You know it’s happened to you. Your phone rings and it’s the important business call you’ve been waiting for. As you look at your children wildly circling you, you ask yourself, “Do I take the call?”
It leaves you wondering how other Home-Based Entrepreneurs handle at-home-business calls.
It leaves you wondering how other Home-Based Entrepreneurs handle at-home-business calls.
Here are four quick tips:
1. Don’t apologize. On the days my daughter, London and her cousins (ages four and five) are with me, there ARE times they talk or is noisy when I’m on a business call. I could easily say, “I’m sorry, my daughter is here…” But thankfully, I’ve changed, after speaking to another Home-Based Entreprenuer who told me to be proud my daughter is with me. And she is right. Now when I proudly state, “My daughter is with me today,” I find callers are more gracious. Most reply with, “Oh, that’s wonderful! Enjoy your time with her (them).”
2. Be prepared for the unexpected. As a mom, you wear many hats, imagine being on Daddy duty. When on the phone, always smile and project a good attitude. But be prepared to deal with unexpected situations. If children are disruptive during a call, remain calm. This is the time to have a sense of humor and make light of the situation. If the caller hears the background noise and you’re unable to quickly control the situation, offer to call back at a later time. “Would ten minutes or a half hour be better for you?”
3. Give “silent hellos or goodbyes”. You can develop a “silent hello” (or goodbye) used when on the phone and your children walk in or out. Wear a headset to free your hands for a big hug and a quiet kiss. Train your children to be quiet and they understand you can’t hang up just because they’ve arrived. Your children will soon compete to see who can be the quietest, and you never have to hang up on a client :-)
4. Leave your children “reminders”. For example you can purchase a small stop sign for your office door. It serves as a visual reminder for you kids to stop and listen so they don’t burst in during a business call. Below the sign you could post three questions for your kids to ask themselves before interrupting.
1. Is someone hurt?
2. Does it concern schoolwork?
3. Would you pay $5 for the answer? ($5 = the 15 minutes it takes to work through the question and get refocused)
This should cut the interruptions down to almost zero after about a week.
By being proud of your decision to work from home, being prepared for the unexpected, giving silent hellos or good-byes, and leaving your children reminders, you, too, can experience more success with your at-home-business calls.
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