"To work from home or not to work from home"

Most people struggle to motivate themselves to work from time to time but pressures of work and encouragement from colleagues is usually enough to get the “work ethic” going again.  What happens if you are working from home and don’t have colleagues to help to get you started?  You then have to find other ways to kickstart your working day.

I’ve been running my own business from home since 2004 when I left the Northern Bank.  I definitely don’t miss the commute to Belfast City Centre, the stress of organising childcare or the actual work but I do miss the social side of work and sometimes I find it hard (like today) to get stuck into the work that I really should be doing.  So what’s the solution?

Firstly set goals for yourself- these could be monthly, weekly, daily or even hourly.  Then have a reward when you achieve a goal – some retail therapy, a walk, coffee with a friend, reading the paper or whatever rewards you.

Organise your day was if you were working in a busy office instead of the kitchen table so get out of your pyjamas before 9am! Have a starting and finishing time, a lunch hour and coffee breaks.  Knowing when to stop working can be a problem too – but that’s the subject of another blog!

Take regular breaks – break your day up in some way eg a trip to the post office to post an invoice, spend some time on social media such as Facebook, Twitter and Linkedin (remember when to stop!) or walk the dog.  If you are finding it particularly hard to get started on a job, do other more attractive jobs instead like getting your emails cleared up or write a blog.

I’d be very interested to hear your thoughts on working from home especially if you have any inspirational ideas on the subject of motivation.  In the meantime, I’m off to the post office to post an invoice, buy something nice for lunch and then I’ll mark a few digital marketing assignments before the little darlings come in from school!

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