Working from home may seem like the best thing ever, but you’ve got to remember to keep a healthy work-life balance.
More and more jobs are offering the ability to work from home. If you own your own business, this means you can give yourself more flexible hours. Sometimes, you can find yourself getting more done at home than in an office full of distractions.
Working too much or too little. Missed deadlines, stress hitting the roof. You will burn out very quickly if you do not get the balance right.
Here are a few tips that will make working from home seem like that job you always dreamed of:
1. Routines
Having a routine is probably one of the most important things to have while working from home. Theoretically, you could work during the night after sleeping all day, but both your personal and business life would take a big hit from it.
Creating a regular routine keeps your work-life balance in order. The idea of sleeping in may sound really good, but getting up early at the start of the day can make a big difference.
Just remember that whatever hours you set for yourself, to treat them as if you are in an office and try not to be distracted by anything around you.
2. Your family
Keeping the right work-life balance is very important if you don’t live alone. This means trying to keep to your work hours while reducing what impact it has on your family around you.
Letting others know what your routine is can help them understand, especially if you have children around. Make sure everyone in your family knows the difference between “stay-at-home parent” and a “work-from-home parent”.
Don’t be the type of person that gets angry at people for disturbing you in your “office” if you are actually sitting in their lounge room.
3. Your own office
If you’re one of the lucky ones to have enough space for your own office at home, make sure to have it set up in the most productive way possible.
A few things you would want to make sure to have are things like:
- A decent desk
- A nice and comfortable chair
- Footrest, if needed
- Computer monitors – You’ll be staring at them for almost 8 hours a day, so make sure they are not straining on the eyes.
See our article on how office work can kill you.
4. Your health
This is the most important of them all. Sitting in your chair all day can be tiring, especially if you don’t get up to stretch every now and then.
Working anywhere near the kitchen can also be very dangerous. Make sure the next time you go shopping you prepare for all your healthy meals. This will stop you from going out for breakfast or lunch too much. Not good for the hips and the wallet.
The worst thing you could is shut everyone out and become secluded. This not good for both your mental and physical health. Also, your business could take a bit of a hit as your not out there getting clients.
Remember, once you’ve put all these tips into practice, give yourself some downtime. Reward yourself with a leisurely activity. You deserve a day off or two just as much as everybody else, just as long as you clock off.
