You may be one of the thousands of OfficeTime users working from a home-based office. Productivity at home requires a different level of commitment and focus than working in a leased office space or in a corporate office.
While working from home enables you to get closer to achieving the perfect work/life balance, being successful depends on your ability to plan your time well.
Here are 5 recommendations for successfully working from home:
1) Keep your work space separate from your living space
Keep your office space completely separate from your living quarters, and if you’re using a land-line for your business phone rather than your cell phone (necessary for faxing, of course), install a separate line from your home phone line.
2) Invest in an organized office
When you walk into your home office, you should feel like you are walking into a professional office. Therefore, spend money on setting it up as an office rather than a continuation of your home, and invest in filing and online organization systems to reduce clutter and improve your productivity.
3) Set up regular working hours that fit your lifestyle
Even though your “commute” is short, you should still get dressed for the office rather than working in your PJs and head into the office with a working mindset. Set up your office hours around the times when you work best. If you are a night person, and your business doesn’t depend on you being available to clients in the morning, there is no point in starting at 7.30 am.
4) Use lists to keep yourself on-task
When you set yourself a project, break it down into manageable chunks. When you get de-motivated, add items you aren’t presently in the mood to do to your “procrastination list.” What you don’t feel like tackling today you may well feel like tackling another day. Over time, you will see likely spot the patterns of which tasks are best done on which days.
5) PLAN your work/life balance…including time for fun
List out and prioritize everything that is important to you: goals, family, friends, health and fitness. Block out time each week in line with each priority and stick to it. If kids and other family members are also home during your working hours, make sure they respect your working situation and don’t continually interrupt you. Finally, plan time for fun. Yes, schedule time for fun activities. You should reap the rewards of a home office lifestyle, including the flexibility to block out times for the activities you enjoy.