In his classic 1936 book, How to Win Friends & Influence People, Dale Carnegie says, “Dealing with people is probably the biggest problem you face, especially if you are in business. Yes, and that is also true if you are a housewife, architect or engineer.”

We may not want to call it a “problem” to deal with our children and our loved ones, but it is surely the most important part of homemaking. No matter how well or how inspiringly we decorate, clean, cook, plan, and carry out the management of our home, it will not count for much if the people in the home are not satisfied and fulfilled, as much as they can be.

Carnegie also says there is one “indispensable requirement” for getting the most out of his book, and that is a “deep, driving desire to learn.” I believe this is a requirement for being a good parent and a good homemaker as well. There is so much to learn and so many ways to improve in both arenas that it makes sense to continue to learn as much as we can. I also firmly believe that this deep desire to learn is what makes homemaking and parenting fun!

I’ve given two quotes in the introductory pages of a famous book written for businesspeople. What else from the realm of business can be applied to homemaking?

In the first segment of this article, I will talk about some of the departments that companies use to carry out their business and how those departments translate into categories for running a home.

In the second segment, I will talk more about methods that successful businesspeople can use to relate to, persuade, and communicate with people and how the successful homemaker uses those same techniques.

As Home CEOs (H-CEOs), let’s take a look at some business departments:

Operations

In the business world, the Operations department may send out company policies to individual branches or storefronts and monitor and enforce those policies.

In the home, the Operations function is to make the day-to-day rules, which could include things like morning wake-up times, bedtimes, how much TV per day, the timing of meals, and what are acceptable manners for family members.

Information Technology (IT)

In business, the IT department ensures the smooth running of technology throughout the company.

At home, this function could include the set-up of entertainment devices, the fixing and/or replacement of kids’ toys and other household items, decisions on what technology will be used in the home, and if, where, and when kids will be allowed to have their own cell phones, computers, TVs, and other devices.

Marketing

Marketing departments make sure public presentations of the company are polished, professional, and attractive. They also try to put the company brand in front of potential consumers or clients.

In the home, this can translate into doing the once-over before leaving the house (i.e., smoothing hair, buttoning and zipping where needed, coordinating shoes, wiping faces, changing diapers…), as well as introducing the family to neighbors, deciding on social outings and entertaining guests at home, and even choosing service projects as a family.

Human Resources

This department initiates programs and resources for the employees and helps to link employees to those resources. It can also act as legal advisor to the executives, and makes sure safety practices are followed. It may also include the payroll department.

In the home this role can encompass home educating, volunteering for the PTA or at the kids’ schools, finding summer camps, music lessons, swim lessons, and sports teams, taking charge of the safety, legality, and morality of activities in the home, kissing boo-boos, dispensing allowance, and providing emotional support.

Accounting

Accounting departments balance the books and prepare budgets, forecasts, and reports for the executives.

As an H-CEO, we may decide on allowance amounts, sign off on permissible purchases (like treats for the kids), balance accounts, make account deposits and withdrawals, make a family budget, and stay within the budget. In some homes, (one of) the breadwinner(s) takes on this role; in others the homemaker is in charge; and in others, the “accounting” duty is shared.

Physical Plant/Shipping

This department may receive, unpack, package, and ship products, do maintenance on the company’s physical property, store items, and maintain a supply of packaging and shipping materials.

At home, the H-CEO ensures a good supply of stamps, paper, envelopes, printer ink, pens, boxes, wrapping paper, bows, cards, etc., has a system for organizing things inside the house and for storing things that are not in use, and may keep up the lawn and household maintenance (alternatively, advises someone else what needs to be done in these areas).

Officers

Some families are set up so that the homemaker is the CEO of the daily running of the home and the husband/father is the Chairman of the Board with final decision-making power. In some, the husband/father is the homemaker and/or H-CEO while the wife/mother works. In many homes, both spouses/parents work and duties may be split in many different ways.

A good use of older siblings is to make them “officers” under the management of the parents, so that they help ensure the completion of daily housework and care and training of the younger children. Even only children or children in small families can and should be given duties that are their very own responsibility. But we will talk more about that sort of thing in the next installment.

Administrative Assistant or Secretary

In a business, the Administrative Assistant or Secretary may be in charge of scheduling events, appointments, and travel for the officers, answering phones, paying some bills, filing documents, handling correspondence, planning company events, data entry, and more.

If only H-CEOs had a good assistant or two! Perhaps older children can be trained to: schedule doctor’s appointments and get-togethers, pick up and drop off items and people, coordinate family activities, send out birthday and holiday cards and gifts, plan and schedule travel, pay bills, file papers, do all post office runs, get, open, and sort the mail…and more.

In fact, many people who work from home and are in charge of the children and household on top of their paycheck job do make good use of hired assistants.

The next installment of this article will focus on people strategies in business and homemaking, highlighting examples from the above-mentioned How to Win Friends & Influence People, by Dale Carnegie, and The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Families by Stephen Covey.

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