There are many great benefits from working from home: you can set your own hours, wear what you want to and be your own boss. These types of benefits are what most people see when deciding to start a business at home. What they don’t think about, are the many distractions they are faced with such as: television, Internet browsing and family members.
Structure is something we all need for work—whether this means going to an office or staying at home there needs to be boundaries. The hard part about working from home is you are blending your work life and home life. Setting boundaries will help keep the two lives separate, even if they are in the same place.
Agenda
Scheduling your day is just as important when working from home as it is when going to the office. Many people find it beneficial to take a few minutes at the end of their day to schedule their tasks for the following day. This can help streamline your work and get everything you need done in a timely manner.
If you use Gmail, Google Calendar is a great tool to use to get yourself organized. You can set up reminders and even sync text message reminders to your cell phone. Evernote is another popular smartphone app to help you organize your thoughts, and keep notes while on the go.
Internet Browsing
One of the many benefits of working from home is knowing you can take a few minutes to check out your Facebook without getting reprimanded by your boss. On the flip side of things, a few minutes can quickly become an hour or more. Lazyman.com recommends, “creat[ing] separate Firefox profiles for increased productivity…when I'm in the work profile, I don't have the quick auto-complete to my "fun" sites. During breaks I can load up my fun Firefox profile and quickly get to what I want.”
Work Space
Some people work well with distractions. Others need a closed room with no distractions. Decide what works best for you and go with it. There are plenty of companies who have televisions, and other types of distractions in the office to help promote creativity. Knowing how to assess what works well for you is a must for the home based business owner.
Taking a Step Back
Being your own boss also means you have to know how to successful critique yourself. Knowing what you need to get done and asking yourself how you could have streamlined the process is a must. Ask yourself questions such as, “ if I could only work for half of the day tomorrow, what would have to get done?” Doing this will help you set your priorities straight and help you stay focused on the big picture.
What do you do to help you stay focused while working from home?
Shannon Suetos is an expert writer on direct mail companies based in San Diego, California. She writes extensively for an online resource that provides expert advice on purchasing and outsourcing decisions for small business owners and entrepreneurs such as direct mail at Resource Nation.
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