Marriage and Working From Home

I have worked from home for the past 5 years. This month, actually, is my 5 year anniversary of working from home. I have been married that whole time. In fact, I started my first business about 6 months after I got married. My husband had a hobby, and I didn't really have one. So I started that business as a hobby, and eventually worked harder to earn money. Now, I am doing a business that I am actually earning money with, and I love it. But one thing remains - my marriage comes first.

There are a few things I've learned over the past 5 years about how to make working from home work for you if you are married and/or have children:

• Schedule your time! Plan out exactly when you are going to work, and let your family know. If you plan to work evenings, make sure your husband is aware and supportive. For me, I try to work during the times that my husband has something else going on. Of course, that is not always the case, but he knows I'm earning money, so he's usually fine with it.
• Keep your business and personal life separate. By doing the first thing, scheduling your time, you will be able to focus on your business during business time and your family during family time. That is such a common problem with people working from home - they try to combine it with their family life, and everyone's unhappy. The key is to find time that you can truly focus on your business, and then the other times - RELAX and spend time with your fam.
• Take time for yourself and your marriage. This is similar to the previous point, but I mean dedicated, separate time. Perhaps it's a date night or a family day. Perhaps it's a bubble bath or a movie night. Recently, my husband and I went away for marriage retreat. This is something we do every year. It's a way to just focus on our marriage and each other. It is so much fun, and during that time, I didn't do any business. It was purely a fun weekend away.

If you're looking for some great marriage advice, I recommend checking out Laugh Your Way to a Better Marriage. Last year at our marriage retreat, we watched these videos and they are great!