20 September 2013

Working from home: how to balance your life

  Being able to work from home is a dream for a lot of people. You have the comfort of your home, your boss is not 3 doors away from you and constantly checking what you are doing, you can choose if you will start work at 8 or 9 or 10 in the morning. And finally you don’t have to waste time traveling to and then back from work.

  If you are someone in your early twenties and single, being able to work from home can be more than fantastic. If you are responsible enough you can earn great money and have an even greater social life. However, for someone who is married or in a serious relationship or if you even have kids, working from home can turn into a nightmare instead of a dream.

It might appear like a good idea at first, yet, reality turns out to be quite tricky. Undoubtedly there are great advantages. But you also have to keep in mind that finding and maintaining the balance between your professional responsibilities and housework chores will require very strong discipline and organisation if you are at home all day long.

In order to be able to do your job, you need to have a plan for your days. Don’t assume that you can deal with the project you are working on between doing the laundry and vacuuming the living room. Set start and finish time for your workday and stick to it. If you have to go to the store, do it before you start work. If you have to wash the dishes or to mop the kitchen, do it during your lunch break.

Working from your own house can be particularly difficult if you have children. Being a mom/dad is a full-time job, and there is no switch-off button you can push to make it easier for you to balance the different aspects for your life. Nevertheless there are a few pieces of advice you should follow:
  • Schedule in advance everything you have to do for the day. Be specific with the time frame for the different tasks!
  • Try to do as much of your work while your children are not at home but at school!
  • Take some time to pay attention to your children after they are back. Take advantage and enjoy the fact that you work from home.
  • Try to leave the majority of the chores for the evening and don’t lose your focus during the day.
Make sure the rest of the family helps with the housework. The fact that you get to be at home all day doesn’t mean that you have turned into a servant.



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