Working from home is the dream, but it can be very easy to get side-tracked. With a little planning and some firmly set rules in place, you’ll find you can have a healthy balance between working and family life. You can do this without always being on work mode or without constantly breaking work mode to play.
Some things to consider are;
- Where you’re working
- The hours you’re working
- Your daily routine
- Things to be interrupted for
Have some hard rules about when it’s okay to interrupt you. Are you bleeding? Is the house burning down? They don’t have to be that extreme but when you work from your house, they are going to be tempted to come and bother you unless you tell them not to. The same goes for people you work with remotely. Let them know when your work hours are and stick to them. Don’t take their calls when you’re having family time and make sure they understand that’s what will happen. Letting your co-workers and family know your daily routine and sticking to it will make things a lot easier.
Working from Home Efficiently
In an article on Business News Daily there are some great self-employment tips about managing your time. The first is to have a place in your home that’s only for work. Make sure you are going to that space and only doing work there. You can make a whole room your office or you can set up a desk in the living room as long as you keep others in your home out. The best thing to do is find a room without distractions such as the TV. If you’re in the room with it, you might be tempted.
Take Time for You
Another good tip is to take breaks. It’s easy to get sucked into working at home for long periods. Leave the work-space for lunch and go on an afternoon walk. This is what you’d do if you worked out of the home, so make sure to give yourself the break. In an article on the Entrepreneur website, Lisa Kanarek talks about how important it is to take the time you need. Quit working when you need to, don’t spend days staying late because you want to just get one more thing done and it’s a short walk to the kitchen. Be firm with your hours. Go out with your significant other and kids, mark it on your calendar. Take off a day during the week at least once a month. Remember, you’re your own boss, you can do that.
Keep self-care in mind when working from home. It can get very easy to become a workaholic because you always feel like you can just pop into the office. Working at home gives you the unique opportunity to spend time with your family so it’s important that you take it when you can. Same as if you worked in an office and left every day, the work will be there when you get back tomorrow.