Juggling a career with raising a family is tough to say the least. Working mothers are expected to work as if they don’t have children waiting for them at home, and take care of their kids at home as if they don’t have a job in the office and deadlines to beat. And many working mothers, especially those who work 9 to 5 traditional jobs often dream of staying home instead to spend more time with their kids. Who wouldn’t want that?

But most working mothers have no other choice but to join the workforce to augment the family’s income. As soon as their maternity leaves expire they, along with thousands of women, have to leave their precious children to get back to work and earn a living.  They clock in and wait for the day to end, then run home to see their child again. This is what they do on a daily basis.

The good news is, now, with technology so many moms can stay home, earn a living, and spend more time with their children. So many moms have successfully transitioned from working full-time away from their children to becoming a WAHM or Work at Home Mom. So many companies all over the world have started to provide telecommuting options for employees and work from home arrangements. Other moms have chosen a career in writing and editing, social media management, graphic arts, and customer service among many others.

Also read : 8 Home-based Work Options for Moms 

But the decision to transition while very tempting, should be considered carefully. Here are some of the questions you need to ask yourself before you even toy with the idea of quitting this job and working from home instead.

1. Are you ready financially?

This is the top question you need to answer, one that requires a mom to start planning to cut back on his or her expenses or save up before finally making the transition. Another, more important question you need to ask is; is your family ready financially? You might have children depending on your monthly pay check. Will your husband be able to carry the financial load while you’re transitioning? You’ll have to understand that you might be needing a few months to get back on track. You might not get a regular paycheck right away. Do you have enough money saved up to cushion the impact?

2. Are you ready emotionally and physically? 

Will you be ready to leave a career with a fat paycheck and a stelar job title? No more fancy office, no more getting power dressed in the morning to conquer the world. No more staff or assistants to schedule your meetings and engagements. Will you be ready for that? You’ll also have to get used to having just yourself as company at home. No more office friends to have lunch with everyday. Some women who are used to the frenzied hustle and bustle take awhile to get used to a work-from-home set-up.

3. What are your options? 

Before you take that leap, you have to know where you’re going to land. What are your career options as a work-at-home-mom? List down your skills and capabilities and check that against available work at home jobs online. How many can you apply to considering your knowledge and skills? Will you earn enough to support your family with these options available for you?

While we all dream of a more flexible work schedule that will allow us to be with our children and spend more time with them, there are so many things we need to consider before we chose to take that leap. These three questions are just among the many you need to start asking yourself even before you consider taking a job that will allow you to work from home.

#WAHM #workfromhome #workathome #telecommuting