When they say you will work harder for yourself than you ever would for an employer, they are right. You may find yourself working all hours of the day and night instead of simply punching a time clock and going home. To get the most out of your new found freedom some handy work from home organization is a good idea. Here are a few common tips to get you started.
Tip 1- Workspace
Tip 1- Workspace
Find a clear working space. Most people decide to use areas such as an empty wall underneath a staircase, or an empty dinning room, or a spare bedroom. The home office work space should be well lit by natural light, somewhat spacious, and clean. This is where you will want to set up your workspace. In your workspace, you can set up a panel table, a compact desk, or even a portable laptop table. You will also need space for office supplies as well, a printer, a phone, and possibly a fax machine.
Tip 2- Office Environment
Tip 2- Office Environment
Create your workspace in a way that would be similar to a workspace in an office. Make sure that it is organized well, and that there is a place to store all of your supplies. You should have some sort of cup or container for pencils, pens, clips, etc. You should try to keep slots to use as an inbox and an outbox. Try to keep sticky pads, or message pads next to the phone. A nice compact filing cabinet, complete with file folders, would do you a world of good as well.
Tip 3- Eating and Drinking
Tip 3- Eating and Drinking
If you are going to eat and drink while working (and most people do), then make sure that you aren't getting your workspace messy. If you need to drink while on your computer, then keep a coaster or a similar object around, to keep rings and stickiness off of your desk. Don't leave plates around, or empty bags, or crumbled wrappers. Remember this is your workspace. Just because you are working from home doesn't mean that you should be dirty or sloppy.
Tip 4- Work Time!
Tip 4- Work Time!
Make sure that if you live with others, they respect your work time. This means that they need to understand that you are not to be disturbed. If you can work out of a spare bedroom, you might keep the door shut, with a "Do Not Disturb" sign on the door. Make sure that your work area isn't located by a window, or around a lot of noise, especially if you perform call center work from home. To that end, it's best to invest in noise-canceling headsets.