SEOClerks

10 Work From Home Ground Rules Every WAHM + WAHD Freelancers Must Abide By



Write the reason you're deleting this FAQ

10 Work From Home Ground Rules Every WAHM + WAHD Freelancers Must Abide By

If you're working from home as a WAHM (Work At Home Mom) or WAHD (Work At Home Dad) and you are a freelancer. Then you really should have some ground rules in place if you are to be productive and all you can be. In the act of preservation, you are your own boss, so nobody can tell you what to do, other than yourself! So create some rules to live by in your daily working life and stick to them! By doing so, you'll find you are a much more productive, happier and healthier person.

10 Work From Home Ground Rules Every WAHM + WAHD Freelancers Must Abide By


Here's 10 ground rules for work at home people to live by.

1. Get Moving First Thing in The Morning
Whether it's just getting up and taking the dog for the morning walk. Or walking down to the shops to get some milk and a paper. Or just getting up, having breakfast (the most important meal of the day) and then doing some exercising BEFORE you sit on your bum! This will actually give you more energy in the day and help to keep your stamina levels up and make you a much more efficient, smarter, faster and better work at home worker!

2. Get Dressed Get Pretty
Remember how I posted before on how what you wear effects how you operate? how getting smartly dressed each day (even if you're not going out to work) can help you to feel better about yourself? Well by getting dressed smartly, even casually, by doing your hair, brushing your teeth, that kind of thing can have an effect on your mental mood and output. So get up and get pretty! Make an effort in yourself and your appearance, even if nobody can see it apart from you!

3. Set a Schedule and Stick To It
Everyone needs a schedule, plans and goals you know? If possible, try to write down the things you need to do each day, week or month and then strike them out when you have completed them. But if possible, try to create a daily schedule for all the things you need to that are included in this list and then stick to them! You'll be doing so for a reason and that will make you a much more productive and more fulfilled person.

4. Schedule Break Times Like Clockwork
It's not always easy to schedule break times so you go on a break the same time every day when you're working online. Sometimes you don't feel like you need or want to take a break and will relax later when you've finished doing what you're doing. But break times are there for a reason. Even God took a break on the 7th day. Possibly as an example to us. But whether it's taking some time out to play with your dog or a game or something. Your brain needs this!

5. Don't Sit Down All Day
It can be easy to find yourself sitting down all day in your chair when working online all day. Before you know it, half the day has passed and you haven't even stood up once! This is not good for you! Try to get up and and move around every 4 hours at least. Even if it's just going for a quick walk around the block. This will have a healthy and positive effect on both your mind and body!

6. Stay Organized and Tidy
Have you ever heard the expression "a mans desk is a reflection of his mind"? Well it's true in that a cluttered untidy desk represents a cluttered untidy mind! After you log off for the night and before you go to bed, have a bit of a tidy up and organizing. Remove your work station of empty cups and plates and empty the waste paper bin etc so that each morning you get to work in a tidy place and don't have to do it then!

7. Create Spaces That Inspire
Talking of work spaces, it's not always easy, but if possible, try to create a work space that will inspire you. This could be from moving your PC or workstation to another area in your home which is more peaceful to work in. Or doing what I do and printing out pictures of things I want and then sticking them to the wall next to me. This inspires me to work to get those things and reminds me why I'm actually doing this in the first place!

8. Get The Bare Essentials
Every successful work at home person, marketer, blogger, affiliate and freelancer needs some basic tools to do their work. If you can, make sure you have those tools available to you as and when you need them. The first thing would be a PC/laptop. But is it powerful and fast enough to do what you need to do? Do you have the stationary, paper, printer, fax machine etc you need to print stuff off or fax things to people?

9. Stay Focused!
It can be very easy to get distracted today. Especially with peoples attentions spans getting shorter and shorter! And especially when it's so very tempting to trawl your favorite social media site and see what people are up to or find out what people are doing tonight or on the weekend. Or even when you just want to do some online shopping or window shopping! But try to limit your time doing these things until AFTER you've completed what you need to do.

10. Enjoy Your "Me Time"
At the end of every day, when you log off and shut down your computer for the day, that's your "me time". And you NEED that! Make sure to get your daily "me time" each day. Whether it's going out to meet friends, to walk around the park, to go watch a movie or go out for a meal with your partner or friends. Too much work and not enough play makes Jack a very dull boy indeed! Use this motto "Work hard and play harder" it will get you through life!

And that my friends, is 10 Work From Home Ground Rules Every WAHM + WAHD + Freelancers Must Abide By.

Do you work at/from home and abide by these rules?

Do you have and set your own rules of any kind to help you get through the day?

What other tips can you give WAHM + WAHD Freelancers to live by?

Comments

Please login or sign up to leave a comment

Join
anwebservices
Hey Mike this is awesome tips to follow and i do most of them daily. In addition to this i would suggest to find something motivating to keep you going. You know, we all sometime feel down, so in that case i usually start my freelancing day with double coffee and look for some good motivational video on YouTube, or look for something funny just to relax, then it's easier to put yourself together and keep working 10 Work From Home Ground Rules Every WAHM + WAHD Freelancers Must Abide By



Are you sure you want to delete this post?

EliteWriter
That is a great overview of what one should bear in mind when working from home. I am guilty of not taking breaks at fixed times, but I do schedule some time in the afternoon to rest a bit. I try to remove distractions so as to remain as focused as possible. I get rid of chores and other things first thing in the morning, so as to then concentrate solely on my work. I also keep all I need close to me so as to avoid having to get up and get distracted. These tips are very helpful, well done on this post.



Are you sure you want to delete this post?

Everett
Here's my usual daily schedule:
  1. Wake up at about 5-6 AM
  2. Make coffee (can not survive the mornings without it, i love my coffee)
  3. Start my daily work
  4. Check my email
  5. Respond to messages here (i have so many to respond to now..)
  6. Check all of my websites, view the messages.. lots of messages a day.. it's time consuming
  7. Around 7-8 I'll make breakfast (don't like to eat when i first get up, usually i eat 2 hours after i wake up)
  8. Around 12-2 I'll have my lunch
  9. Around 5-8 I'll have dinner
    There is no set time for breakfast, lunch or dinner.
  10. Wind down at around 10-12am
  11. Start the process all over.

Yep, very basic.



Are you sure you want to delete this post?

Lynne
This is a super checklist Mike, I really enjoyed it. I have found the same things.

Even though you work from home, it is so important to get dressed properly and to look look. It really makes the world of difference.

I am about to start exercising again before work from tomorrow when my kids go back to play school. I have not been able to get much work done at all the last few weeks. I am so looking forward to tomorrow!



Are you sure you want to delete this post?

coolavender
I love these tips specially the Get Dressed Get Pretty Part. A lot of freelancers are proud of the fact that they're working in their pajamas and bedroom slippers as opposed to those who have to dress up to go to the office. I used to do that when I was new to freelancing but something just didn't feel right. I felt like going back to sleep in those pajamas. I became more productive when I started dressing up for work.

Lately, I've worked out a schedule that has me waking up in the early morning for an online job. I took this as an opportunity to change a lot of things in my daily routine. The first thing I usually do now is take a bath like I'm going off somewhere and to dress up in casual clothes before sitting in my large working table. I now use the table more frequently whereas in the past, I would just lie down on the sofa and type away.



Are you sure you want to delete this post?

Corzhens
I agree with setting a work schedule because working at home needs work discipline too. But I disagree with getting dressed. One benefit of working at home is that you can be dressed comfortably. I understand the psychology of dressing up just like in going to the office but I am more for the comfort and convenience. Besides, it takes time to dress up and do the makeup.



Are you sure you want to delete this post?