Working from Home
I have read a lot of articles (and even written a few myself) about how to work from home productively. Now I want your input. What is it that you must do to make sure that you are productive when you work from home? Are there a lot of things you must do, or is it a fairly short list?
Here is mine:
1) Keep to a normal work schedule. Don't work unless it's either work hours or very important.
2) Get dressed and (if possible) work out before sitting down at the desk.
3) Have a separate work space that you use only (or predominantly) for work.
4) Make daily to-do lists and track your progress regularly to seek improvements.
5) Avoid distractions as you would if you were "in the office" when you work unless it's an emergency or cannot be rescheduled.
Your turn.
[EDIT]
Here's a good article (with some good comments) on this exact topic:
http://www.youngentrepreneur.com/blog/homework-how-to-be-productive-working-from-home/#comments
if you want to work from home then one or more of the following has to be true:
1. you are not able to go to a job due to some unavoidable reason such as a handicap or having a family to care.
2. you don't want to have a regular job because you don't like to be tied up
3. you have a flair or some special ability such as writing / programming / techincal consulting / etc which allows you to set up business at home.
and there can be other reasons also for you to work from home.
How to go about structuring your work-climate and habits is therefore dependant upon the reasons and conditions in which you work from home.
e.g. if your job is client / servicing based such as tele-calling/ helpdesk etc, you would have to set up a specific time schedule even if you work from home.
however if you are a creative writer, then you should be able to accomodate your working habits to enable random writing ideas to be penned down as and when they occur.
But the common thread to being successful in working from home stems from the source that the work that you choose is interesting and engages you. If the work is drab for you, it will not take long before you stop being regular and careful with your work.
Another basic is that you should be able to analyze yourself and understand the time and environment when and where your productivity is best. Further you should also be able to maintain motivation and morale to sustain effort and this in turn would need you to understand the way in which you can self-motivate and recharge. One of my friends would occasionally want to chat between his work because that helped him relax and it worked.
As with medicine, there are some that benefit everyone but some people are allergic to a few medicines and some people are immune to a few. So also personal productivity is best defined by personal preferences and work-capacity.
To be your own master, you will have to be self-aware and self-disciplined, otherwise you need someone else as your master
In particular:
1) Have a Daily, Weekly and Monthly Plan(s)
2) Setting and measuring your achievement of Goals
3) Setting and maintaining boundaries regarding when you are working, which is particularly important if you have children at home in which case a clearly understood "work space" is important, you know?
IMHO, however, each individual should determine what they need to do to be the most productive working at home!
E.g.:
a) Some people may work best on a "fixed schedule", e.g. 9 to 5, but I recommend that you work the hours when you are Most Productive, e.g. some people are most productive in the mornings while others are most productive late at night, you know?
b) I recommend you take a break when you feel you need one and/or you feel your productivity "waning". Re-energize yourself to go back to work productively!
c) Yes, avoid distractions! including:
i) Don't be distracted by non-urgent emails or phone calls - not every email or phone call needs to be answered immediately, you know?!
ii) Monitor and limit the time you spend on social media, in forums, etc.! These may be beneficial at times but they can also "suck up your time" if you aren't careful, you know?!
d) Enjoy the benefits of working at home, e.g. the time flexibility, the zero commute, the informal dress code, etc. that inspires you to work hard at it and make it work! and ...
e) Don't fall into the trap of feeling that you have to work 24 X 7, just because you work from home!!!
I hope this helps, Best of Luck and Have a Great Day Working from Home! :)
- Michael S. DeVries
Founder and Principal,
The Virtual Consulting Firm ™
“Real People Providing Real Solutions in a Virtual World™”
http://www.TheVCF.com
P.S. Please Follow TheVCF on Twitter at: http://twitter.com/TheVCF