As a mother, it can be a tough decision whether to work or not to work outside the home.  Sometimes, you don’t even have the option not to work. There are many reasons moms work outside the home.  I work outside the home for three reasons. My reasons are mostly out of necessity. You may or may not have the same reasons for working outside the home.

Here are my three reasons.  You can add to these three reasons by leaving a comment below.

It takes two working parents to provide for a family of five.  I know that some families do it on one income, but their circumstances are not the same as those of my family.

• We have children. – We have two teenagers and a toddler.  They like to eat and so do we. The little one is in diapers and drinks gallons and gallons of milk. The older kiddos have school and other activities, including martial arts and soccer,  that keep them drug-free and out of trouble.
• We have debt.  We have monthly expenses, including a house payment and insurance.  We also have some debt to pay down.  It might be possible to lessen my hours at work after the bills are paid, but that will be awhile.  It’s not a small chunk of change we’re looking at.
• We have interests outside of parenting. – While hubby enjoys watching football on DVR, I enjoy reading books about motherhood, as well as other non-fiction books and an occasional Christian historical fiction book..  Somebody’s got to pay for those things.  This also fits in with reason number three.
• Additional circumstances that I may or may not share later.

2.  Moms work outside the home for the health insurance benefits.

Being employed, I am provided health insurance at a smaller price than if I were to pay for insurance on my own.  My employer pays a big portion of the monthly premium.   Health insurance is a necessity in keeping my health in check.  Being diagnosed with PCOS and having the higher risk of heart disease and diabetes is enough to have me visiting the doctor on a regular basis.  I couldn’t do this without insurance.  (Yes, there are free health clinics, but those resources are limited in what they provide.)

Even if it wasn’t out of necessity, I may choose to work outside the home, if only part-time, to do the things I enjoy.  My skills have grown from working in an office for 17 years.  I enjoy most things paper and computer related:

• Paperwork and forms – Call me a nerd, but I enjoy paperwork and using the computer.  I will fill out a form for you.  I will use the computer to create and put to use a form for the purpose of improving productivity upon that project or job duty that has many steps.
• People – I enjoy interacting with people.  Helping customers and seeing their smiles (or giving them one when they aren’t initiating) satisfies the soul and takes my mind off of my own problems.

I could probably put those skills to work at home somehow, but I wouldn’t get paid for doing those things I enjoy. These things provide the means to supplement my husband’s income, so that we can take care of necessities and have a few extras for my family’s enjoyment.

Working to pay the bills and for health insurance are necessities.   Working for the fun of it isn’t a necessity, but recharging your mommy batteries is.   If you’re fortunate enough to enjoy the work you are doing, this is one way you are getting that much needed mommy recharge.  Be sure to set some goals as a working mom, so that there is consistent balance in  your life.