A Meeting Place for All Home Office Women

I enjoy working from home but sometimes, one of the biggest challenges is the number of distractions that can take my focus off my work and prevent me from achieving my objectives.

Many of us may agree that it is easy to get distracted from work when working from home, especially if it is work that you do not particularly enjoy like cold calling or telesales. Reading a magazine, snacking, watching TV or even doing laundry are common distractions and, if you have young children, the number of distractions increases dramatically.

Here are a few ideas that can help manage these distractions and improve your productivity:

1) Create a “to do” list. Keeping a list of what you need to do each day can help keep you stay focused. If you know that you need to accomplish a certain number of tasks by the end of the day, it can prevent you from getting distracted during the day. One of the challenges with this is that household duties, running errands or playing with our kids are more enjoyable compared to the work we have to accomplish. However, once you have a list that also serves as a reminder, you tend work towards it and lose the desire to do something else.

2) Create an office. When we first began working from home in 2003, we converted our study room to a home office. For us, it is necessary to create a working environment that sets us apart from our home activities. This is important to help you stay focused and away from unwanted distractions such as switching on the TV or doing things around the house. If you don’t have space to create an office, find a quiet corner in your house that is away from common distractions.

3) Set goals for your business and yourself. When we first started our seminar business, we were determined to achieve our target of packing 1,000 people in the ballroom. When we achieved that, we realized that the results we got was due to the efforts we put in. At that time, we were so desperate to succeed. Eventually we learned that the more effort we put into my work, the better results I achieved in terms of the revenue and income we generated. This made it easier to avoid the distractions and focus more on work.

4) It’s ok to take a break. It’s okay to allow to take a break from work and get distracted once in a while. As long it doesn’t happen often, you should not be too anxious about it. However, if your relaxation time overtakes your work time, then you need to reconsider your priorities. Distractions can sometimes be positive. Taking a little break from work can clear your mind, let your mind be refreshed, and increase your energy level. However, it is important to remember that you have a responsibility to yourself and your business to limit these distractions.