Interview with: The WAHM Magazine

Meet the Mom Behind The WAHM Magazine

Who is The WAHM Magazine? Where are you located?
TheWAHMmagazine is the first and only content-driven digital magazine for work-at-home parents and is located in Southeastern Michigan. It was designed by a work-at-home mom for work-at-home parents in any field or situation (freelancing, telecommuting, business owners and so forth) after witnessing my husband's struggles with his employer to switch his status from in the office all week to telecommuting part of the week so that he could have a different work/life balance after our son was born.


How did you come up with your magazine's name?
Even though the magazine is for work-at-home parents, not just WAHMs, I wanted to have "WAHM" in the title since it is such a well-known term. I figured that it would help people understand what the magazine is about and it made more sense to me than using WAHM/WAHD magazine or WAHP magazine. It was also much shorter than spelling out work-at-home magazine.


When and why did you decide to start your own business?
I started my own business long before I became a parent, in 2001. My first business (of which theWAHMmagazine is a subsidiary) was Red Pencil Editing Services, which I started in 2001, but didn't start its Web presence until 2003. I was editing freelance as a "side job" during graduate school and decided that it made sense to also do it on my own for private clients.


How did you get started?
I worked in the museum and academic worlds, so there were ample opportunities for editing. At first, my editing business started by word of mouth either from me telling people that I was available to edit privately or from satisfied clients telling others about my work. At the time, my husband and I weren't married yet an were dating long distance, so when it came time to make that important next step, given my fields (museums, academia and publishing) it made more sense for me to move half-way across the country than it did for him to do so. It also allowed me to create a Web presence. That was five years ago. With my ongoing publications experience and the issue mentioned earlier about wanting to achieve a better life/work balance, I decided that Red Pencil Editing Services could also produce a magazine that would help other people in similar situations.


What motivates you to keep your business going?
I love writing, editing and the publications field in general. I completely subscribe to the notion that we should all do what we love. I find that doing what you love to do can motivate you even when you have to deal with administrative issues or when things aren't going as you might expect them to go. It's something more powerful than financial compensation, which of course is wonderful, but doing a job for the sake of a paycheck versus doing a job for a paycheck and personal and emotional satisfaction are two very different things. It's one thing to get up and get out of bed to go to work because you have to, it's something entirely different to get up and go to work (whether at home or away from home) because you want to and love what you do.

Why should WAHMs subscribe to your magazine?
TheWAHMmagazine is unique in its ability to provide quality, well-written content that broaches all of the aspects of the work-at-home parenting lifestyle. Our department features include business issues; parenting issues; relationships that go beyond just love and romance, but encompass all types of relationships; relaxation and rejuvenation because often in running and nourishing our households, families and businesses we sometimes forget about nourishing our own bodies and souls; and to that extent we also have a humor column and a health and fitness column that goes beyond the usual "walk off the weight" that we tend to see on the covers of traditional women's magazines. TheWHAMmagazine also profiles work-at-home parents with each issue who can offer insight and pointers and remind us that we're not alone, no matter how much we might be mavericks in our given fields, and we offer a section called Stories from the Trenches, which in a different way, allows readers to say "oh yeah, I've been there."


How do you advertise your business? Which methods proved successful/effective?
Advertising is a learning curve for me. I have banner or button ads on various WAHM- and parenting-related sites and at my blogs. Of course, there are the links to the magazine and my editing company in all of my e-mail and forum signatures and on my blogs. We also send press releases at key critical periods for the magazine. On the local level, there is word-of-mouth and I have cards at area retailers and businesses that cater to parents. I'm also never without my business cards and postcards with the current cover of the magazine and information about it—you never know when you'll have a chance for networking. I utilize social and professional networks such as LinkedIn and Facebook. I am still learning which methods are the most effective, as the magazine has only been around officially since January. For my editing company, I have used pay-per-click advertising, which was pretty effective. When I first set up the editing company's Web site, I used free link exchange programs as well, but those were not nearly as effective as pay-per-clicks or direct advertising in trade publications. I actually ended up getting my first big corporate client from an ad that I placed in a trade magazine, so I'd say that has been the most effective.


How do you juggle family and work at home?
It is a juggling act indeed…and luckily I know how to juggle and can pretty successfully keep three balls in the air. (LOL) My son is now just over two now, so juggling the needs of family and working from home have changed dramatically since he was born—and I only expect them to continue to change, as his needs change and evolve. I try to keep us all on a flexible schedule, meaning that there is some wiggle room for things like taking advantage of a gorgeous day to go to the park, or getting a change of scenery if we're starting to get "cabin fever." Since my son is not in traditional daycare five days a week yet, I tend to do most of my work early in the morning, during naptime and after bedtime. My mother-in-law helps by watching him two days a week, so those are the days when I can really devote large chunks of time to working only. I also make "to do" lists and I'm honest with my clients, all of whom so far, respect the fact that I work from home, for example, I don't take business calls after a certain hour and that's that.

In terms of maintaining time for myself and my husband (who has a busy schedule himself) we make sure that every evening after our son is in bed that we take time to reconnect—no computers, no television, no cell phones, no answering the regular land line—just the two of us talking, sometimes just snuggling and being quiet. We also have a standing date night at least once a month.


What advice would you give to moms seeking to become a WAHM?
I would say that there are four key things to do. First, really think about why it is that you want to be a WAHM, especially if you are planning to leave a corporate job. You can do this by making a list of the pros and cons and talking about each point with your spouse/partner. Working from home often means new challenges—not the same kind of income as working in a traditional job (at least not at first), insurance and retirement issues and so on. If it's primarily because "you hate your job or your boss" versus because you want a different kind of life/work/family balance then being a WAHM might not be for you. But if it's because you want a different kind of balance and can accept the new challenges that you'll face then it might be.

Second, think about whether you want to venture out on your own and start your own business or whether you want a relationship with another entity either as a freelancer, telecommuter or representative. There are so many options available to us now thanks to advances in technology, but you have to know what is going to be right for you. Whichever you decide, plan it out both for the short-term and long-term—have a business plan if you're going to start your own company; have a plan to take to your employer if you want to telecommute either full-time or part-time; figure out how you want to freelance and for what types of jobs. And once you have that plan, go over it and revise it periodically and don't forget to leave room for growth.

Third, make sure that whatever it is that you're doing from home is something that you love to do, because there will be days (like with any job) when it's not so rosy. The good thing though when you work from home about those cloudier days is that you can get away from your office, your desk, your computer and go to the zoo with your kids without having to check in with anyone else.

Fourth, once you've decided that you are going to be a WAHM, make sure that your family and friends understand what that means. Establish boundaries. Sometimes the people closest to you will hone in on the "you're at home" aspect of working from home more than the "working" aspect of working from home, so it is important to define what that means for you and establish those boundaries from the start.


Visit The WAHM Magazine at: www.thewahmmagazine.com


Current offers at The WAHM Magazine:
Right now, our current offer is a one-month free trial.


Anything else you'd like to add about The WAHM Magazine or about being a WAHM in general?
Being the only digital magazine for work-at-home parents, we're really on the cutting edge of magazine production. The magazine is about the whole person—the whole parent, the whole business person. Also being in a digital medium we can offer more than just words in print—the magazine has podcasts and soon, other media embedded in the magazine, such as video articles. This is not only good for our readers, but for advertisers as well, whose ads open with a simple click, and the reader never needs to leave the magazine.

About being a WAHM, I wouldn't trade it in—not even when my son starts formal schooling. I like the flexibility and to a certain extent, the freedom that working from home gives me that might not be as possible in a traditional work arrangement even if I'm in a creative field.