Medical transcription is a great career for stay at home moms. The hours are flexible with most companies, so you can work around when your kids need you.

But first you have to learn how to be a medical transcriptionist. No legitimate medical transcription employer is going to take you on with no training or experience whatsoever. They need high quality work right from the start.

Your training time is a great time to start figuring out how to cope with all the responsibilities you have to your family as well as to your at home career. Learning to balance the two is challenging for most people.

The very first step is to choose a quality online training program. You want a company that will train you well and that employers want to hire graduates from. No point in paying for training that has a poor chance of landing you any job in the future.

Career Step, The Andrews School and M-Tec are all considered reputable for online medical transcription training. A few other schools show promise, but it's better to be certain of what you're getting than it is to merely hope that you guess right with a less well known company.

Take your training seriously. If you can work on it as you would your hope for job, you'll have practice in scheduling yourself around your family's needs. It's also good practice for your family.

You'll need a quiet place to work. Some can work with a television or radio on in the background, but others will find it too distracting.

Children and husbands tend to be some of the worst distractions. Your training time is theirs as well, to learn when to interrupt you and when to cope on their own. Be firm now, as it will matter far more when you're trying to earn a living.

Most moms will find it simplest to work when the kids are in bed or at school. Whether you work early mornings or late into the night is very much a personal preference. You have good odds that you will be allowed to work your preferred schedule if you work for a medical transcription service, but if you go into business on your own you'll have to work the hours it takes to get the work done.

The more seriously you take your training, the better you are likely to do with it, and the more prepared you should be for your future career. Being able to set your own schedule is a skill you acquire if you want to work at home successfully in any career.