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Interview with a SAHM Turned WAHM

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ShakadooI’m excited to introduce you to a great blogging friend of ours — Kristen from Shakadoo.

Kristen is an inspiration to both Janice and me and if you chatted on the phone with her for a few minutes about business you’d understand why.

This woman is a go-getter!

She has created an amazing set of blogs with her site Shakadoo and is dynamite at contacting companies to negotiate advertising across her sites.

I’ve asked Kristen to share a few thoughts with us about working at home.

When and how did you decide to start a work at home business?

I have been home raising kids for the last 14 years and now that my youngest is just starting school I wanted something for myself and I wanted to start contributing to the household income instead of just the outcome.

I always knew any business I did would have to be a home based business so that I still had the flexibility to be where I needed to be for my kids. I started brainstorming with a friend of mine after reading an article in Business 2.0 magazine about blogs about a year ago. My friend is a realtor and we just sort of sat down one day and came up with the ideas for each Shak at Shakadoo.

What is the focus of your business and what are your websites?

Shakadoo is a site powered by 8 different blogs each pertaining to a niche of the home.

Shakinstyle is all about home décor, Shakyard is all about gardening and landscaping, Shaktronics is all about home electronics, Shakhammer is home improvement and DIY ideas, Workshak is about working at home, LoanShak is about home finance and Shak and Jill is our real estate section.

Oh, and of course, Loveshakbaby is our mommy blog where we like to write about 5 minutes for mom!

Can you share some of your challenges and blessings about working at home?

One of the biggest challenges I face with working at home is when the kids are home. Especially this summer, I have needed to work and they want to go places and that takes me away from what I need to do with the site. I have had to really plan my days with their interests in mind as well as prioritize my schedule. I have to remember that they will all be back in school in no time and it’s ok if I don’t get done all that I need to get done. There is always tomorrow.

One of the biggest blessings is just being able to work and have freedom to set my own schedule. I can work as early or as late as I want and wearing whatever I want to wear. Mostly pajamas.

Do you have any tips for women who are thinking about starting a new business?

I would encourage any woman contemplating starting a business to take your time and really decide. Family should always be the priority. I know there’s not much to the identity of being “just a mom” but the rewards are great. God’s timing is perfect so just make sure you are in accordance to His plan and all will go well.

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10 Comments

  1. Very interesting interview and site! I love seeing SAHMS turn into WAHMS.

    I’ve been a WAHM full time since 2004 and love being able to be mommy and business owner!

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  2. as a close friend of kristen, I can say she handles this work/life balance with great aplomb! she manages to rock out at leading shakadoo – all the while managing to be an ideal mom role model. nice interview!

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  3. I can’t wait to check out all of your sites, especially the work at home and the gardening. (And I love the clever names.) I really like the part of this article where you say that whatever type of WAH job or business you decide on, be sure that it’s in God’s will. I’m 58 and was a customer service representative for 12-1/2 years. They laid our whole department off in November, and at first I panicked. (I only worked with a monitor and didn’t have any training in computers.) And then I remembered that God only closes one door to open another. And that’s how I got into blogging. (And I’m so excited because I’m learning so much!) But my point is that when you’re doing what He wants you to do, there is such a peace – even in the midst of not having any income yet from the website. It’s such a comfort to trust Him to choose what He wants me to do, because He can see the future, and because He wants what is best for us. Thanks for a great article!

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  4. This is great! I love that you have so many different aspects of yourself that you’re sharing. It’s also good to know that we’re on the right path– that believing that we have a great product, a great service to share, and a good heart behind it IS enough!
    Thanks for the inspiration,
    Stephanie
    Aardvark Adventure Stories

    Reply

  5. I loved the answer to the last question – really worth thinking through and keeping those priorities squared away. Sounds like a great business!

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  6. I really love the idea of being able to wear whatever I want at home for work! I am heading off to a job now, but when I finish the job in several months, I will start checking out jobs from home. That would be awesome to stay at home with the kiddos and help with the income!

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  9. I enjoyed reading about Shakadoo and the funky branches from that name. This is inspiring as I’m going to be a SAHM soon with plans to morph into a WAHM later. Thanks!

    Reply