You decided to work at home for a reason. Maybe you wanted more
time with your family, or maybe you have a disability that keeps
you from working outside the home. But as loneliness sets in, it
can be hard to keep going, and reminding yourself why you work
at home just isn’t always enough.
The first thing you will always need to remember is to get out
of the house regularly. You can feel trapped if you do nothing
but stay home all day. On your days off or when you have time,
get out and do something. It doesn’t have to be anything
special. If you’ve had too much time with the kids, get someone
to watch them and head out with your friends.
In this same vein, take enough time off from working at home.
Don’t feel like you have to be on call 24/7. Turn off the
computer and get some good family time. Emails can wait and your
voicemail can handle most calls.
Is the clutter in your home office getting to you? It might be
time to get organized. Take an hour or two or more and get rid
of the clutter. File all those papers and reshelf your reference
books and binders. Find where all the pens are hiding and put
them where they belong.
Do the same for your computer files. Take a look at all those
free ebooks you downloaded and decide if you are really EVER
going to read them. You’ll probably get rid of most of them.
Make sure your files are organized into folders and subfolders
so that you can find them quickly. Clean the desktop on your
computer screen if it is too hard to find things there.
If you own your business, try not to spend an excessive amount
of time on discussion boards and so forth. It’s probably not as
productive as working on other aspects of your business. Leave
them for when your work is done.
If you are not on some sort of a schedule already, try making
one. It can be pretty flexible, but try to set aside regular
work hours and play hours. You don’t want to overdo your work
hours even when you’re just getting started, but spending too
little time working at home won’t help your motivation either.
Avoid negativity from friends and family who just don’t
understand how you can make a living working at home. You know
you can do it, but it’s hard being told day after day that you
need to get a “real job.” When you’re discouraged about your
progress, talk to someone who believes you’re doing the right
thing. It is very easy to focus only on the fact that it’s hard
to get work done at home and your business isn’t earning that
much, but it is far more satisfying to look back and see how
much progress you have made.
Finally, remember that when you are working at home, whether for
yourself or an employer, in a very real sense you are your own
boss. There’s no one standing behind you telling you to get to
work (unless you have a bossy toddler), so do what it takes to
keep yourself moving and on schedule.
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