Working from home can be hard. My boss is seriously the devil. She made me work 14 hours straight yesterday with no breaks. I got a snack every once in awhile and water. I had to sneak in 1 Instagram just to break up the day. Want to know the worst part? My boss is me.
Being your own boss has many ups and downs and you’re much harder on yourself than anyone else would be. I’ve slowly become my own dictator of “no lunch until all photos are edited” & “You can check social media until you’ve written 3 posts” inner battles. While I work around 11-16 hours days, it makes it really hard when you’re starting out and not making much money, whether its with a blog or a new business. You will quickly experience everything from burnout to lower quality work to health deterioration and anxiety and stress. All things that will lead to the failure of your blog or business if you don’t take back control.
It’s important to incorporate things into your day as an entrepreneur to make your workday happier. I’ve compiled 14 ways I’ve found have helped me to have a happier work day when working from home. I hope they help you as well!
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1. Wake up early- Starting early not only leads to a happier day but a happier work day. I don’t know about you but if I wake up after 10am (even on weekends) I feel like I wasted half the day. Especially in winter when it gets dark by 5pm. It’s important to start early and start checking off that to do list!
2. Set a lunch time- Setting a specific time to eat not only ensures you actually eat something but forces you to take even a 30minute refresher to regain your thoughts and take your eyes off the computer.
3. Have a To Do List- When you have a list of challenges and goals to accomplish it’s easier to keep your mind set on what you need to get done. I like to create a big pictures To Do List on Sunday for the week and one for smaller goals each morning for that day.
4. Work out- Just like setting a lunch time, working out forces you to get up and active. Working out clears the mind, refreshes the body, and honestly makes you feel better about yourself so you can feel confident in working from home.
5. Change up your work space- My office for a year now has also been the other half of my bedroom. Imagine waking up, walking 5 feet to your desk, then walking back to bed after 14hours of working. Depression can easily set start to sink in if you don’t find ways to mix it up. Even if your office is in another room its good to get up and out of the house and switch up your work space. Try 1-2 days a week working in a coffee shop or library. You never know what inspiration you’ll find out there!
If you can’t work else where, take a break and do something around your house like working on your garden or mowing the lawn. It might be time to get out the broken lawnmover and fix it yourself. Working outside gives you a nice dose of vitamin D, which is great in many ways, but if the garden is uninspiring, you can add lots of colorful plants for cheap to add something extra to your space so when the sun is out and you just need to monitor emails, you can do it in the nicest of surroundings.
6. Don’t work and eat at the same time- Mindless eating is how you get up from blogging one day and realize your 15lbs heavier. I’m not being mean, it’s true. When you’re writing or zoned out on creating it’s easy to over eat.
7. Set day and week challenges- Setting smaller challenges allows you to feel more accomplished throughout the week. Setting bigger challenges allows you to keep grips on the bigger picture and what you’re working towards with all those smaller tasks.
8. Drink lots of water- Staying hydrated seems like a given but it really helps with not getting headaches and staying concentrated during the day. Plus it helps to keep you full so your not up getting snacks all day.
9. Don’t mix in household chores- When you work from home it’s easy to mix in unloading the dishes and doing laundry with your to do list but you have to keep your home life and work life separate. (Try explaining that one to family when you say pretend I’m not home.) Slipping household chores into your day would be like leaving the office and going to take your car to get worked on in the middle of a work day. If you wan’t to WORK from home as your own BOSS than you have to treat it just like you would any other job.
10. Emails First- This one is different depending on your personality. I like to wake up and check my emails while I have my morning tea. That way when I switch over to drawing or writing or graphics work I can fully focus on the creative aspect and not have to switch over mid day to writing business emails. Choose specific times to check emails rather than interrupting other tasks.
11. Get dressed- Remember when I said my desk is 5 feet from my bed? Do you know how easy that is to just stay in your pajamas as well? Not okay. It’s important to feel confident while you’re working and sitting all day in sweatpants, hair wigs tied, chillin with no make-up on is NOT when you’re the prettiest or probably when you feel the best about yourself. Yogas and a little mascara will do.
12. Schedule at least 1 weekly outing- When you work from home its really easy to become a hermit. Schedule lunch with a friend or possible client or take a walk down the street and buy a coffee. No matter what you choose be sure at least one day during the week you get up and leave the house for a refresher and new inspiration.
13. Send out positive vibes- I’m a big believer that what you put out into the world is what you’ll get back. If you’re sitting at your desk bitter about what you didn’t finish and how this person is doing this better, you’re breeding negativity. Instead share positive vibes: comment nice things on other blog posts, send a friendly email, something to perk up someone else’s day in turn boosting yours.
14. Smile!- If you’re not smiling a minimum of 3 times a day something is wrong. If you really need it, watch baby laughing videos at the end of your work day.
Remember, being able to work from home can be really hard but it can also be very very rewarding. Good Luck!
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