MyBusiness Manual - January/February 2010
Working From Home: 5 Rules to Follow
How to separate home and office when working from your home office
by Summer Huggins
Melissa Gold is the founder, principal and sole employee of Gold StandardPR in the Northern Virginia/Washington, D.C., area. A few days a week, she sets up shop in an advertising agency. Other days, she manages her public relations business from her home.
Having always worked in an office setting, Gold admits working from home poses a unique set of challenges--how to focus around so many distractions and how to turn off work when it’s always in the next room, to name a few. But more than a year after striking out on her own, she has figured out how to make the most of her time and her environment at home. Here are Gold’s five rules to follow when working from home:
1. Keep a daily to-do list. There are distractions in the home environment that you won’t find in your office or usual workspace, so keeping a daily task list will help you stay focused. "I always have a to-do list running with anything and everything that is happening that day," Gold says. "I don’t have to cross everything off the list [at the end of each day], but if I don’t write it down, including any meetings, workouts or errands, I’ll get wrapped up in something else and forget to do it."
2. Maintain a consistent schedule. If you’re working from home a day or two a week and still have team members in the office, you might want to work normal business hours to keep the lines of communication open with those employees. But if you’re like Gold and know that 8 a.m.–5 p.m., isn’t for you--she’s most productive in the afternoon and evenings--adjust your schedule accordingly and keep it consistent.
3. Hide the remote control. When Gold first ventured out on her own, a friend told her to keep the TV off. Gold said the friend’s advice was "totally right." A little news with your morning coffee can be a good start to getting a handle on the day, but more entertaining programming (food channels, soap operas and talk shows) often turn into a major distraction.
4. Dedicate a space just for work. The kitchen is for cooking, the bedroom is for sleeping and the dining room is for eating. Doesn’t it make sense then to have a space just for working? Having a dedicated space for business will help you stay focused while you work. It will also make the transition away from work smoother if you can close the door to that space when your day is done.
5. Sleep, eat, shower and have a life. Just because there are 24 hours in a day, doesn’t mean you have to work all of them. Discipline yourself to work a certain number of hours each day. With the rest of your day, take the time to shower and dress appropriately, eat a balanced diet and get plenty of rest. "The first two months out on my own, I couldn’t figure out the basics like when to take a shower or eat," Gold says. "It took some time, but I eventually figured out how to make it all work."
Cures for Cabin Fever
If you’re itchingto get out of the house, try one of these quick fixes:
- Walk around the block with the dog.
- Meet a neighbor for breakfast.
- Pack your lunch and head to the park.
- Attend an NFIB member event in your community.
- Work a half-day in your local coffee shop.
- Volunteer your time at a local charity for a few hours each month.
- Spend an hour at the gym to start or end your day.