Working From Home - Is It Working For You?

Before the Coronavirus consumed everyone's life - most people thought that working from home would be a dream come true! You don't have to get dressed. You can throw in a load of laundry in between writing reports or doing whatever work you do, or watch some T.V.  And no one would ever know.

And then reality set in.

Having a "normal" job - where you have to go to (drive to) work does have it's advantages. It forces you to have a "schedule" and a "routine". It usually requires you to be accountable to a lot more people. And there are usually not as many distractions. You are there to "work".

Unless you are very disciplined - working at home has it's challenges. There are a lot of distractions - people knocking at your door - because "you're working from home - so you are available to chat", the TV lures you in, there are house projects that you could squeeze in, and kids wanting your attention.

So how do you make it work when you aren't used to working from home?

First, make a dedicated work space. Somewhere quiet, without distractions. Make sure that you have all of the equipment and tools that you need to be productive.

Second, make sure that your kids (if they are at home) know that you are "working" and they cannot disturb you (unless there's blood) during set working hours.

Third, make a schedule and stick to it!  Use your calendar just like you would if you were at work. Don't get distracted by personal emails or Facebook or Twitter or whatever other social media you are on.

Fourth, have a plan for each day - and stick to it. Try setting a timer for a certain amount of time that you need to work before you can take a break.

Fifth, take breaks and go outside to get some fresh air! A few minutes outside of your home will do wonders to recharge you. But remember to come back to your desk!

For more ways that you can be productive - email me with any questions and I will gladly point you in the right direction.

Have a great week!



Less Clutter = Less Stress ^SM     in your home, your business and your life

Organizational Consulting Services

http://www.organizationalconsultingservices.com
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Working From Home - Organization Needed

A number of people work from home - either permanently or to get extra work done. Whatever the case may be - being organized and having a dedicated work space can make all the difference in how much work you actually get done.

In order to be effective in your job while working at home - you have to take it seriously.  That means no doing laundry or cleaning the kitchen between phone calls.

Working from home can be great but can also have its' challenges. You save money on gas and parking. You aren't stuck in traffic. You can be a bit more casual if you choose.

But you also have to be dedicated and not let all of the "home" distractions sidetrack your work. No sneaking off to watch T.V. or to chat with your neighbors. No letting the kids constantly barge into your office and disrupt business calls.

Even though you work from home you still want to and usually need to portray a professional image.

By getting into a "normal" routine - just like at the office - you have made the first step.

Have a dedicated workspace. Make sure that your space is functional and have all of your needed supplies within reach. Working at the dining room table usually isn't conducive to getting a lot of work done.

Make sure that your family knows when you are working and when they need to keep the noise level down.

Make sure that your neighbors know you really are working and that they can't just drop over for coffee whenever they want.

Keep the toys out of your work area. A professional workspace makes you look and a act more professional. It makes you more motivated.

Of course all of this depends on what type of work you are doing. More creative jobs have more leeway. But if you are running an accounting service out of your home you might want to be a bit more professional.

Have the proper tools available to get the job done. Have an organized and dedicated workspace. Have dedicated office hours.

Just like when you are at the office - you should take a break during the day and get refreshed.

Working from home has its advantages - just don't abuse them and you will be successful - no matter where you work. 



Organizational Consulting Services

http://www.organizationalconsultingservices.com/

The Paper Shuffle

 Organizing spaces is easy and fun (well, for some of us).  Paper - not so much. Getting your paperwork and files organized is time consuming and draining (both physically and emotionally). You have to make decisions about every single piece of paper. There can be hundreds of pieces of paper in an inch. Hundreds of decisions that have to be made about what to do with each piece of paper.

Is the piece of paper important?

Do we have to keep it or can we pitch it?

What do we do with it?  File it?  Where?

And so the paper shuffle begins. From one stack to the next. You can't make a decision so you move the paper from one pile to the  "I'll get to it later" pile.

But you never do. And the pile just continues to grow.

So what's the answer?  Well, it all depends on your "style" and the ability to adapt to a new "plan".  A Professional Organizer always takes the clients "style" into consideration when coming up with a solution. There is no "one size fits all" in organizing.

But no matter what the solution is - there is not getting around the fact that you have to "deal with the paper". Go through the process once, come up with a solution and hope that you will "stick with the program".

Coming up with an easy, yes, you will (not "CAN") do it plan is the first step.  By having a system in place the time spent filing your papers into the appropriate and meaningful files will be drastically reduced.

When a bill or some other important piece of paper comes into your home or office, you will immediately be able to put it into its appropriate place instead of just piling it on top of an already ignored "pile of things" to deal with.

By handling each piece of paper only once you will save a lot of time and your desk will be a pleasure to work at instead of somewhere you would rather not be.

Organizing paper takes a lot of  thought and organizational skills. Not everyone has it. So don't be concerned that you are the most disorganized person out there.

You aren't!



Happy Organizing!




Organizational Consulting Services

www.organizationalconsultingservices.com

WORKING AT HOME

A lot of people are working out of an office at home these days. For a variety of reasons.

* They are self-employed and don’t need an office outside of the home
* They work in sales and don’t need a desk at their companies office
* Their company is letting them “telecommute” from home so that they can save money on
office space
* The company doesn’t want to lose a valuable employee who has children and wants to be at
home

The list goes on and on….

Working from home also saves you money (on gas, wear and tear on the car, clothes, lunches….). And it also cuts down on pollution from your car.

But working from home also brings about some challenges. There are a lot of distractions.

You might have a tendency to throw in a few loads of laundry while you are downloading some software or waiting for an important phone call. Or you might want to run the vacuum cleaner and dust while you are waiting for a fax to go through.

In order to work at home you must be very disciplined. You have to act in a professional manner just as if you were in an office outside of the home. That also means getting dressed and not working in your pajamas (who knows if your boss might stop over?).

My old accountants had an office at home in their basement. They had remodeled it with state of the art computer equipment and if you didn’t know you were in the basement you would have thought you were in a first class office building! Every morning they put on their business suits and worked from 9 am till 5 pm. They were always ready for a client to stop by or to go off to a business meeting. They ran their home office like a real business. They saved a lot of money by not paying for additional office space and therefore they were able to keep their overhead down.

On the other hand, some people never get out of their pajamas when they work and the clients on the other end of the phone don’t know the difference.

Being professional when you are talking to a client on the phone, no matter what you are wearing, is crucial in having a home office.

Working at home if you have small children brings on a whole new set of “challenges”. Having a child screaming in the background when you are trying to talk to a client is not very professional. By scheduling your calls to clients while the children are sleeping or while they are busy with a project of their own is one way around that problem.

Having a “dedicated” work space is very important. If you treat your “at home” business like a real business you will be much more successful. By having a desk or workspace set up with all of the essentials and having a filing system in place you will be much more organized and efficient.

Working at home should not be an excuse for “slacking off”. You should have the same dedication and drive as if you worked in a “real office”. And you definitely have to be the type of person that can work by youself…without having someone standing over you telling you that you have a deadline to meet.

It’s not for everyone. Some people need the interaction that an outside office brings.

But if working from home is something that you want or have to do (maybe because you live in a remote area), then treat your office at home as if you worked in an office building.

Have the proper tools and the proper attitude. And you too can be successful and happy “at home”.


Organizational Consulting Services

www.organizationalconsultingservices.com