Don't be afraid to let your younger children sit in your lap while you are working. It helps them to feel wanted and it helps them to be a part of your daily life. There are times when it is okay for them to be sitting in your lap while you work, and at other times you need them out of your lap. Don't be afraid to tell them to get down and go play or read a book so that you can resume your work.

What about your older children and teens?

Explain to your older children that you do your work at home so that you can be near them when they need you. But also be sure they understand that you must do your work so that you will have money necessary to keep your house, feed family and to provide them with money for entertainment.

Once your children understand necessity of your work, then outline a work schedule and explain it to them. Do make sure they understand that emergencies are definitely an acceptable reason to interrupt your work.

This just in! Teens these days are *very* Internet savvy. Get them involved, particularly boys. Show them your new website. Ask them if they would be interested in helping out. Consider jobs they could do: search engine ranking research, ezine research, database management, and many others. Even consider "hiring" your teen. You'll have them involved, you'll get some time off, and now you'll have a true "family home business!"

In Conclusion

I hope these tips serve to help you in challenge of operating a successful home business.

My home business permits me to fulfill my financial obligations *AND* develop closer relationships at home. I would never contemplate trading my home business for a job. Even with added challenges of dealing with children while I work or getting my spouse on board, upsides far outweigh downsides.

Growing my own home business with children around has definitely given me a new respect for all people who successfully run a home business and make all home relationships work well. I tip my hat to you... You deserve it!

Resource Box: ----------------------------------------------------------------- Henri Schauffler publishes Family Home Business Tips, a fresh and informative newsletter dedicated to supporting people like YOU! If you're looking for family-friendly *best rated* home business opportunities, latest free and low-cost tools and helpful support from an honest friend in business, come by and grab a F-R-E-E subscription today at: http://www.familybizbuilder.com -----------------------------------------------------------------

** End of Article Part 1 **

**Start of Article Part 2**

The Top 10 Time Wasting Pursuits of Internet Marketing and How To Avoid Them

Have you discontinued some of those ineffectual marketing strategies we discussed in part 1? Well today I'm going to free up even more of your time…

PART 2 Time Wasting Activities

Today were going to discuss top 5 time wasting activities of Internet marketers.

1. Aimless Surfing - this is one of greatest timewasters and definitely most practiced. How many times have you gone online with a mission and then gotten side tracked? Its actually difficult not to. Every site you visit has a dozens of different ways to exit every single page. I seem to be even more prone to aimless surfing if I have a job to complete that I don't really want to do. Sound familiar? I now write my goals down on paper before I logon each day. It helps me to remain focused and has saved me a lot of time. Writing down your goals also helps for next time waster…. Outcome: 3 hours have gone by but you still haven't done anything. Solution: schedule some time for surfing as a reward for getting work done/ completing goals.

2. Doing Too Many Things At Once - "Rome wasn't built in a day". You don't have to do every thing now, at same time. I know your excited and you want to get up and running so those dollars can start rolling in but a more disciplined approach will save you valuable time. If you are doing one task and suddenly remember something you need to do, don't abandon your current job unless you REALLY must. Outcome: you'll find yourself jumping between 2,3 or maybe even more jobs at same time and your productivity plummets. Solution: write down whatever it is you need to do by adding it to list of goals you wrote (hopefully) before logging on.

3. Working Too Long - I still find it very difficult to stop working. I tend to keep going hours after rest of my family have gone to bed. The problem is, for last 2 or 3 hours, I am so fatigued that I can't concentrate. My efficiency goes way down and I become susceptible to doing some of time wasters already mentioned. I'm also more likely to impulse buy…..my most expensive online transactions tend to be made after 12 midnight! Outcome: your tired, your credit card bill is bigger and your partner is sick of you coming to bed late. Solution: set yourself a regular finishing time and stick to it. The work will still be there tomorrow.

4. Marketing Without a Mailing List - many established and successful marketers will tell you, Internet marketing without a mailing list is a waste of time. If you want a shot at big bucks, it's always going to be a lot harder without your own mailing list. After 8 months online and still without a mailing list, I was making about $700 a month. I soon realized it was going to very difficult to make more without a mailing list. Outcome: every time you come across a good affiliate program or create a product you have to work 3 times harder than guy with list to make sales. Solution: start collecting email addresses today.

5. Not Doing Your Homework - unfortunately there are still a lot of Internet marketers who are so enthusiastic about prospects of making money, they don't do enough research before proceeding. I once heard Steven Spielberg say "be sure you know everything you need to know……and then proceed." Now there's a man whose advice Id take. This is especially true with Internet because it changes so rapidly. You must know what is working now so that you may utilize tools, resources and strategies that will maximize your success. Outcome: your half way into a project before you realize you've gone about it wrong way. Solution: take time to thoroughly research your ideas. This doesn't mean spend 3 years preparing a thesis but enough to be confident you know what to do.

OK, so that's it. How many of top 10 timewasters were you guilty of? Make just a few simple changes today and you could free up hundreds of hours per year to be spent on more fruitful activities like focused marketing, family and relaxing.

================================================================= Murray Hughes publishes A Millionaire In The Making Newsletter, a popular and expertly written ezine dedicated to bringing out "inner home business entrepreneur" in anyone. Learn about *best rated* home biz opportunities, tools & tips by subscribing F-R-E-E today at http://www.thefreepathagent.com =================================================================

**End of Article Part 2**