Juggling Several Part Time Online Opportunities

In working from home, it is sometimes necessary to take on several part time online job opportunities. In doing so, this allows some moms to be able to work the desired number of hours, which may or may not equal full time hours. This is solely the personal choice of the working mom. It can be very rewarding to work on several different projects. It can also be somewhat complicated depending on the situation.

Rewards with Several Opportunities

Once you are prepared to work online, it may be your desire to start at a slower pace. This is possible, allowing time for adjustment for you and the family. A single mom may desire to work only a small number of hours. There are a large amount of part time opportunities available in the online work world.

Another reward to working smaller projects is the ability to provide work variety, in the work week. For example, one stay at home mom is currently working two long term projects online. The first one involves writing business articles for a company for approximately 15 hours in her work week. In the second project, she is working on creating graphic designs for another company. The graphics work is adding an additional 10 hours to her weekly schedule. By doing two different projects, it is allowing variety in the work provided.

Reducing Scheduling Conflicts

When taking on different projects, the timing of providing services may have no real conflicts. But, there is the potential for this to occur. So, be aware of the possibilities as this can really throw a curve ball into your plans.

For example, the mother with the article writing project, as well as the graphics project, is working as planned. The employer from the first job has asked her to also work on a new project to go along with her current work. The challenge comes in that her boss is asking her to do a writing job, which would generally be no problem. The topic is an area that she has no previous background in, but to help her boss, she decides to do her best.

In working on the additional project, she finds that it is very hard to write articles in the format desired by her manager. The project ended up taking her much more time than she originally planned.

To reduce scheduling conflicts, always allow some extra time in your designated work week. Review the details of each project and do not shy from asking additional questions. Evaluate the deadlines of each project together, to see if it is feasible.

Working several part time online opportunities is a rewarding journey. It allows the individual to learn new skills or gain experience in a variety of areas. It should be done with careful planning to prevent project overload.

Scheduling Hints

There are several things that you can do, as a mom, to help with scheduling. It is important to have a written or computerized schedule to be organized. Several programs are available online to help with this task. Some sites have schedules that can be printed in various forms, to be filled out by hand.

Email providers, such as Yahoo or Google, have online scheduling capabilities. Microsoft Outlook also has a calendar function. If you are a homeschool mom, Home School Tracker has built in scheduling functions. There are a variety of means to keep a schedule and calendar available. The goal is finding the one that works best for you.
Project descriptions given by the online employer may or may not include timeframes of work. Most projects will at least have a project deadline. For example, an online project description for a writer may give details about the type of articles to be written, the keywords desired as well as a project deadline. It may not give the amount of articles that should be done each day.

If the project is flexible, the writer can pace herself by doing a certain number of articles each day. Depending on the topic, most average articles can be written in one-half hour, if the applicant is familiar with the topic. If 20 articles are due within a week, then the writer can determine the project will take about 10-12 hours to complete. Always allow some extra time in your week to provide a cushion in project work, or if extra assignments come up with an existing employer.

Communicating with your Employers

It is very important to communicate with your employers. I cannot stress this enough. Communications should be on a professional level. Information given to the employer should be mostly work related. This will vary by the job opportunity.

The people that you will work for, will have a variety of personalities. Some will be very good with communication. Some will not communicate as well as desired. This should not prevent you from asking questions. Now, if you are asking too many questions, a change may be needed. Either, the employer is not doing well with providing needed information, or you may not be working the right job.

If an employer does not communicate well, this can be due to a variety of reasons. They may be very busy and overloaded with their own workload. This does not dismiss the fact, that as a business person they should be able communicate effectively with their employees. Another reason for an employer not communicating well can be, they are not a naturally social person. They may not like to do emails and so on. Unfortunately, they may not be enjoying their work which may make it difficult to enjoy yours.

If you need to ask multiple questions, evaluate why this may be. Here are some questions to consider:

 Am I qualified and have the skills needed for this job?
 Is there additional research that I need to do for the project at hand?
 Is the employer having an off day, or do I have consistent communication problems with them?
 Does the employer answer emails or communications in a timely manner? Please allow some leeway here, as they are also working on projects.
 Am I getting overwhelmed doing the project at hand?
 Do I need to make a change within my work habits to help with completion of the project?
 Do I need to make a change in job opportunities?

One Final Note

One final note is needed concerning communications. There are times that moms will need to discuss personal issues, such as a family emergency that will result in a possible delay in work provided. It is important to keep personal information to a minimum.

Most communications will take place by email. Email does not allow the individuals to see the other person. Communications can be taken wrong if not worded very carefully. It is important that the employer does not get the impression that the worker is “whining” or “complaining” about their work. Be honest in communicating, but also keep it professional. You always want the employer to be on your side and provide positive feedback on the work you have done.

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