Is your Home Life getting in the Way of your Career?
Most freelance writers work from home. Why would you want to pay for office space if you don’t have to? While there are many benefits of being a work at home freelancer, there are drawbacks that you need to be aware of as well.
Every so often I receive an email asking how I balance my home life with my career. It is very easy for other parts of your life to get in the way when trying to work. If you don’t learn how to avoid this problem you are going to find that your days are much less productive than they should be.
The first pointer I always give is to have a designated work area. I have one room in my house that is used as an office and nothing else. This allows me to stay away from everything else that is going on. And of course, having a designated workspace makes it much easier to stay organized.
Next, make sure you set a schedule. Work hours are work hours. While being a freelance writer means you can have a flexible schedule, you must make sure you are getting your work done. For instance, I attempt to work 7am to 4pm everyday. Does this always happen? Of course not. But that being said, if I try to follow these hours it will allow me to stay away from distractions in the home.
Finally, don’t give into temptations. It would be easy for me to take too many breaks, leave my desk for a nap, or put on the television when I should be working. These are all temptations, but if you want to be a success you should avoid them. Remember, if you are sleeping or watching television it means you are not getting your work done. And if you don’t get your work done you don’t get paid.
If your home life is getting in the way of your career you need to make some immediate changes. My best advice is to designate a workspace, have a set schedule, and avoid temptations no matter how enticing they may be. If you follow this advice you should be able to keep your home life from distracting you during work hours.
November 18th, 2008 at 11:59 am
I am sometimes still what I call “the rugged writer” who writes anywhere in the house or in any wi-fi hot spot available, even on multiple computers. I know that I do better to work in my office and to work on one computer–I posted my little super-duper portable eee PC on CL and utilized my LAN. It is really important for every writer to stick to a normal routine because it hampers your productivity. For example, I got up at 6:30 am this morning and got on MH’s computer. It will be 10:00 in two minutes. It is very easy to get distracted when you work at home. It may be a surprising strain to new freelance writers.
November 19th, 2008 at 3:29 am
One of the great things about setting your own schedule is you can figure out the times you’re most productive (maybe the times when you have the house to yourself) and do most of your writing during those hours.
I’m a late afternoon/evening gal myself, so I almost always sleep in and work after I’ve had the dogs out and had some lunch. I’ve heard of many writers who have learned to love early mornings or late nights because that’s when their kids are in bed!