Supporting Your Work at Home Wife: by Allen Hart

The new trend in our society is working from home. Many women are leaving the corporate world to come home and care for their families, but they still desire to contribute financially. It can be challenging to work from home, especially for women who have children to care for as well.

Is your wife is one of the growing number of work at home moms? Here are ten key tips on supporting her:

1. Encouragement is key

Sometimes all that your wife needs in order to be successful with whatever she is working on is a little encouragement. Often times she won’t have anyone else around to give her the encouragement that she needs and you may be the only person that can give her the encouragement she needs.

2. Help with whatever she is doing

Depending on the business there may be extra work that could be done by you. For example, with my wife’s website, Christian Work at Home Moms (http://www.cwahm.com/), she will often need someone to write a script, setup an email account, or proofread a document. Some of the tasks aren’t going to be the most glamorous but 5 minutes could save your partner hours of time and added stress.

3. Be positive

It's easy to be a positive influence on your wife and her business. Listen to her when she talks about her business. Don't put down her ideas for business growth - help her think of new ideas to help her business grow. Remember that just because she is working from home, that does not make her business any less important or legitimate. If you are a positive influence on your wife and take an interest in her business, there's no telling how big the business might grow! As wives, we need our husband's support and encouragement!

4. Watch the kids

Your wife is at home with the kids all day every day. Sometimes she is going to need a chance to work with no distractions. If the kids are constantly asking questions and bugging your wife she can’t get anything done. Don’t wait to be asked. Be proactive and offer to watch the kids.

5. Listen

Your wife might not have a large support system or other co-workers to bounce ideas off of. She is going to need someone to talk to and more importantly listen to the ideas she has. I think this goes hand in hand with encouragement. You will need to listen and encourage, sometimes that is all she needs.

6. Let her run the show

This is her job her business she gets to call the shots. I know that the way my wife and I handle the business decisions is that she runs all of her ideas by me and we mutually make the decisions. A lot of the decisions can be costly and take a lot of time. Those decisions should be made together but ultimately it isn’t your decision.

7. Be a part of the business

Many wives want their husbands to take part in their home business even if it's just helping to stuff envelopes. Taking the time to do even small things like this will encourage your wife and show her that you support her. If there isn't a way to be directly involved with your wife's business, pick one day a week and do the dishes or another chore that will free up some time for your wife to work at her business.

8. Don't let her give up

Most work at home moms will tell you that it takes 3-4 years to build a successful business. It doesn't happen overnight. When your wife feels discouraged, listen to her and ask if she would like your input on the situation. She will need your encouragement to stick with it. We wives do not like to fail our husbands and we sometimes feel like failures when our businesses are not doing well. Remind your wife of the time that it takes to grow a business and that EVERY business has times during the year when sales are slow.

9. Surprise her

This may not sound like a business tip, but a great way to help your wife stay motivated is to bring her little “surprises” – flowers, her favorite candy, a business supply that she can’t bring her self to spend the money on. All of these are great ways to remind her of your support.

10. Pray

Most importantly, this business is going to need prayer. Never underestimate the power of prayer to help you get going and keep the whole project rolling. If you aren’t talking to God on a regular basis it will be very hard to stay on track.

By following these ten simple tips, you can help strengthen your wife’s home-based business. She will appreciate your efforts and your marriage will benefit as well. Supporting your work at home wife is one of the best ways to show you care.

Allen Hart is the founder of CWAHD.com, Christian Work at Home Dads. CWAHD.com was designed to assist dads in their quest for a work at home job or business. For more information and additional articles, visit www.cwahd.com or contact Allen at info@cwahd.com. Article Source: http://www.articlecity.com/articles/online_business/article_3765.shtml

Like Mother, Like Daughter: by Karen Schachter

We moms have a tough path to walk as we help our daughters navigate the sometimes choppy waters of growing up girl. It's our job to protect our children and do our best to keep them safe and healthy, yet we also have to allow them to grow, stretch and learn from their own mistakes. It's a fine line between letting them be who they are and wanting to "tweak" them just a little bit so they don't suffer from the same mistakes or struggles that we did.

When it comes to healthy eating and a positive body image, this fine line can feel fragile and confusing, particularly if you struggle with these issues yourself.

When I teach workshops or work individually with moms, I am always asked some of the same questions: Should I let my kids have desert every day? How do I deal with their love of sweets? How can I help her stop eating when she's not hungry anymore? How can I help her lose weight without making her feel bad about her body? How can I help her feel good about her body, no matter what its size? How can I help her feel good about herself and treat herself with respect? Although I can give concrete "answers" to many of these questions, the truth is, there is no one "right" answer that works for everyone, all the time. There is no "magic bullet" to self-esteem, body confidence, self-care, and inspiring good health in your daughter. However, there is one piece of the puzzle that is so important, one KEY asset that is SO valuable, and one action that IS within our control...that is more powerful than anything we can say or anything we can feed them.
YOU.
As her mom, the only thing you really have control over (especially as she gets older) is who YOU are BEING and how YOU are negotiating your own health, your own eating, your own body image and your own self -esteem. Are you embodying the actions and feelings that you want her to learn? Here's a little food for thought to get you going:

1. Next time you notice yourself betwixt and between about an eating habit of your daughter's, check in with yourself: Is there something about that behavior that reminds you of one of your own struggles? (Go ahead and address it in YOURSELF first).

2. Imagine that your daughter develops a delicious, nourishing and healthy relationship to food, eating and her body - what will that look like? Go ahead and try out some of those self-nourishing actions for YOURSELF.

3. What if food, eating and body image weren't a concern, for you or for your daughter? What if you had true freedom and peace with these things? What would your energy and attention be focused on instead? (Go ahead and give it a try).

Here's the thing: Our daughters learn how to live in their bodies and care for themselves with food and in their lives from MANY sources, including the media, their peers, their families, and from all the women in their lives. I am on a mission - and I invite you to join me - to help change the "face" of what the next generation of girls is learning - and I believe we must first BE THE CHANGE we wish to see in them. (When moms set their minds to something, there is no telling what could happen...)

Copyright (c) 2009 Healthy Bodies, Happy Minds: Karen Schachter, a psychotherapist and coach, is committed to helping girls and women find peace, nourishment and wellbeing with food and their bodies. Visit http://www.healthybodieshappyminds.com.
Article Source:http://www.articlecity.com/articles/parenting/article_1972.shtml