I have a few children who are always looking for ways to earn extra money…and as a busy mother of eleven children…there are always extra jobs around the house that I could use a hand with.
I have created a system to make doing extra jobs around the house a win/win situation for both me and the children who would like to participate.
I’m ready to share this with you in the hopes that you will be able to use this system as written, or alter it to fit the unique needs of your own family!
Establishing a Baseline For Regular Chores
Establishing a baseline for chores for each child is essential if you want to start paying your child to do extra chores. So this means that if my nine year old wants to earn some extra money, before I will give him extra jobs, he has to first have all of his regular chores done.
In other words, I don’t pay for extra jobs, if your regular responsibilities have not been taken care of yet.
So if you do not yet have your children doing regular daily and weekly chores, that is step one. If you need help getting a chore routine established in your home, check out my comprehensive system here: Smart Kids Chore System.
Regular baseline chores that your children can and should be doing on a regular basis include: dishes, cleaning their rooms, picking up common areas, sweeping the kitchen and dining room, vacuuming, etc.
This is all going to depend on the ages of your children and what you need done.
Cash On Hand
I believe that one of the things that makes these extra jobs SO appealing for my children is that they get immediate gratification through payment.
Every week when I go grocery shopping, I get $10 cashback, and I ask for it all in one dollar bills. I keep this in my wallet specifically to pay the children for extra jobs.
Most jobs are worth $1, but if it is a bigger job, or a gross job, or something way more in depth, I will pay more. I recently paid my 9 year old $8 to wash/scrub all of my lower cabinets really well. This was a job that took him close to an hour, he worked really hard to get them perfect, and had an excellent attitude when I showed him the areas he needed to do over.
This was also a job that I had been putting off myself for two months…which means I REALLY didn’t want to do it.
Being able to just pay your children on the spot will motivate them to want to do MORE, and this is what makes all of this work so nicely.
I never have to go track down a child to do an extra job, they are always asking for them, and eager to do them.
What Kind Of Extra Jobs?
The types of jobs that I pay extra for are usually organizing or deep cleaning jobs that aren’t on the regular schedule.
I will pay extra for the refrigerator to be cleaned out, the toy closet to be re-organized, cabinets scrubbed down, the laundry room closet to be re-organized, my own closet tidied up, scrubbing the inside of a trashcan, weeding the garden, re-organizing a pantry…
You’ll want to think of all of the jobs around the house that really need to be done…but you never get to, and just start making a list.
One thing that I try to do is break the job up into smaller parts. So if you want the refrigerator cleaned out, but you have a seven year old…I would make this a three-part job. Keep the job bite-sized at first, and especially for the younger children, and this will help them to stay motivated.
Chore Inspection
Chore inspection is absolutely mandatory before payment is given. And make sure to let your children know BEFORE they start, that during inspection, you will be telling them to fix things that are not up to par.
If they want to be paid, they will have to fix these areas and they will have to do it with a good attitude, or they will not be paid.
This is your opportunity to teach them to SEE all of those little things that they might usually overlook. Be patient and kind, but thorough. You are teaching them to do a good job, so make sure that you also take this part seriously.
Think of it this way, do you really want to pay them for a job that you’re just going to have to re-do or fix? No, you don’t.
You also won’t be motivated to give them any other jobs if you have to re-do everything.
And remember, we want this to be a win/win situation, so EVERYONE needs to feel good about it in order to continue.
Bonuses
I am a HUGE fan of rewarding a job well done. So if one of my children does an exceptional job, or goes above and beyond, or does a job so thoroughly that I don’t have to comment on anything during inspections, I will give them an extra dollar.
They know not to expect this, but it does motivate them to try to get it (no temper tantrums are allowed if they do not get a bonus).
You don’t want to give a bonus every time, but you definitely want your children striving to earn it.
Another way to give a bonus is with a little treat. If the job wasn’t done quite well enough for a cash reward, but you want to reward a sweet attitude or an improvement from the last time they did a job, rewarding them with some chocolate chips is always met with a smile.
I know I keep saying this, but remember, you want this to be a pleasant experience for your children.
Smiles, hugs, and encouraging words are like honey to a child’s soul, so lay it on thick!
Paying my children for extra jobs has become a very useful tool in my housekeeping toolbelt. When you do this the right way, then you will benefit, your children will benefit (with extra cash and extra lifeskills), and your home will benefit from having these jobs done on a regular basis!
Remember, if you don’t have your children doing baseline chores yet, that’s the first step!