How To Overcome Isolation When You Work At Home
If you think that working from home is all sunshine and roses, think again. Just like any job, there are advantages and disadvantages. One thing that many people fail to take into account when they begin to work at home is the isolation they may feel and how they can combat the loneliness that comes with working from home.
Ways You Can Avoid the Trappings of Loneliness When You Work at Home
Try and establish a structure to your day when you work at home. Nothing gives loneliness a chance to get its foot in the door when you are looking at time stretching before you like the hot desert without an oasis. When you work at home you should start each day with a plan and stick to it. Assign your tasks and carry them out according to plan. The best time to schedule your day is to do it the night before so you have it in hand when you awaken.
Reach Out to Others
When planning your day, be sure to include at least a couple of activities that will have you interacting with others outside of your home. You may love your family to pieces, but a harried spouse and demanding children will not satisfy your need for socialization. Some say the hardest part when you work at home is the lack of adult conversation. Schedule a break when you know a buddy can have a nice chat with you. Take a walk with a friend or your pet to take in the fresh air and connect with the outside world.
When you work at home, you can think about joining a club or a group. You can take a class or attend a trade show or seminar that pertains to your area of business. This will enable you to share the triumphs and pitfalls you experience when you work at home with others handling the same situations.
Get Your Muscles Pumping
If you work at home, joining a gym can be a great way to meet and talk to other people and get yourself feeling and looking good at the same time. You can schedule your time at the gym for the same time everyday and you will be surprised at how quickly you become friends with others who visit when you do.
Arrange a Party or Picnic
Don’t sit home and wait for invitations to come to you, plan your own get-togethers to ensure you have some fun and adult interaction. Whether this is in the form of an outdoor barbeque, a picnic at the park, or a night you plan with friends to get together and play cards or some other sort of game, it is a wonderful chance for you to relax and do some catching up.
You can organize a function that is business oriented and get to know others who work at home too. It is a terrific way to network and make contacts as well as share ideas and inspirations for juggling a home business and a family.
Use Your Computer
Using chat rooms, blogs and forums to stay connected with others is easy with the internet, but beware you don’t spend too much time answering emails and chatting. This can become a distraction if you let it, so if you intend to socialize online, schedule a time to do this too.
How To Work At Home With Young Children
I’ve written a few simple rules to help you deal with the reality of working at home with young children. Your day may not go exactly like this, but at times it will probably come pretty close.
1. Start your day by telling the kids you are going to be working. Make sure you have enough time for last-minute demands, such as the urgent need to play “just one” game of Chutes and Ladders.
2. Remind kids of when they can disturb you while you work. “No, wanting a cookie is not an emergency.” “Yes, you can tell me if the cat is on fire.”
3. Remind husband of when he can disturb you while you work. “No, that’s not an emergency either. Give me a back rub after I’m done working and we’ll talk.”
4. Chase cat out of home office.
5. Clean up dishes from around computer. Take to kitchen and remind everyone they are supposed to eat in the kitchen, not the office.
6. Get cat out of office chair and put outside.
7. Get toddler out of office chair and send to Daddy. Close office door.
8. Hear toddler pounding on office door. Find teddy bear tucked behind computer and give to toddler.
9. Start working.
10. Hear kids arguing in hall just outside your office door. Remind them to be quiet for you. Try to get them to stop telling you their side of the story. Send kids to husband for mediation.
11. Take a deep breath. Get back to work.
12. Husband knocks on door to ask when dinner will be ready. With great restraint, remind him that it’s his night to cook.
13. Try to remember what you were doing. Start new project when you can’t figure it out.
14. Toddler comes in covered in paints. Older child follows, saying he didn’t either leave them out. Yell to husband to give toddler a bath.
15. Find paint all over your paperwork. Do your best to clean it.
16. Main phone line rings. Answer because husband is too busy giving toddler a bath. Tell friend no you can’t watch her kids for her tomorrow. Remind her that you do WORK at home.
17. Answer call that beeps through on call waiting. Tell mother-in-law no, you aren’t interested in the outside the home job she just heard about. Yes, you are earning enough working at home. No, it isn’t just a hobby. Explain you are working and can’t talk for long. Hear all the reasons she thinks you need to find a different job.
18. Retreat back to office before kids realize you aren’t in there.
19. Get some work done fast while the getting is good.
20. Soaking wet toddler comes charging in and demands you help dress her. Try to send to Daddy. Calm toddler’s tantrum as she insists she wants MOMMY to do it. Decide dressing her is faster than trying to calm her down other ways. Send clothed toddler back to Daddy.
21. Try to get settled back into working.
22. Hear smoke alarm go off. Dinner must be ready. Take a break and get something to eat with the family.
23. Head back to work. Find out you missed the call you had been expecting. Call them back.
24. Computer crashes. Wait for it to reboot.
25. Realize you hadn’t saved the file you were working on. Autosave didn’t quite get it all. Try to remember what you had been doing.
26. Realize your internet connection isn’t working. Try to get automated tech support to give you a real person.
27. Kids come thundering into the room for bedtime hugs and to ask for a story. Take a break and enjoy.
28. Chase cat back out of office.
29. Find out cat walked all over your keyboard, deleting half your file and inserting random text.
30. Toddler has to go potty and won’t let Daddy help. Once that’s done, help toddler back to bed.
31. Peace and quiet at last. Get some work done before you fall asleep.
