Scheduling Work Around Family Time
As a parent, one of the most difficult tasks can be creating a schedule that not only allows you to make money but to also have time with your family. The great thing about working from home is that it allows you to create your own schedule around your children’s schooling, after-school activities, and family time.
When creating your schedule, it is always a good idea to add a little extra time to all family related activities as we all know that most of the time, things do not go as planned. By giving yourself an extra 20-30 minutes in your family outings or meal times, you will always have a little room for error if your child or spouse needs an extra moment of your time. When coaching your child’s team, this extra time can really help. This time will be well spent when passing out the acrylic awards to your team for a job well done.
Maintaining a Comforting Atmosphere
The most important thing to remember when working from home is that a comforting, quiet atmosphere is needed to help maintain your concentration. Whether you choose the room at the furthest end of your house or a small office den away from distractions, it is ideal to be as far away from loud noises as possible in a comfortable space with all your work necessities. Most work-from-home jobs require you to give your undivided attention for a specific amount of time and, unfortunately, the havoc of your everyday family life can break that concentration you need to reel in a paycheck at the end of the week.
Benefits of Working From Home
- Working from the comfort of your home is one of the greatest benefits anyone will experience. You can remain in comfy clothing, relax on your couch while working, and even grab a coffee at any time throughout the day.
- Although most parents need a break here and there from their children, sometimes a parent would rather spend every second with their child. By choosing to work from home, you are able to savor the little moments with your child that you most likely would not experience while working outside of your home.
- Another great aspect of working at home is being able to create your own schedule and becoming your own boss. This means that you get to choose when you take your coffee break and what time you decide to start work in the morning without the fear of taking too long or being late first thing in the morning.
The Downside to Working From Home
When anyone starts working from home, the first thing that doesn’t go unnoticed is all the distractions around your home. Some distractions may be as simple as the television, game systems, cellphones, children running around or even company constantly stopping by. To avoid the negative aspects of working from your home, be sure to start weeding out these distractions before they even become a problem. Although it will remain difficult at first, over a period of time you will start to form a routine that will help keep you away from these things. Some simple tactics for eliminating these distractions are as follows:
- Before starting work, always make sure all TV’s in your home are shut off so you are not turning around repeatedly to see what is on. This is one of the biggest distractions to anyone working from home.
- Make sure anyone who stops by on a regular basis knows that you are on a strict schedule with work so you will not have any interruptions. As everyone knows, company never has a set time for showing up or leaving which could potentially turn into an all-day affair.
- If you are a parent with younger children in the home, sometimes you will have to work around their nap time to get work done peacefully without the sounds of little pitter patters running up and down the hallway. Be sure to always utilize the quiet moments as they are far and few in between.
- As most of us love to check out our social media pages throughout the day, it is important to refrain from checking our phones for notifications. This is very habit-forming and takes away a good portion of our workday by even just checking it once an hour.
