible options. However, if you’re thinking about working from home with kids, it’s vital to have a plan to deal with all the challenges that go along with it. 

Work from home with kids – the benefits 

Before we dive into the challenges parents face when they work from home with kids around, it’s important to note that type: entry-hyperlink id: 3l7h54BL4YCrOyN1dXuDW4 offers many benefits for those parents as well. Those benefits may include any of the following (depending on your family circumstances):

• You could avoid costly childcare expenses

• You’re always at home and available if your kids need you

• You won't look back later in life and feel like you missed your kids' special moments

Remote work can often allow more flexibility in your schedule. In many instances, you may not have to take time off to attend parent-teacher conferences and award ceremonies, care for your kids when they are sick, or show up for your kids' soccer games. With a little effort, you can often rearrange your work schedule to ensure that you achieve the right work-life balance.

Work from home with kids – the challenges

Despite those benefits, remote work can also be challenging – especially when you have young children in the home. In many ways, remote work is the ultimate test in finding type: entry-hyperlink id: 54dm6dVO2hKfOx550T3yrE, if only because it can be difficult to properly separate those two parts of your life. In the end, how you achieve that balance will determine just how successful you can be in your remote work adventure.

Distractions

The first thing most remote workers with children often notice is just how easy it is to get distracted when they are trying to work. Kids often get confused when mommy or daddy is suddenly no longer leaving for work every day. In their minds, if you are in the house, then you are off work – and theirs to interact with throughout the day. 

Extra demands on your time

Smaller children can be especially demanding of your time when you’re working from home. They are the least likely to understand that you are working and, thus, more inclined to expect you will be as attentive as usual. Even older kids can struggle with this new dynamic and may seek attention more frequently. The challenge is to figure out how to manage everyone's expectations in a way that brings balance.

Blurring of work-life boundaries

You may also experience difficulties with securing respect for your workspace and time and creating a sense of normalcy for your family. Most of us have been told throughout our lives to leave work at work and home at home. Now, millions of people are not only bringing work home but making home their workplace. Without a plan, that choice can lead to disaster. 

How to work from home with kids: tips

Where you are in the baby-raising stage or have progressed to having teenagers in your home, you probably need help managing your work-life balance without feeling like you’re constantly compromising. Here are nine tips for working from home with kids that you can mix and match to find what works best for your family. 

3 tips for remote workers with babies

If you have a baby in the house, you might think you have it made. After all, they spend a good part of their days sleeping, so it should be simple to get all your work done without interference. The reality is that babies require a great deal of care. There are feedings to be done, diapers to be changed, and other needs that must be addressed. When thinking about how to manage work-from-home life with kids under one, bear these tips in mind:

1. Don’t try to do everything on your own

If you relied on family assistance or some other form of childcare before you started remote work, there is no real reason to stop getting that help. Whether it is a relative who comes over to help take care of your baby or a part-time babysitter, that assistance can enable you to focus on your job. So, if help is available, don’t be afraid to accept it.

2. Take advantage of baby's naps

One of the best things about babies is they tend to have their own established routines. Fortunately, those routines include napping at certain times of the day. The good news is that you can schedule phone calls, type: entry-hyperlink id: 2rP3sHLevjI7IS9SHbeJy2, and other activities that require your full attention to coincide with baby's downtime. 

3. Split childcare time with your partner

If you have a partner, try to type: entry-hyperlink id: 3OP6JV0r0PAJ7BIwyySzxT in a way that splits childcare responsibilities. Take some time to sit down and figure out changes you can make to your schedules to ensure your job can be done without avoidable distractions.

3 tips for remote workers with toddlers

The toddler years bring a different set of challenges. Once your child reaches this stage, they will be more mobile, more inquisitive, and even more in need of proper boundaries. Consider these three tips as you determine the best way to manage your remote work with a toddler in the home:

1. Properly define work and play areas

From an early age, you should be teaching your child to recognize the boundaries between your work area and their play areas. Hopefully, you’ll be able to designate a specific room as your office, complete with a door that you can shut when you don’t want to be disturbed. At the same time, you should also make sure your toddler has a designated play area. 

You also need to train your little one to know when you cannot be disturbed. For example, teach them that they cannot come into the office when you have the door shut. Obviously, the other side of that rule is that they can enter when the door is open. 

2. Schedule breaks to interact with them

Obviously, a two or three-year-old should not be left alone for any length of time. Kids that age can get into serious trouble without supervision, so it’s assumed that you have either put your child's play area close to your office or have arranged for a type: entry-hyperlink id: 16Ybwx173DeChsLOdHAEJ2. 

Regardless of which option you choose, it’s important to make time each day to interact with your little one. Schedule regular breaks that you can spend with your toddler to play with them, get them a snack, or take care of other needs.

3. Train them using positive reinforcement

To get the best results when you’re training your toddler to respect your remote work environment and schedule, always use positive reinforcement. Reinforce the idea they are helping you with your job when they follow your rules.

Reward them for good results and behavior. Eventually, your toddler will get in the habit of respecting your workspace and routine. Even so, you should expect some aberrant behavior from time to time and have diversions on hand to redirect your young one's attention. Building blocks, toy cars, and puzzles can all be great diversions for any young mind. 

3 tips for remote workers with school-age kids 

While school-age kids may not need to be watched every minute of the day, they do present their own challenges for remote work. From homework to extracurricular activities, they too have needs that can prove distracting for any work-from-home parent. These three tips can help you plan ways to overcome those challenges:

1. Make sure your schedule is flexible

Parenting school-age children comes with a new set of responsibilities that include everything from after-school activities and parent-teacher meetings to driving them to and from school. You should be prepared to adjust your work schedule as needed to ensure that you can manage all those extra duties while still maintaining productivity during your working hours. 

2. Encourage your kids to hang out with friends

One way to occupy your school-age children is to encourage hangouts with friends. While it might seem strange to contemplate, you can even do this by having their friends come to your house. Kids are surprisingly good at entertaining one another. Having several of your kids' friends over to your house can be a great way to keep them occupied while you are working.

3. Conquer challenges as a family

If your kids are school-age, then they are old enough to understand the difference between work and play. Now is the best time to get them invested in helping you conquer your remote work challenges. Make sure everyone knows their role in the family and that every family member has a “job” to do that helps you avoid distractions while you are working. 

Expert tip: Your seven-year-old's job might be as simple as doing the day's homework and then playing a game. 

The important thing is that everyone is committed to meeting your remote work and home life challenges as a family. When you all know and do your part, you can create the work-life balance you need for long-term job satisfaction and a rewarding home life. 

Recognize that nothing is perfect

No matter how well you plan or how successful your strategies might be, something will always go wrong. Remote work is always a work in progress – and that is even truer when you have kids in the home. Or pets. Or any distractions, really. The key is to persevere, learn from every new experience, and adapt as necessary to find the success you want and deserve. 

Never underestimate the importance of communication

It’s vital to remember that society and our interactions are always in flux. Working remotely can help you stay on top of those things, but there will always be distractions and other complications that arise. The key is to maintain open lines of communication so that these complications can be resolved. 

Communicate with your family

Rather than getting frustrated about situations, take the time to talk to your partner, your children (if they’re the right age to understand), and your support network. Don’t be afraid to ask for help, whether as a one-off or on an ongoing basis. You don’t have to manage everything on your own – no one is superhuman!

Communicate with your employer

Keep your line manager informed of your work-from-home situation. If you foresee scheduling conflicts, for example, be open about them. 

• Communicate your availability

• Keep your calendar up-to-date

• Make sure your work is completed on time 

All of this will show you have the time management skills to juggle working from home with kids – and that should work to your credit on the rare occasions when the best-laid plans simply don’t work out. 

If you work for an employer that is both supportive and flexible, you can overcome challenges as they crop up. But what if your employer doesn’t provide the support or flexibility you need to work from home with kids in the home? If that’s the case, then it might be time to seriously type: entry-hyperlink id: 4g3YlnFAP0da3927MnVvcP and start looking for a new remote job that provides the support you need. 

Win at work-life balance

Working from home with kids can be both rewarding and challenging. To get the most out of the experience, it’s vital to recognize the obstacles and know how to overcome them. By adopting these strategies, you can more effectively create the work-life balance you need as a remote worker with kids.

If you’re looking for a work-from-home job with kids, make sure your aptitude for remote work is clear on your resume. Why not send it for a free resume review by one of our experts to make sure it hits all the right notes?

This article was originally written by Ken Chase and has been updated by Jen David.

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