Strategies for Working at Home

For some time I’ve wanted to write a post about working at home because well, I work from home and sometimes find it challenging. Obviously, I am able to accomplish my work goals at the end of the day, but as any work at home professional will agree, there are pros and cons.

I’d like to share with you some of the pitfalls I often face and the strategies employed to address them. These strategies may seem like common sense, but they help tremendously when put into practice.

Work at Home Challenges

I am a freelancer with a young child at home, so my biggest challenge has to do with focus. It’s hard to stay ‘in the zone’ creatively when there is a screaming toddler outside my door.

Another challenge is [seemingly] unsupportive family. At times it doesn’t register to them that although I work from home, I am still accountable to someone – my clients.

Then there’s the issue of house guests. I live in the fabulous city of Lost Wages. I mean, Las Vegas. Seems like there’s always a steady influx of people that want to crash at my place. What to do?

Set Boundaries

To be successful when working from home, you must set boundaries. I’ve recognized that in order to nurture my career, I will need to turn down invitations for personal outings from time to time. If I want success badly enough, it will be worth the sacrifice.

Admittedly, the inability to say no is a weakness of mine, but I’m working on it. More specifically, I’m learning how to turn down projects if my gut tells me to go in another direction. Not that I’m soooo in-demand or all-important, but for anyone who takes on clients (freelancers in particular), this subject is all too familiar. I’ll write an article someday about that, but I wanted to throw it out there since you might be in a similar position.

Setting boundaries now applies to out-of-town guests. If they’re a close relative, like my mother-in-law or sister, then I know in advance when they’re coming and make it a point to schedule days off to host. I still get the occasional drop-in visit, but they’re getting used to the fact that I have to work during set hours (more about this later).

If out-of-town visitors are long lost friends or distant relatives, they don’t know too much about what I do anyway, so I simply tell them that although I would love to host, I have to work, and then politely offer to meet them at their hotel for drinks or coffee during their visit. For their convenience and mine, I keep a list of cost-effective hotels handy for times when I’m asked for recommendations.

Create a Work Environment

Boundaries can also be made by setting aside a space in your home for work. Preferably, you want this space to be in the same location and respected by all as your place of work. I have a separate room in my house dedicated to my design studio and my family knows that when the door is closed and the light is on, it’s a no-fly zone. Mama is working and should not be disturbed unless the house is on fire, or you are seriously injured.

Your work space should optimally be a quiet, organized space that supports the nature of your work too (printer, phone, laptop).

If you’re having trouble carving out a work environment for yourself at home, you might want to consider the affordable alternative of a co-workspace.

I’m still pretty comfortable working at home, but in all honesty, a co-workspace arrangement is still up for consideration should more opportunities become available in my area.

Set a Schedule

The beauty of working at home is that you have the freedom to set your own schedule. If you don’t have a set schedule already, I would recommend that you implement one. In this way, you can let friends and family know when you have to work – no exceptions. Then all the other hours left in the day are up for negotiation.

By setting a schedule, I’ve personally become more productive because I can get into work mode knowing that I have a set block of time to accomplish certain tasks.

In addition, when you set boundaries regarding your time, you’re less likely to take on more than you know you can handle.

Post Hours of Operation

If you have a web site for your business, it would be helpful to display your hours of operation. This assures your clients/customers of your availability and professionalism.

Thankfully, my family is supportive of my career. In the past, I felt like they were being unsupportive because they’d ask me to go shopping on a work day, or propose a last-minute road trip. How were they to know when I was available if I hadn’t made my schedule clear to them?

Now that my hours of operation are clearly defined, my family knows when I’m available to goof off. It all comes down to communication.

Get Help

If possible, hire outside help. I learned this tid-bit during a stint as a beauty consultant for direct sales cosmetics company. Notably, the most successful consultants were the ones who acquired help early on in their careers.

Recently, I recruited the help of a babysitter who comes to my home 3 days a week. The expense is well worth it because the only way I would gain the same level of productivity would be to put my daughter in daycare. Frankly, I’m not ready to do that and the expense isn’t justified quite yet.

Maybe you need help in other ways like hiring a virtual assistant, or someone to clean your home. At least give it some thought. The investment might be worth it so you can use the extra time to focus on your business.

Start Early (or Late)

I’m personally not a morning person, but on the rare occasion that I’m up before the rest of my household, I take advantage of the quiet time to work.

I first learned of this technique while browsing for advice on housework and exercise. After having my daughter, my ability to keep house and get back into shape suddenly seemed impossible. I wondered what the heck everyone else was doing to keep up. A few quick searches online revealed what my mommy counterparts were doing – beating the crowd and waking up early.

I wish it were that easy, which is why the same can apply to late-nights. Especially if you don’t have a ton of deadlines. The night-owl in me prefers the quiet after bed-time to get stuff done. This is why 2 days out of my work week consist of evening hours. Work during the evening accommodates international clients and I can still get work done on the days my babysitter isn’t around.

Remain Self-Disciplined

Regardless of the circumstances, I am ultimately to blame if I don’t reach my daily work goals. The golden rule for anyone who works for themselves is self-discipline.

Self-discipline comes in many forms and the level necessary varies from person to person.

Hopefully you can maintain a level of self-discipline by incorporating some of the work at home strategies listed above.