Telecommuters and home-based workers know it's easy to be a workaholic when the office is 10 steps from the kitchen. How to define where 'office' ends and 'home' begins
Those who start home-based businesses or begin working from home are often surprised to discover that instead of spending less time in the office, they often spend more. That;s because when your office is just steps away from the private areas of your home it's all too easy to fall into the trap of " let me make just one more call" or" I'll just check for that email one more time." Be vigilant about separating work and home space by following these tips:
- Don’t equate productivity with the hours you spend in the office. Rather than measuring a successful work week by the hours you spent in the office, measure by how much you accomplished, or if you reach a predetermined financial threshold. Keep track of the dollars you need to earn to consider your week a success, not the hours.
- Put technology to work for you. Voicemail, cell phones, texts and e-mails are all wonderful tools that make telecommuting and home-based businesses possible. But those same tools can turn into monsters when you can't get away from them. With technology comes shorter deadlines. And answers are expected instantly. So use the same technology to guard your private time. Voicemail is your first line of defense, as long as you let it do its job. And leave the tech gadgets on your desk when you leave the office at night. When your work day is over, let calls go to voicemail. If you can’t bear to let a call go unanswered, screen out all but the most crucial calls.
- Decide what time of day you are at your most productive and work in the office then. Or If you need to be at your desk to take calls from the opposite coast, or to communicate with staff in another office, schedule your in-office time then. If you live with children, try to get up before they do to spend some quiet time at your desk to get off to a good start. Once they are up, take a break to get them off to school and then head back to the office.That way you've put in your quality time at work before the kids arrive home for the day.
- Maintain physical boundaries. For example, don't open office mail or packages outside of your office or away from the desk so there is no scattering of work materials. It will keep things in your home neater and you won't misplace important work info. And don't eat at your desk or read work related emails at the kitchen table while eating breakfast.
- Shut the door when you leave for the day or the weekend. If your office doesn’t have a door, have one installed. If your office is carved out of another room, buy a decorative, portable screen to conceal the work portion of the room in the hours your office is closed. Or look for a desk that folds up into an armoire.
- Take time off. Vacation is important. Two weeks is great, but if you don’t feel you can be away from your office or business that long, reward yourself with a break of a few days at the end of a big project. Downtime will not only help clear your head, but it will also energize you to tackle the next set of challenges.
Copyright Elaine Petrowski. Contact the author to obtain permission for republication.
Elaine Petrowski - is a seasoned media professional with extensive experience as a writer, author, editor, web content producer and blogger. I'm the ...
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