Homeschooling while working from home is definitely not for the faint of heart. I mentioned in another post that this year will be an experiment, so we’re trying out different things to see what works.

One thing I’ve noticed is that my daughter has an affinity and a love for science, which isn’t surprising considering I have degree in biology. But what is surprising is her interest in geography and social studies. I borderline hated those two subjects in school.

We’ve explored China and Asia in general, she’s taken a Mandarin Chinese class or two, we take “trips” on the map and globe, and things of that sort. She’s also very good at art, so the shapes of countries and details of things like cars are something she notices a great deal.

Math and reading aren’t high on her list of fun things, though. When I was a child, reading and writing were like breathing to me, and math was pretty fun too. I’m not too worried, since I firmly believe in child-led learning (and a love of science and social studies will be enhanced by reading, as she’ll figure out soon enough). But during this experimental stage, I’m open to different ideas.

I’ve been hearing about several online programs for homeschoolers, and I decided to do some exploring. I read reviews and looked at sites, and I made contact with some. I’ve been invited to try Time4Learning for one month in exchange for a candid review. My opinion will be entirely my own, so be sure to come back and read about my experience. Time4learning can be used as a homeschool curriculum, for afterschool enrichment and for summer skill sharpening. Find out how to write your own curriculum review for Time4Learning.

This year (and every year) will be full of learning for both me and my daughter. There’s a lot of knowledge to be acquired, and no one will ever know it all. Life is just one big adventure full of things to learn, and the best way to learn is to live!

Having a successful business means successful marketing, as we all know. Along with cold calling, cold emailing, and word-of-mouth marketing, it’s just as important to have professional materials that you can physically hand someone. Lately, while out and about doing day-to-day errands, I make it a point to talk about what I do. What always follows is a request for my business card. I love my business cards, but I know I also need something more.

When I contact new prospects, I need to be ready to send them a brochure as well. Sure, my website is a brochure of sorts, but everyone has a website these days. Anyone can make a cold call or send an email. But a freelancer who uses a variety of marketing materials, both online and on paper, will stand out in the crowd.

Luckily, there are lots of options for getting printed materials for your business. You can hire a graphic designer and then hire a printer, you can try printing things from your own home, or you can use an online document producing and printing company. One site I’ve just found out about is called Uprinting.com.

What I like about Uprinting.com is you can create your own documents right on their site. Making your product is simple, and you can type text, add pictures, and move things around quite easily. You can also upload a finished project or use one of their templates. I had the chance to try making Uprinting brochures, and it was a breeze. I chose the type of fold, I moved around my text boxes, and in no time at all I had a nice looking product.

Figuring out your final cost is user-friendly too. The “instant price calculator” is handy and comprehensive. I like being able to tweak the specifics so I can fit it into my budget before creating the project.

If you need help with anything, there is 24 hour customer service during the week, and you can chat online with a customer service agent. Personally, I love being able to talk with someone, despite my being an online kind of gal. Nothing beats talking to a live human being.

Uprinting.com also offers free samples. When you’re planning a major marketing campaign, details are important. You can get an idea of the paper types by ordering the samples ahead of time. I like to know the weight, the texture, and how light affects the paper when I have a serious project.

As a freelance writer, I sometimes run across clients who need printed materials as well. A reasonably-priced printing service is a great complement to my business. Besides brochures, Uprinting.com also offers magnets, calendars, catalogs, window clings, envelopes, and a whole host of other marketing materials. And yes…even business cards.

Have you ever used an online printing company?

Okay, you’re self-employed. You have a wonderful freelance business. Maybe you’re a photographer, a graphic designer, a website designer, or a copywriter. Maybe you bake cakes, make jewelry, or fix cars. Whatever your business, there’s almost no way you can get customers if you don’t tell people you’re open for business. In other words, you have to market yourself.

But it’s more than just marketing. Sure, you can put an ad on LinkedIn, make prospecting calls, or send out postcards. But you also need to really tell people about your business.

Be a squeaky wheel. Talk to random strangers, tell your friends (and maybe your enemies), boast to your doctor/dentist/priest. If you have children or you’ve been around someone who does, you know how he always bring the conversation around to how great his kid is. Well this is what you need to do with your business. Everyone should know about it, just like everyone knows that Ms. Jones’ three-year-old can tie her own shoes.

I haven’t been great about shouting from the mountaintops about Theda K. Communications. But like the start of the fall season, I am turning over a new leaf. Fair warning to the next person who finds himself in line behind me at the grocery store.

Have you told everyone that you own a business? What are you waiting for?

Credit: Kristin Smith

My daughter is seven years old this year, and I’ve finally taken the plunge and decided to homeschool her. I wanted to start when she was five, but she was more interested in going to regular school. It kind of worked for a couple of years, but with our big move, she seemed to be more comfortable with the idea of staying with me. I don’t blame her.

This year is definitely going to be an experiment. I have to make a living solely with my writing business, all while working at home with a young child. In the past, while she was at school, I’d either work for someone else part time or I was a full-time student (with student loan money as a supplement to my writing business). But this is going to be quite the test.

So far, it’s been rocky. When I’ve landed big projects, I’ve taken her to play areas that included wi-fi. That way, she kept busy and so did I. I also stay up late or get up early (or both). My parents moved to Georgia as well, so they’ve been a source of babysitting from time to time. But it’s mostly been me.

The challenge will be keeping my daughter happy and fulfilled while I also seek out prospective clients and work on projects. It helps that I’m not strict about our homeschooling “curriculum.” I’ve chosen to unschool her. We’ve joined a local homeschool group that offers classes and field trips, and we’ve made friends with some neighborhood children. Prospecting via cold calling is pretty non-existent at this point, though. It turns out that the only child of this single parent requires lots of interaction (no surprise).

Creativity is going to be essential if we’re to be successful, but I’m determined. I truly believe that homeschooling is best for my daughter, and that working for myself is best for me.

Have you needed to be creative to balance your work and your family?

For the past seven years, ever since my daughter was an infant, I’ve lived in Tucson, Arizona. I can’t say that it was “home,” but I lived there for a chunk of time. I’d actually moved to Tucson from Atlanta, Georgia. Tucson made more sense at that time, when I was a new mother and I wanted to stay at home with my daughter.

Thank goodness Georgia didn’t mind me too much. Crayon Writer’s new home is back in Georgia. We drove across country and we’re starting over. How exciting and scary all at the same time!

What lessons did I learn in Arizona? I’m not afraid of spiders anymore, cactus can be beautiful (who knew that they have such wondrous flowers?), and the desert is nice year round…for the most part. I got to know the mother I became, and my daughter grew up in one of the most unique places in the country (nature-wise). I also learned that diversity isn’t just a good thing in nature. Tucson lacks racial and cultural diversity, so it was time to move back to a place that thrives on diversity.

On the horizon for Crayon Writer is pretty much what I’ve always said I wanted. I will homeschool or unschool my daughter, I will continue to work at home and grow my writing business, and I hope to hire an employee in the next 12 months. I’ve updated my business’ website, and I’ve created Facebook pages for this blog and Theda K. Communications. LinkedIn is also something I’m going to become best friends with.

Change is inevitable. Change is exciting. Change is renewing. So join me on my new adventures in a not-so-new locale.

A few years back I posted about the Great Cloth Diaper Hunt, an online scavenger hunt. Several small businesses, especially work-at-home-mom companies, sponsor the event by hiding a GCDH icon somewhere on their site. Thousands of hunters look for the hidden icons on the various sites, hoping to win the grand prize or even smaller daily prizes.

While the name of the hunt focuses on cloth diapering, many of the sponsors have other types of businesses. I’ve seen soap makers, knitters, jewelry designers, and more in the past.

Theda K. Communications, my writing company, is a sponsor this year! Please show your support by registering for the hunt, which starts May 1 and ends May 31, 2012. You can register anytime before it ends. Make sure you tell them that Theda K. Communications sent you (I might win free ad space if I refer lots of folks).

The hunt is really fun, and you learn a lot about cloth diapering and other small businesses. I remember fondly how much I learned while my daughter was still a baby (seems like a lifetime ago). I hope you register and enjoy the hunt! And if you have a small business, consider becoming a sponsor when the next hunt starts.

As a mother, I try to find any and every opportunity to make money and save money. Making money is pretty straightforward (though not necessarily easy, I admit). You have to either find someone to employ you, find someone to buy stuff from you, or invest your money so it can work for you.

But saving money is another way to “make” money, and couponing something a lot of my friends are doing. It’s not something I’m great at (yet), but I do try. You may have heard of “extreme couponing,” where people buy groceries worth hundreds of dollars and wind up paying a fraction of the cost. Some people even wind up getting money back when they go to the store. Extreme couponing usually means clipping coupons, stacking coupons, and buying items in bulk. Personally, I’m not the most organized person in the world, so adding lots of paper to my life isn’t the best idea.

What I am good at is using online coupons. Being a freelancer, I spend a lot of time online, so that’s also where I tend to do my shopping. Also, unlike the stereotype, I abhor going shopping in malls and such. Online coupons are usually in the form of coupon codes. So there’s no clipping involved. You just take note of the code, found on various coupon code websites. When you make your online payment, there is usually a spot for you to type in the code. It’s super easy. I use coupon codes for things like webhosting, clothing, toys, and more.

The thing about coupon codes is you have to find reputable sites, and you have to keep checking. Codes expire all the time, but there are also always new ones. Before you shop at any online store or buy any product or service online, check to see if you can find a code for that company.

Coupons are an excellent way to save money, both online and off. If you’re not using coupon codes online, you’re pretty much throwing money away.

Are you an extrovert working from home or in an introverted field? That’s exactly what I’m doing. I think out loud (really…I talk to myself if I have to). I feel sluggish when I’m alone too much. I’m a “people person” in general. As a writer, however, I spend a lot of time alone. And it’s not the easiest thing in the world for me to do. Lucikily, I’m more of an introverted extrovert, so I can take alone time in semi-long doses. But being alone daily tends to make me off-focus.

Do you consider yourself an extrovert? I’ve come to this conclusion about myself by taking several tests based on the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator tests, and I pretty consistently score as an ENFP (the “E” stands for extroversion).

I also really enjoyed this article about introverts, which really made it clear to me that I am, indeed, an extrovert.

So what’s an extrovert working in an introverted job to do? Here are some tips I’ve compiled from “expert” extroverts I know.

1. Recharge your battery every couple of hours. Call a friend, go for a walk, or chat online with a friend.
2. Find a buddy who has a similar need. Make time throughout the day or week to chat in person.
3. Consider working in a new location with new people around. If you work from home, try working at a local coffee shop a few days a week.
4. Go grocery shopping. You’ll be sure to find someone who can help recharge your battery.
5. If you can’t find someone to talk with or hang out with, try listening to talk radio or watch a short clip of an action-packed movie.

What tips do you have for other extroverts who work alone?

Lots of adults are going back to school these days to get a second degree, or even their first. I recently went back to school to get my teaching certification, for instance. One of the scary realities for some of us is that essay writing often plays a large part in our schoolwork…especially if you attend an online program like I did.

If you’re not the best writer, or you just don’t have enough time, you might wish you could just hire someone to do the writing for you. Luckily, you can. There are lots of online companies that offer essay research and writing services.

I’ve had the chance to review a site called Custom Writing. While I haven’t used their service myself, their website boasts a lot of great features that a student may want.

Custom Writing has writers that you can communicate with during the writing process, so you aren’t just getting an essay that was copied and pasted from somewhere else. Additionally, they work to write in a style that’s similar to your own. These two features alone seem like a good way to avoid receiving a plagiarized paper. I also like that the pricing isn’t super low.

There are some problems with the website, though. The company says their writers are all “graduate professionals,” but there are places on the website with obvious grammatical errors. That would send up a red flag if I were to buy an essay from them.

If I needed a paper written, I might try them out, though. Their guarantees sound reasonable, though I’d give myself extra time to go over the finished product carefully. I particularly like that they include a plagiarism report for you, they will do your research, and revisions are included.

If you get a chance to check out the website, or you wind up having them write a paper for you, let us know!

One of the hardest things about being a freelance writer is convincing businesses that yes, hiring a freelancer is a wise thing to do.

Are you a business owner? Let me guess some reasons you might not think a freelancer is for you.

1.You’re a pretty good writer, right? Why hire someone else to do what you can take care of on your own?

• The simple answer to this is that your time is not unlimited. While you may write exceptionally well, if you have a million other tasks to complete, perhaps writing is something you should outsource.

2. You want control. You’d rather have someone in your office so you can look over his shoulder while he works. You want to see what you’re paying for, while it’s happening.

• This makes sense. That’s why employees generally work in the office. But think about it. Do you really want to hire another employee? There are taxes to pay, paperwork to complete, desk space and computers to provide, paper and other supplies for printing and such, and the list can go on. If you have an employee on-site, you’re liable for workers’ compensation in some cases, and at least liable if they slip and fall in the office. Not to mention that employees converse with others, take bathroom/smoking/snack breaks, check their cellphones and make personal calls, and any other number of off-task activities. All of which you’re paying for…by the hour.

• A freelancer charges only for time-on-task, especially if you pay them per project. If the cost of brochure copy is an agreed-upon $1000 (for instance), it doesn’t matter if the freelancer takes a shower while banging out your copy. You pay $1000 for the brochure. Period. No need to micromanage. No need to watch over his shoulder. When you purchase a car, you don’t watch each piece being manufactured. You don’t pay by the hour for its assembly. You just pay for the finished product.

3. You know someone who can do it for less. I’m guessing you might have a cousin or a brother-in-law who can write. Why not just give him a few dollars (or nothing at all) and have him write your copy?

• This one isn’t one I’ll answer straight out. If you’ve ever worked with family, you already know this isn’t the best idea in the world. If you haven’t, and you want to give it a try…vaya con Dios. And then hire a professional freelance writer after the ordeal is over.

Are you a business owner? Have you ever hired a freelance writer? Why or why not? Tell us about your experience(s).