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MAY 2008
WAHMZONE.COM
Where Business and Motherhood Meet
May 2008
So did the April showers bring May flowers in your neck of the woods? Here in Michigan, flowers are, indeed, beginning to bloom. And they are gorgeous! Why not stop and smell a few today?
Speaking of flowers, I want to take a minute to wish all of you wahms out there a happy Mother’s Day! Take advantage of your special day by doing something fun, relaxing, and refreshing. You won’t want to miss this month’s article on the importance of taking a time out for you.
Most importantly, I hope you take a moment to look at the faces of your kids and remember what a blessing it is to be a mom!
We appreciate you turning to WahmZone.com for your business, as well as motherhood, needs. WahmZone.com really does have loads of resources, links, and support for you as you deal with the everyday issues of being a work-at-home mom.
Resources like:
-The Business Zone. Practical articles for your business. http://www.wahmzone.com/Business/index.php
-The Family Zone. Helpful articles for your family matters. http://www.wahmzone.com/Family/index.php
- Recipe Zone. Cooking articles and lots of great recipes to try! http://www.wahmzone.com/Recipe/index.php
- Message boards. I’m going to keep reminding you of this until I see each and every one of you signed up. There truly is no better way to learn and grow both in your work and at home than by connecting with other moms who are right where you are! The wahms over at www.wahmforums.com are fun, easy-going, and carry a wealth of information that could help you in your everyday life. So what are you waiting for? Get connected today! http://www.wahmforums.com/boards
MAY FEATURED WAHMS
Thanks to Jamie Jachim and Jenni Saake for taking the time to let us know about the work they do from home. Check out the details about their companies, below. Maybe one (or both) will be something you’d like to try. Contact them via the link provided for more information.
Featured Wahm #1
NAME: Jaimie Jachim
Company: Tastefully Simple
How long with company: Sold it a few years ago and am back a few months now
Approximate hours worked per week on average, including all aspects of the job - home shows, marketing, ordering, packaging, etc.: Honestly, every week is different! It all depends on what is going on in my family life. I book everything around my children's schedules. If I have a party, there are about 4 hours involved for each one. If I have an online party going, there is literally only about 5 minutes involved. Online fundraisers also have very little time invested.
Orders are shipped directly to the customer so there is no shipping and handling involved. I spend about an average of 1 hour a week on host coaching, asking for parties and fundraisers, etc. Most of the time, people approach me at my kids baseball games, wrestling matches etc and ask about parties, so there is very little marketing involved. Tastefully Simple sells itself!
Average weekly income: Again, it depends. There are times I have no home parties, other weeks I have 1, and other times I have one or two. They say that the average party is about $400; however I find that mine average slightly higher. Not sure whether it's because of demographics, party size, or just luck, but I average between $500-$600, sometimes more, occasionally less. I get paid about 25% on my party sales (36% minus 10% hostess credit and 1% sample allowance). I always try to have an online party going, as well. These parties average much less, but so does the work. As I said, it all depends on what I have going on in the week. Every week is different!
What the job consists of: My job consists of demonstrating delicious gourmet foods and beverages, most of which are prepared by the host. I also take orders and book additional parties. I do online parties, home parties, and fundraisers. My upline is in another state so I do not attend meetings, but she is fantastic about getting me the information I need, pretty much instantly.
The best part of the job: The best part of my job is that I get to be a mom as well as my own person without taking much time away from my family life. I schedule parties around ball games and wrestling matches. I get out just enough for my own "sanity" time!
Most challenging part of the job: Now that Tastefully Simple has a new website system called "TS Connected", there are not really many challenges. This new system has completely simplified every obstacle I've ever had, such as bookings and getting my name out there. I get orders from people I've never met, I can hold online parties for hosts that cannot have a home party. I can even send e-vites, where if a guest cannot attend, they can still place orders on my site and apply it towards the hostess credits! Because of this feature, apprehensive hosts are much more willing to giving online hosting a chance!
Thing you love most about the product(s): Oh gosh, the products are not only delicious they are simple and versatile as well! All of our products require only 1-2 additional ingredients that most of us already have in our refrigerators, and they may require 1-2 steps to prepare! You can use them for their intended purpose, or in your recipes to kick up the flavor of average meals... Our products are great!
Why should other moms consider looking into working for this company? This is my second time around with this company and I am completely in love with it!! The first time, circumstances beyond my control led me to give it up. Now, Tastefully Simple has really stepped it up so that anyone can work with them! What I love is that I am a bit unorganized at times (that's an understatement) but everything is so easy to track through the website. People hear that I am doing this again and approach me about having parties! It's really a breeze and a fantastic way of making a little extra cash and most importantly, getting out of the house!
Website or other link: www.tastefullysimple.com/web/jjachim
Featured Wahm #2
NAME: Jennifer (Jenni) Saake
Company: Affordable Mineral Makeup
How long with company: Not quite 5 months
Approximate hours worked per week on average, including all aspects of the job: 15-20
Average weekly income: Commissions are earned monthly. My first month I earned just over $20 in commissions. Last month (my 4th month as a consultant) I earned just shy of $150 and this number is growing on a monthly basis. I believe I can be consistently earning several hundred every month before my one year anniversary with AMM. In addition, I have earned non-cash rewards such as free website upgrades, "Consultant of the Month" prizes and rewards, and commission rate increases, simply for reaching goals and accepting challenges offered by our company founder.
What the job consists of:
- Learning and staying educated about the general benefits of mineral makeup and the specific products carried in our line.
- Participating in a consultant email group to stay informed about company news and connected with the entire consultant team.
- Responding to customer inquiries and actively following up with prior customers.
- Promoting my website. I do this primarily through participation on several business message boards such as wahmforums.com
- While fully optional, I also maintain a blog to offer additional information to my customers and potential customers, and to cross-promote my business. My time writing articles and maintaining this blog (than goes well beyond the scope of my AMM business) is factored into the "business hours" that I listed as invested each week.
- Other options (not requirements) are to host home parties, attend vendor fairs, offer online parties, and more. I will be attending my first vendor fair soon and have done a few one-on-one makeovers with some local friends, but am focusing my business primarily on online sales.
The best part of the job: The benefit that first drew me to this company was my ability to purchase a great, high quality product at a sizable consultant discount. (Since AMM already prices well below big brand names of comparable quality, the discount makes for an incredible deal!) Since this is a product I would already be using on a near-daily basis, it only made sense to purchase as a consultant. My initial goal was only to sell enough to earn commissions that would cover my own purchases, but I am now bringing a profit beyond my own spending and that is really exciting.
Most challenging part of the job: Wanting to "know it all" from day one. I long to offer my customers the very best service I can, but we offer so many wonderful products that I have to take my time to learn something new every week. I'm trying a few new products each month so that I can share from personal experience. While it is tempting to just jump in and order everything, I am committed to not spending more than I'm earning and I have to learn patience as I take things one step at a time and build my knowledge base. When I face a customer question in an area that I do not have experience, I rely heavily on the input of other more experienced consultants and the ready advice of our company founder. In turn, I try to stay available to newer consultants and share the things I'm learning along the way.
Thing you love most about the product(s): It's hard to pick just one thing. I guess I would have to choose quality, followed closely by price. After not being able to wear any forms of makeup (even hypoallergenic ones) for years due to allergies, I converted to mineral makeup a few years ago because it was so healing to my acne and other skin problems. I quickly found that not all mineral makeups are created equally. I have to be very careful about the brands I choose or I still run into skin problems. But I cringed at the cost of the big brand name I was using. After trying several discounted brands I was convinced that I would have to stick with the pricey brand or give up makeup all together again.
Affordable Mineral Makeup was my answer. Our products contain NO Bismuth (a common irritant found even in some of the big brand names) nor other fillers such as talc or cornstarch. There are NO chemicals, parabens, petroleum, oils, dyes nor preservatives. Just beautiful, natural minerals at a price I can live with! I am very proud to represent a company that is a signer of the Compact of Safe Cosmetics at www.safecosmetics.org
Why should other moms consider looking into working for this company? I've tried several online businesses and a few offline ones too. This is the first company I've found that really "works" for me. I've poured as much or more time and effort into so many things with very little results to show for my efforts. Tara, the founder of AMM, makes this company rewarding and encourages effort through great consultant incentives, fun monthly consultant contests and a positive work environment that encourages me to want to continue growing and earning customers.
Website or other link: www.InnerBeautyGirls.com
I also offer a Beauty Blog at www.InnerBeautyGirlz.blogspot.com with makeup tips, beauty tricks, book and product reviews, notice of sales and specials, inspirational articles and more, all designed to help you let your inner beauty shine! :)
MAY FEATURED ARTICLE
In keeping with the Mother’s Day theme, I hope you’ll enjoy the selected article. We all know how important it is (and how much better we feel) when we get a little “me time.” Here’s how to get your family to understand it, too, and how to make “me time” without disrupting your family’s schedule.
Getting the family to understand Mom needs "Me time"
By: Bizymoms.com Management
Your family needs to understand that moms need to have a "time out" too. However, you have to grab those illusive chances before they are gone. Let’s look at some ways to make time for mom without starting a family mutiny.
Give Yourself a Break
Most women already know what the statistics show: We are still carrying most of the load. We juggle kids, work, home, volunteering and everything in between. Are we really enriching our lives by doing everything?
"When we are stressed, overwhelmed and tired, we have a shorter fuse. We become irritable, and it’s more difficult to handle the challenges of being with children," says Rachelle Disbennett-Lee, a personal life coach in Aurora, Colorado.
Logically, we know that running ourselves on empty isn't good for our health or our families. But the instinct to be a devoted mother means operating in overdrive. We want our children to be happy, and we desire to give them every possible life experience, even at the expense of our own needs. We feel guilty if our children don't have everything we think they should have.
"When we emerge from our solitude, we are stronger, more relaxed and calmer," says Disbennett-Lee. She adds that as much as we need a break, our children need one, too. When we establish "mommy time," we are in fact helping our children learn independence, socialization and hopefully, an appreciation of what we do for them. Even more importantly, we are demonstrating that taking care of ourselves is important.
One word of caution, "Me" time should not be scheduled at the sacrifice of others or occupy a large portion of your schedule. If you have been on a business trip for a week it's not fair to your family to schedule the entire weekend as "me" time.
Here are a few tips for moms on the run who are smart enough to get a little ‘me time.’ Make sure you pick up on the humorous side of the situation in this 8 Rule Plan.
1. Tell your family when you will be gone and for what reason. Be very clear - then go do it.
2. Unless someone is sick and there's no one else to watch them -- don't listen to reasons why you shouldn't go. The chores and Holiday projects can wait -- or they can begin them without you.
3. If you don't go -- don't blame it on your family.
4. If you are sick, let them know you plan to make up your lost "girlfriend time" at the next convenient opportunity.
5. Even though you love your family, try to get out by yourself (especially during the holidays).
6. Look around, are there more things in the house you could delegate to others? If so, do it. This will take more of the load off of you.
7. Try not to take a pager or phone. Everything will be there when you get back.
8. If you are going to be late let dad explain, in a positive way, that you will see them in the morning.
Schedule your, ‘me time’ on the weekend when your husband or another family member can spend some quality time with your children. I tend to take my ’me time’ on the weekends, because I have more energy and it allows my husband to spend some one-on-one time with our daughter. She enjoys having daddy take her to the park, and I get a few hours away from the house to unwind. It’s amazing what just three hours will do!
If your children are younger, schedule your ‘me time’ around naps. If you really feel like you can’t leave the house when your children are awake, then schedule your ‘me time’ during their naps on the weekend. Take a two-hour break, go out and grab lunch, see a movie, or take a book to the local coffee shop and enjoy some quiet time.
Rally the Troops
To successfully plan a time out for yourself, get everyone in the family involved. Even the smallest hands can reduce the workload for Mom. Trade babysitting with another mom and use that time to rejuvenate. Give yourself a spa treatment with a hot bubble bath and pamper yourself with quality moisturizers. Indulge with "grown up" things like fine chocolates or a glass of wine with a good book. Connecting with other moms is also fulfilling and relaxing.
Something else to remember as we look for light at the end of the tunnel: This time with our children will go faster than we think. As our children get older, we will have more and more time to ourselves. If we use this time wisely and take care of ourselves, the whole family will reap the benefits.
Though it’s difficult to take time away from your children, it is definitely an important thing to do. Remember, an important part about being a mom is identifying when burnout is setting in and then going out and doing something about it. Oftentimes just a few hours away will be enough to help you renew and recharge; not only will you notice the difference, but your children will as well.
Article Source: http://www.ApprovedArticles.com
www.bizymoms.com has been dedicated to helping moms work at home for over 10 years. Visit today to enjoy free resources like live chats, interactive message boards, informative articles and of course help and advice from the Bizymoms’ Home Business Support Team!
This May, I truly hope you take the time to stop and smell the flowers. May you enjoy your special day and remember that mothering your children is a job only you can do. What an important and blessed job it is!
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