posted on October 26, 2001 06:57:39 AM new
Do you use daycare, mother's helpers, or other childcare if you sell regularly on ebay but have children under school-age? Or do you just take care of business around their schedules?
I am trying to to the latter and not always feeling like I'm juggling well. I made some mistakes this week from sheer distraction. I've started my child in daycare 2 hours a week to help me play catch-up and so far it's been wonderful. I am toying with the idea of looking around for some in-house babysitting so I can work on the computer but have the kids home. Just wondered if anyone else tries this?
posted on October 26, 2001 07:15:59 AM new
My munchkin is old enough that I don't have that problem personally - but I think its a great idea either way.
The day-care can be a great play-place for interaction with other kids - and sometimes you just need a break 8)
Of course, when they get older you can put them to work in your biz - mine loves helping me sort cards and taking pics. I sneak pictures of her and she says, "you're not going to auction me off!" *giggle*
posted on October 26, 2001 07:24:25 AM new
I am a stay-at-home mom and have a 4 1/2, 3, and 18 mos old. I check my emails first thing in the morning, make any calls necessary, and then check emails once in mid afternoon. Then I do the rest of my computer/ebay stuff at night. My husband comes home from work, we eat dinner and the rest of the night the kids are his to deal with...including getting them ready for bed. I do always manage to give hugs and kisses, but he does all the other stuff thoughout the evening.
Trying to keep up any other way is very difficult for me. Sometimes I feel like I spend too much time on ebay/computer, but then I remember I am making more money selling on ebay than I would at a part-time job. Better work schedule too-I work when I want. If you can find someone to come into your home and help out, that sounds like a great alternative! Good luck.
posted on October 26, 2001 07:28:02 AM new
My son is now in Kindergarten, so I can get alot of work done while he is gone during the day. I wait to pack shipments and send emails after he goes to bed at night. During the summer I had him in a two day a week program and that worked out well. I tried having a babysitter come to my home and watch him for a few hours twice a week and that didn't work out--I was distracted by him AND the babysitter. I do try to keep him as involved as possible. I take him with me to auctions. He collects hot wheels and GiJoes, so he really enjoys going and loves it if he "Wins". He's old enough to understand that this is how mommy makes money. Plus he's really good at picking up his toys because he's afraid I'll sell them!
posted on October 26, 2001 07:46:23 AM new
aneye: how do you manage the mail, just take the whole gang to the P.O.? I've tried the evening thing but by then my brain is so tired I can't get much done, plus there is all the packing to do.
Fortunately my daughter usually has fun with me on my out-of-the-house work like mailing, shopping for books, etc. It's mostly a problem of finding time to get enough listed to generate the sales volume I'd like.
One thing that helps is experience and getting more efficient, but I do feel like I've hit the wall at this point unless I convince myself to actually carve out some time to devote to my business without one ear/eye/hand on everything else happening. It will be interesting in the future to see how it goes when my girl is in school and I can actually do this for real hours, not just a few hours a week. I hope online auctions are still around!
posted on October 26, 2001 07:47:02 AM new
This is a good topic for me! I am expecting my first soon, & am wondering how I will be able to manage him plus sell. I will have to figure out some way, or go back to work.
The only idea I have come up with so far is just do as much as I can while he is sleeping, & hire my little brother to help watch him a couple of afternoons a week. That way I will be close by, my brother can earn a little cash, & MAYBE I can get in a couple hours worth of typing/packing. There are no mother's helpers here, & avoiding daycare is a must for me.
posted on October 26, 2001 07:56:36 AM new
I actually worked from home while on maternity leave with my newborns. The killer is your own sleep deprivation, otherwise they are pretty nice folks to live with, especially if they like to hang out in a bouncy chair while you are on the computer.
posted on October 26, 2001 07:59:21 AM new
Keziak: I take all of my kids to the PO with me. We live out in the middle of nowwhere, and the town I ship from is very small...400 people? Anyway, we always take our dog too...I have quite the caravan going to the PO. And I understand about packing the items. I sell art prints and each one takes a minimum of 15 min to pack...if I have to cut my cardboard to fit anywhere uop to 30-35 min.
On a side note...we may be expecting our 4th...been trying and is looking good right now . Selling on ebay with children in the house, it can be done, you just have to get a routine. I have been selling for about 18 mos now..my children have never seen the inside of daycare, and never will. How old is your little one?
posted on October 26, 2001 08:06:08 AM new
aneye4art:
I know this doesn't relate to the topic of the thread (and I appologize for that), but could I make a kindly suggestion on how you could save LOTS of time on packing your prints? I sell magazine advertisements... which need the same type of protection as art prints. (they can't get wet, bent, etc...) I use specialty "Stay-flat Mailers" (I get them at Quill.com... but I'm sure they're available elsewhere). I put my ads in a plastic bag, slip it in the mailer (which is self-seal), address, and write "please do not fold or bend" on the back. The whole process takes about a minute. You can order the mailers in all sorts of sizes and they really do protect very well. Hope this helps you out!
posted on October 26, 2001 08:18:37 AM new
eauctionmgnt: Thanks for the suggestion. I do have some questions however...can you order these at any size you want? I order cardboard from a box company in a local town and the largest I order is 40x30 inches...so rather big. I do order smaller pieces as well, as my prints come in so many different sizes, and when I pack, I pack with 4 pieces of doublewalled cardboard to protect the print and have to "corner" the print onto one piece to keep it from sliding around during shipment. I have never seen these mailers...are they cardboard? Also, are they reasonable in price? My cardboard is anywhere from 1.00 to 2.10 per sheet depending on size. Have you had good success with them?
posted on October 26, 2001 08:47:33 AM new
Well I have several suggestions:
1. I take my little one to a great preschool 3 mornings a week ~ it is great. This is the first year I have done that ~ it is run by a church and not affilated with a day care center. I find it easier to stomah than daycare as just the word daycare upsets me. She is 4 ~ I would not take a baby out of the house to a daycare myself.
2. In house help only works if you lock yourself in a room and don't tolerate interuptions unless there is blood or the house is on fire........
3. What works for me is having a friend or relative take the child on an outing when I am really backed up.
4. I do most of my computer work after the kids are in bed ~ I do the packing during the day and answer emails on and off as they come in.
5. Depending on what you are shipping......you may want to consider having UPS or fedex ground pick up your packages. I have an account with UPS and they pick up my packages everyday out of my garage and I pay them a fee based on how much money I spend with them weekly........the more I ship the less the amount of the weekly charge. I also get a discount over the counter price........so in the end I pay less for them to pick the packages up then I did when I took the packages to them. I do ship mainly larger packages ~ I still ship the little stuff at the post office.
6. I make my shipping labels at night when I am not distracted.
I recommend the self-seal kind, because if you use the kind with the tabs you can sometimes damage the item inside trying to get the tabs in place. The largest self-seal size I saw was the Kraft Self-Seal mailer at 17x21". They sell for $1.64 apiece, and are available in cases of 100-200 (you get a discount if you order more!). Check out the site, and I'm sure you'll find stuff that will save you TONS of time! (I get my plastic bags from Quill too) Let me know if I can help out more!
posted on October 26, 2001 09:08:01 AM new
aneye4art:
Ooopps....I forgot to respond to your question as to whether I have had good success with them. The answer is YES! The only reported problem from my customer in over 1000 mailings was before I marked "Please do Not Fold or Bend" on the back of the envelopes. Some brilliant postal worker decided that they could cram the envelope into a mailbox. It must have taken some REAL effort to bend that envelope! Anyhow.. since then, I've marked the backs of the envelopes and have had no known problems (and lots of compliments on the packaging!)
