When I first started working from home, I was a little sheepish when it came to telling other people what I did for work. Part of that may come from being a full time stay at home mom, because I know that there are many women out there who would like to stay home with their children but are for whatever reason unable to do so. I was a little shy about mentioning that because I don’t want anyone to get the idea that I’m some wealthy, spoiled princess who does not have to work for a living. While it is true that my husband supports our family through his work, I also have to work to pay some of our expenses. In order to stay at home with the kids, I had to find a way to earn money from home, which I did.
Some of my reluctance to disclose what I do for work could also be because I am afraid of being judged. Sometimes, people pass judgment on people who have earned advanced professional degrees and then chose to stay home to parent their children. Raising children has always been a dream of mine, and that is what I choose to do right now. I can have a successful law career later in life, and right now I can keep my skills sharp by working from home on a part time basis.
Over time I have become less shy about discussing my work. Part of this is because I feel so fortunate to work from home. After all, if working from home is enabling me to fulfill my dreams, I feel that it is very important to tell other people about it because it just might help them to fulfill dreams of their own. If even one person that I reach through my writing or through conversation in person is inspired by my story and goes on to work from home and fulfill their dreams I will be very, very happy. My experience with home – based work has been too wonderful to keep a secret, so I’m shouting it from the rooftops and I would encourage any other happily home – based professionals out there to do the same.
Photo by xenia on morguefile.com.