It was an email I’ll never forget. Though the signs were brewing, it was still shocking to open my laptop and see a message from our school district instructing parents to keep their children home for the foreseeable future. This was back in March of 2020, when the pandemic first hit hard and nobody really knew quite what to do.
For the next four months, my three children were forced into a remote learning environment, and the option to return to school in person didn’t present itself until September. At that point, in-person classes would consist of two half days, with the rest of school being remote. There was also a fully-remote option on the table, and we took it. The risk and hassle of sending my kids to school wasn’t worth it for two measly half days.
At several points in 2020, I was so wrapped up in overseeing my kids’ remote education and making sure they were coping that I had no choice but to let my work fall by the wayside. But in spite of that, I actually managed to boost my income by 25% last year. Here’s how that happened.
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When lockdown makes you more productive
Juggling full-time parenting and working was no easy feat early on in the pandemic when everyone was scrambling and my kids could barely turn on a laptop, let alone log themselves into Zoom meetings with their teachers. But in time, my kids managed to settle into a routine and become more self-sufficient. And I was able to take advantage of that by throwing myself into work during the hours when they were in school.
Meanwhile, I never realized how jam-packed my schedule was with kid activities until the pandemic hit. For much of 2020, those activities were canceled. And once they came back, they were offered remotely, which meant more Zoom. It also meant I wasn’t running all over town every afternoon and evening, and I was spending weekends at home rather than rushing to martial arts tournaments and Cub Scout events.
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