
Sometimes things just sit with me for a while, and I think about them quite often. My husband is going to be working solely from home in a few weeks, which is something we have been working toward for a while. His office now is almost an hour from home, and most of what he does can be done very easily from home. Since he has to be at work at 8 am, he usually leaves before 7 and doesnât get home until 5:30. Itâs not bad, but itâs not ideal in a household with four small kids. I work from home, so it leaves me to get all four dressed and ready for everything during the day, and there is no break for me throughout.
Working from home with four small kids is no small feat, but itâs one that would be so much easier for both of us with my husband home. We have a home office thatâs quite large and houses our needs without much issue, and we both have exceptional work ethic. When we announced to our friends and family the changes weâve made recently, one close friend said to us, âYou guys will never get anything done! Youâll be shopping, out to lunch, taking the kids on vacationâŚâ and we laughed and laughed and laughed.
I did think the same thing about working from home many years ago when I first became an adult and had my first job in college. I used to think that Iâd work from home one day and that Iâd spend the days sleeping in, reading, going to the beach and lying by the pool. People donât realize â until theyâre in the situation, I think â that running a successful business is very hands on. You have to be here. You have to do the work; and you will never trust anyone else enough to do it for you.
So when our friend said that to us, we laughed. I tried to explain to him that there is a schedule and that fun doesnât happen until work is done. In my world, I canât enjoy myself doing anything else if I know I have work to come home to. He still doesnât believe that we wonât be out all the time and basically living a life of constant vacation, and I canât change his mind.
What I can do, however, is explain to you the ground rules of working from home if it is something that might be in your near future. Like anything, it has its ups and downs, and itâs not for everyone. For me, working in an office on someone elseâs schedule doesnât work. Iâm not a people person, I dislike interruption, and I am highly motivated very early in the morning. I like to get started right away, skip the pants and spend the vast majority of the day with my kids. Itâs why I do what I do. If you are planning on working from home from this point forward, itâs a good idea to learn the ground rules and know what it takes to do it successfully.
Set A Schedule
When I began writing, I tried a lot of different schedules. For me, though, Iâm very productive in the early morning and a lot lazier in the afternoon. I find mornings inspire me and make me better at what I do. I get up at 5 am, shower, get back in bed at 5:20 and work until 6. I drink coffee until 6:20 and get up and blow dry my hair and put on my makeup until 6:50. Then itâs back to work until about 8 when the kids wake up. Breakfast and diaper changes for the twins, then itâs back to work from 8:20 until about 9:30 when theyâre done playing and entertaining themselves and getting their mornings going. We are at the gym by 10 where they play in the Kid Zone and I work out.
Weâre home by 11:45, itâs lunch time and play time. The twins are in bed by 12:30, and then I work a bit more and finish up anything I canât finish up in the mornings and spend the rest of the afternoon with my big kids (I work if they donât want anything to do with me) and then the twins wake up at 3:30 and itâs outside play time and fun until daddy gets home, and then itâs evening fun. I work anytime I can when the kids donât need or want me. Itâs our schedule, and it works well for us. Set one; youâll appreciate it.
Get Up Early
Nothing is better than a quiet morning and getting up early to get the day started. Remember; the earlier you get up and get started, the earlier you will finish up and be able to do the things that you want and need to do at home.
Create An Office Space
There is nothing more important than a designated office for anyone who works from home. Mine is perfectly located in our house so that it doesnât distract me from my work, and it is inspiring. I spent a lot of time decorating my office so that itâs warm, comfortable and inviting in here. I need that to function.
Get Pretty
I donât function well if I feel ugly or not like myself. I might not like to wear pants at home, but you wonât find me without makeup and good hair. I feel better when I look good, and Iâve heard from many of my other work-from-home friends that looking good makes them more comfortable and productive, too.
Get Up and Move
Nothing is more draining that sitting in the office all day long. Youâll see that my day is very spread out and cut up. It might not seem ideal, but even if I didnât have the kids home during the day, it would look like that. Iâve found that after about an hour and-a-half of working without interruption, Iâm ready to get up and shake it off. When the big kids are in school, Iâll often move myself out to the back deck to lay out in the sun for a while so that I can rest.
Get the Work Done
Work doesnât do itself; and you donât get paid unless you do the work. Keep that in mind. You need motivation and a strong work ethic to work from home, or it will never work for you.
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