Being self-employed and productive from a home office is one of the toughest gigs around. 

Why?

Because you get to work when you want, in your jammies even, and you’re the boss of you… That means you have absolute control (almost) over what you get done in a day! 

That’s great, you say. Uh, not so fast… You might want to give that a rethink.

Unless you naturally have the self-discipline and laser focus of a Navy Seal, your day-to-day will be like herding cats if you don’t plan.

Working from your home office means that you’ll face challenges that are a bit different than when you were employed by another business.  If you do intend to make a living from your home based business, then you need to adopt a professional “business owner” mindset.

Routine and systems will help you become more productive and reach your goals faster.

Many people might tend to think that working this way would be confining, but in fact these are the methodologies that will give you more freedom!

Designing Your Home Office

Trivial as it may seem, focusing on proper home office design can contribute to you becoming more productive.

Start by deciding where in the house you’ll set up your office. An important consideration is that this space must provide you with enough privacy to concentrate on your work. It’s also important to deter distractions and interruptions while you’re working.

Then, come up with a design that enables you to maximize the space available within your office. Choose your home office furniture accordingly. Think efficiency and ergonomics to reduce fatigue and repetitive strain.

Your space should be large enough for you to be organized and work comfortably. You’ll need appropriate storage for important documents and files not only for neatness but also to prevent your kids from messing up your space in case they manage to sneak into your office.

Develop a Work Schedule

Just as you had, or have, working hours at a job, so must you define working hours from your home office.

Often people who start working from home think it’s amazing that they can just roll out of bed and work any time they want.  Not so much. 

What happens then is that there is no routine, working hours become haphazard, or worse, the business owner works ALL the time. That’s a real productivity killer. 

Remember that you need to have a life outside your business. Build in time in your daily schedule to spend with family, and for rest and recreation as well.

Having a daily schedule also allows you to prioritize tasks so you can be focused on what you have to accomplish on any given day.

Balance Work and Family

One of the biggest misconceptions about working from home is that it’s not as demanding as a regular office job!

You may not have the commute, but truth is, it requires a heck of a lot more work on your part to be productive.

Remember, you’re building a long-term business here. Everything is on your shoulders.  Therefore, you can’t afford to be regularly interrupted by family or friends during work hours.

The best way to deal with this situation is to let your family know upfront what your schedule is so that they can refrain from disturbing you during your work day. Let them understand when you need to work and when you’re available.

When you make it clear that what you’re doing is for the entire family’s benefit, they’ll appreciate it and understand.

Know Your Priorities

Follow the 80/20 rule.  It can be easy to go down rabbit holes or attempt perfection with every task, but that’s unproductive.

Recognize your priority tasks, those that will give you the best bang for the buck, and do them first.  This will definitely help you move on easily to other tasks.

And when you do accomplish those priorities, you’ll feel less stressed and more optimistic about your work. Then rinse & repeat…

If you have a hard time defining priorities, use what I call the “money rule”. 

Focus on tasks that generate, or are more likely to generate revenue than those that don’t. I.E. Finish creating the product you’re going to sell online vs doing filing.

Give Yourself a Break

Taking a break is not slacking!  Taking a break will reinvigorate your mind and allow you to come back to work with fresh eyes.

Ideally, you want to use a timer – for every hour, work 50 minutes and take a 10 minute break.

You don’t want to burn out. That will ruin you AND your business.

Working non-stop won’t make you a hero. What it will do is reduce your performance and productivity dramatically. 

It may sound counter-intuitive, but taking a break is a real productivity booster!