Stuck with the Baby at Home During Covid-19 Lockdown? How to Manage Your Time and 10 Freelancing Jobs That Can Also Help You Earn (2020)

It is not easy being a mom who’s also working from a home during a lockdown! As much as you dote on your baby and husband, being in a self-isolation situation with the entire jingbang 24*7 amidst household chores and work chaos may not be a pretty picture, much less sane. With an infant to care for, it may be difficult for you to manage your work hours during the baby’s sleep, as you can’t expect your baby to function according to your convenience. However, if you work around after the baby’s been fed, then it may be easier to attend to your work comfortably, as the child would be well-fed and less cranky.

Further, look for work that allows you flexible hours/ working at different hours. That allows you to be more focused and more productive. During the lockdown when adults can get bored and run out of options to keep ourselves entertained or busy, it is only natural that a baby would be more demanding. And since during work you can hardly afford to take time out, it is best to let your baby be busy playing games or watching videos on a smartphone or an iPad. So don’t beat yourself up and using social media/technology to your advantage!

You may joke all you want for being in lockdown with the family, but of course, being cooped up indefinitely without a break can be quite taxing for everyone. The endless responsibility of being a parent 24*7 in addition to juggling roles as a working professional, spouse and maintaining other responsibilities can be unnerving and tend to leave most adults frazzled. The best way to deal with stress under lockdown is to step away from the mounting tension, even if it means locking yourself in the loo, to begin with! Take a small break and watch funny videos with your husband. Plan and treat yourself to an ‘off-time’ while your hubby looks after the baby.

Stay at home moms are more susceptible to burnout and structuring your kid’s day can help with times when the baby would play on his/her own. Boredom sets in quick if the child is confined to space and isn’t allowed to be physically active. This means you need to ease up a bit and come up with a play area for the baby, where the kid can move around freely and enjoy being engaged in activities of his/her choice. Besides taking care of your family, you need to take care of yourself as well, both mentally and physically. Take a walk every now and then in your garden, get some fresh out in the balcony or just walk around the house to let off some steam. During the day, pencil in a social snack with a scheduled call with a co-worker or a friend every day, where you just have a chat or share funny videos/pictures with each other.

When cooped in lockdown, it becomes necessary to ensure the resources on hand are used optimally and not wasted in any way. Further, time flies when you’re busy and it can be quite exhausting when your to-do list is only getting longer by the day. In such situations, it is best to focus on weekly goals in comparison to the daily chores. It is best to review all the work that needs to be attended to each week and break it all down into small tasks that don’t demand much brainpower and a longer time than is really necessary. When it comes to kitchen management, reduce your labour time in cleaning the kitchen, by cooking on the low flame which prevents the vessels from burning and makes it easier to clean them as well. Use dishwashing liquid to conserve soap consumption, recycle your food, and make extra food in one go. Stock up on groceries as much is essential.

As parents, you may be teaching your child to read, and of course also train the kid on his/her life skills, which implies that education’s an essential part of a child’s daily routine. You can use your skills to impart knowledge to earn an income with Online Tutoring. Whilst having prior experience as a teacher/tutor isn’t imperative, if you have had some experience or certification in a foreign language, it can definitely come in handy.

Online tutoring basically entails teaching the children some basic skills, assisting them with their homework and helping them practise problems that prepare them for a test/exam. If you plan to be an online tutor, you can schedule an hour while your kids are sleeping to tutor other children or conduct after-school sessions for kids in the evenings. You can look for online tutoring jobs/assignments on employment websites like naukri.com, monster.com or indeed and even spread the word amongst your friends, family or other parents you know. Online tutoring pays anything between Rs. 300-1,000 per hour depending on your expertise and willingness to devote a certain amount of time.

If you are someone who enjoys setting up people and has a passion for making love connections, if you have excellent communication skills and can understand the desires or preferences of an individual, then you can be a Professional Matchmaker!

With just a little bit of training, you can connect people from the comfort of your space, talk to them and become aware of their likes, dislikes and preferences of how they would like their perfect match or life partner to be. The next step then would be to go through a relevant database for potential perfect matches and set to plan a fun first date or meeting. From different dating sites like Tinder, Happn, Bumble to matrimonial sites like shaadi.com, jeevansaathi.com, bharatmatrimony.com and more, you can create a business/individual profile and sieve through relevant matches for your clients. Most matchmaking platforms cost about INR 5,000-7,000 for a 3-month package to which you can add your own cost of sourcing and services provided.

Network Marketing or MLM as its popularly known continue to hold top rank in the work from home cadre in India, with a number of MNCs engaged in body, skincare, beauty, healthcare and nutrition industries. With products that serve as options for alternative therapy for a large number of medical conditions like diabetes, obesity, poor immune system to beauty and skin care, hair loss, etc. If you have some wealth stashed away for something constructive or as saving, you can use it to become a network marketer for some top global brands and sell their products for a profit.

While all network marketing companies require a maximum price to be met for the sale of their product, the sale price is inclusive of a considerable profit for you. You can maximize your profits by selling online as well. Some of the leading MLM brands in India include Herballife, Forever Living, Modicare, Amway, Mi Lifestyle, Vestige, Oriflame, RCM, Avon, Future Maker, 4Life, and DXN India.

Another home-based work from home opportunity is that of Graphic Designing which requires a computer/laptop with an appropriate graphics card and a large monitor. This can enable you to design logos, signboards and adverts for small to big businesses, stores and more. You can also pick up freelance projects of designing books, periodicals, emails, newsletters, websites, and other creative content. From individual designing assignments to creating a portfolio of clients who keep coming back for more, in this creative profile digital and visual designers can find excellent opportunities to work from home at flexible hours.

This field is apt for those who have a background in graphic designing and knowledge of Design Software like Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop, etc. You can look for Graphic Designing projects on career portals like linkedin, indeed, upwork, freelancer.com or truelancer.com. The hourly rate on an average for a freelance Graphic Designer ranges between Rs. 1,500-3,500 per hour.

If you are adept at identifying particular skill sets, qualities in addition to appropriate experience and expertise that’s essential in completing a job and are also to ascertain the soft skills and personality traits that make a candidate a suitable fit for the task, then you can explore the field of Freelance Recruitment. From sieving through resumes, to performing background checks to conducting entry-level interviews and orienting new joinees, the portfolio of a Recruitment Consultant varies according to your preferences, expertise and confidence.

Freelance Recruiters are typically paid through a retainer in India which implies that they’re either paid a set amount upfront or paid project-to-project with a certain percentage of the first year’s pay of the hired candidate. Typically a freelance recruiter can earn INR 20,000-32,000 a month. The essentials of being a recruiter may not necessarily involve an HR degree as such but can be an added advantage of course. If you have good communication skills and the knack of identifying the right person for the right job, then with a bit of training you can improve on your skills set of finding and hiring employees.

If you have a degree in journalism, English or another associated field then you have the scope of becoming a freelance copyeditor/proofreader. While copy editing is an in-depth profile that involves not only proofreading but also text revision to enhance its word flow and structure, proofreading typically entails reading a document for consistency and information layout. Even if you don’t have an appropriate degree in this field but have excellent communication and writing skills and fair knowledge of grammar, with a willingness to practice your skills set, then you can train yourself from the comfort of your home through some free training portals online and then apply for freelance assignments. The average pay for a freelance copyeditor is INR 20,000 a month while a proofreader can earn INR 15,000-18,000 a month.

If you have the ability to encourage and counsel people on a variety of personal and professional issues, then you can explore becoming a Life Coach. Distinct from just giving advice, consulting, administering therapy or counselling, life coaching goes a step further by identifying specific goals and supporting an Individual through the transition process and achieving his/her target. One of the best reasons for working with a life coach is that the professional can help an individual develop his/her self-confidence, practice self-assertion and mentor them through the challenges, enabling them to achieve their dream goals.

Life coaching has become quite a rage in recent times as the profession is flexible and convenient for people to hone their skills. You can become a professional life coach by taking a certification course that ranges anywhere between 16 to 100 hours for completion. Most life coaches charge INR 3,000-15,000 per session and globally about INR 7,000-40,000 per hour depending on their expertise and their clientele. You can explore Million Centres, Symbiosis Coaching , Coach Transformation for more information on Life Coach Certification courses in India.

If you’ve had experience in marketing or a background in retail or sales and have a zest for brand offerings, then you can explore being a Brand Ambassador, where you can team up with brands and build on a client-based business opportunity. In this profile, you can sell branded products by the medium of social media. Usually, brands give you particular targets on a monthly basis and you can meet these goals in flexible hours. You can also promote these products on email. For work opportunities, you can explore portals like Indeed or the brand’s career portal, naukri.com, timesjobs.com. The average earnings of a brand ambassador in India is INR 25,000 a month.

If you’re really organized, have a good knack for attention to details and excellent with numbers, then you can pursue Bookkeeping from home. A bookkeeper records financial transactions, reviews financial records for accuracy and updates statements for clients individually. This can easily be achieved over the phone and hence is an excellent work-from-home opportunity for Moms. For Bookkeeping roles, you can pursue various freelance websites or job sites like naukri.com, monster.com, freelancer.com, flexjobs.com, PeoplePerHour, etc. Further, if you’ve already built a client base from a full-time job over the years, then you can continue working with them remotely as well. Most independent bookkeepers earn roughly INR 700-2,500 an hour.

Most women love fashion and if you’re one who keeps up with the latest trends, loves shopping and has a keen eye for piecing together stylish wardrobes, then you can become an Online Stylist. Being an Online Stylist entails helping clients choose clothes, and accessories basis their body type, style preference and their personal goals virtually. From a closet overhaul to picking outfits for special occasions, an Online Stylist ultimately helps her clients achieve their desired look. The best way to gain training and expertise in this field is to become an apprentice stylist for brands to build up on your experience. You can explore listings for an Online Stylist on varied employment websites or brand portals. Once you’re ready to roll, build a website of your own to display your portfolio with relevant contact information so it is easier for the clients to connect with you directly. Typically an online stylist in India can charge between INR 10,000-40,000 a month.

The current lockdown situation in India and the World, of course, is a situation, very few people have experienced or encountered before. And this has led to a lot of inconvenience and mental anguish to most people. With the new measures imposed on the public during the lockdown, the Corona pandemic is affecting a lot of us triggering anxiety, stress and depression. Here are some practical tips to help you get through these challenging times and stay sane during the lockdown period.