When my son was six months old, I came to the sad conclusion that I needed to bring in some income. When I was out at interviews, I would walk through the offices and see pictures of women's children perched on their desks. Some of these women were very young and had pictures of babies on their desks!

I started thinking about raising my child by gazing at his picture on my desk at work. That's when I decided I wanted to know how to be a work at home mom.

Now that was 1985--ancient times, right? What could you do from home then?

The choices were limited: Day care, teach music lessons, maybe home sewing?

I actually had a degree in music and tried the teaching route. But can you imagine trying to teach teenagers to play the flute with a six-month old baby in the house? Yes, I could have gotten a sitter, but then what would be the point of working at all?

This was a tough situation.

So I fell back on another skill I had: transcription. I had a job in this field before my son was born.

I approached my former employers and asked if they would consider using my services. Eventually, my transcription business was born and I was spending most of my waking hours transcribing doctors' dictation.

Yes, I was at home. My son grew up in his home. But what a boring existence it was for me!

Fast forward to the days of the Internet. Moms have so much more available to them in the wonderful cyberworld.

Starting a business was never simpler. You really can work from your home without leaving your brain in the dust.

The key to how to be a work at home mom is to treat your venture like a business, not a hobby, or as though it weren't important.

Decide on the business you are going to pursue. Select something that you have an interest in so you will stick with it.

Do you love gardening or flower arranging? Do you speak another language and can translate? Do you have a flare for writing and have always wanted to sell your short stories?

All of these are great ideas for an on-line business.

Develop a job description and duties for your business. Write up a schedule like you would be dealing with at a job away from home.

Write out the tasks you must do each day, just like a regular job. Remember, being "your own boss" has a down side, too! Your boss wants you to work for a reason!

Last, but probably most important, stick with it! A business takes time to build, even an on-line business. As your children grow, so will your on-line business.