Escape the Home Office? It's Possible ... and Important

Home-based business owners deserve time off from work as much as everybody else, but they don't always get it. The key to finding free time is to make it a priority, not an afterthought.

How can you make sure you get a break every now and then? Take advantage of the following tips, excerpted from my book, The Home Team: How to Live, Love & Work at Home, (for more information, check out http://www.bookhome.com):

• Voice mail/Answering machine/Answering service. Unless your business doesn't depend a bit on telephone calls, you're attempting the impossible by working without one of these.

• A planning calendar. You should have a fairly clear idea of what you need to do every day and how long each job will take. That accomplished, you will have a better idea of where the best possibilities lie for free hours and days -- and you can plan them. Then, you just need the resolve to stick to your schedule.

• A reasonably organized office. No, you don't have to be the King or Queen of Neat. But if you can tell with a glance or two how much work has come in and how much needs to go out, you will have a better gauge of what your day and week will look like -- and where you might have time for a break.

• Delegation skills. People who take pride in their work tend to think they need to do it all. But smart business owners know how to delegate -- to employees, to spouses, even to children, when appropriate. They also find pros they can contract with to handle tasks when they are overwhelmed or need to get away.

• Communication and coordination. If you want the whole family to get away together, it helps to have regular family get-togethers to schedule events in everyone's calendar (kids should have these, too, and learn to use them). Sunday night is the perfect time to sit down and plan the week ahead.

• An ability to say no. Yes, you need to work to pay the bills, but if you overload yourself with more projects than you can humanly handle, you will end up frazzled, sad and -- more than likely -- unable to finish all your work satisfactorily. This will make your clients teary-eyed, too, before they go looking for someone else to handle the next job. Be realistic about your work, even if it means turning down an occasional project or at least delaying the due date.
  The copyright of the article Escape the Home Office? It's Possible ... and Important in Working At Home is owned by Shirley Gregory. Permission to republish Escape the Home Office? It's Possible ... and Important in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.

  Go To Page: 1 2

  Articles in this Topic    Discussions in this Topic