(Take it from an author-entrepreneur who manages 30 people and a half million dollar business from home)
Even as the research supporting work-from-home opportunities show that flexible work environments improve job satisfaction and productivity, many leaders working in traditional offices remain skeptical when they meet an entrepreneur running a business from home.
“Don’t you get distracted by the dirty dishes?” they ask.
“Aren’t you tempted to watch Netflix all day?”
The answer is no and no.
Developing ways to manage your time, energy and the pressing demands of home is the key. You can get as much work done at your house as you can at your office, if not more. Here’s how:
1. Do your hardest work at your peak times of energy. You know those mid-afternoon hours when your eyes droop, and all you can think about is coffee and snacks? Don’t work during those times.
Instead, practice self-care. Exercise, get a haircut, shop for healthy food or take a nap. You will have a burst of energy in the evening and can get a few more productive hours of work in later, so don’t worry about the afternoon lull.
2. Take advantage of weird moments of inspiration. About that nap thing…
Sometimes a nap is necessary because you woke up at 4 a.m. with a solution to a knotty problem or a brilliant idea. You can (usually) indulge in those bursts of inspiration and take a nap the next day if you need to.
3. Work weekends. I am in the business of book coaching, which means I work with writers. Most writers have found that the best way to maintain momentum on a long-term writing project is to write every day.
Even one day off can mean you have to struggle to remember what you wanted to say and how you had decided to say it. The writing brain is a muscle that likes to be used.
The same is true for the entrepreneurial brain.
It is more productive to do a bit of work every single day than to take two days off each week. You can take hours off whenever it suits you, rather than when the calendar dictates it.
4. Don’t sit in one place. Your house likely offers several different workspace options. Some of them involve an office chair, a proper desk and a big screen. Some might be in places with natural light and a view of the street, while others might be in dark, quiet spaces.
You can move among these workspaces depending on the work you are doing and how you are feeling. Research shows that changing your work location increases productivity.
This variety helps to compartmentalize the tasks you have to do, promote focus and shake things up when you are getting restless.
5. Protect your headspace. Noise-canceling headphones are key for shutting out the noise of the world — the groups of friends your kids might bring home, the basketball game your husband has on or the lawn mower from next door.
There are other tricks for protecting your time and quiet headspace, too. Turn off your phone. Put a sign by the front door whenever you are a guest on a podcast, running a webinar or filming a video that says, “PLEASE DO NOT KNOCK OR RING THE DOORBELL. I AM FILMING. IF YOU HAVE A PACKAGE, I GIVE YOU PERMISSION TO LEAVE IT. THANK YOU.”
When my kids were little, I’d close the French doors that divided my office from our family room, as a sign to them that I was working. They’d stand there and wait for me to look up — they knew that they should only do that if they really needed something.
Sometimes all they needed was a hug or some time with their mom, but the thing about working from home and being productive is that this is the reason you do it: so you can embrace the things you value the most.
