Blogging can be time-consuming. As your blog gets more popular, you tend to hand off some of the more mundane tasks to virtual assistants or tech help. What if instead of paying complete strangers, you hired your children instead? They get experience and to build their resumes while you get the help needed for a better price than if you hired it out.
Here in Autismland, we always have to think outside the box. Therapy needs, social situations, and homeschooling all require a different approach. As Logan has grown older, it has become apparent that employment opportunities are scarce for adults with autism. As his typical sister pursues her dance career, she needs to learn how to make money as well to fund her dance pursuits. Neither child can work outside the home, albeit for different reasons. Logan due to autism and Maddie due to time constraints. I needed help with social media tasks. It was a win-win for all of us.
There is a crucial caveat here. This is your business. You can’t just let your children loose in the social media realm without proper training. The goal is to make the transition seamless and undetectable just like handing it off to a professional. It will be loads of work in the beginning as you train your child exactly what to do and when to do it. You will need to closely supervise as well as be available to answer questions.
What it looks like for my blog is that Logan (autism) handles all my Pinterest chore threads. He is learning how to choose the category on Tailwind, add it & then pick an appropriate time slot. He also learns how to meet certain deadlines which are an asset for him. As he successfully completes the threads, I will add finding more chore threads. He earns money and learns invaluable employment skills while I save time and gain valuable exposure.
Madison (typical) has a great graphic design eye. She can put colors together effortlessly and it looks phenomenal. Using these talents allows me to have her make images for blog posts and social media promotion. Since she is a typical teenager who uses social media proficiently, I can have her post to my Instagram account in ways that are relevant to my readers. Just like with Logan, she earns money while learning employable skills. Again like with Logan, I save valuable time which frees me up to do other things that are more profitable for my business.
Your blog can be the catalyst for a thriving family business which would benefit everyone. Imagine for a moment that your teenager can chase her dreams instead of worrying about what to do after high school. A common fear among special needs families is what to do with their adult children when they age out of school. Not to mention how amazing it would be for them to have all of this experience on their resume when or if they decide to move on to bigger and better things. How rewarding would it be for them to already have a thriving career? All you have to do is think outside the box.
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What a great idea! My daughter loves to write. I considered letting her add her perspective to homeschooling in guest posts at some point. Maybe I will now. Good article.