This is a guest post by Thom Rigsby who blogs over at Life In The Internet and East of Huntsville which is his very own local news blog in his neck of the woods.

When I left my last full-time job to begin my work at home life, I had no idea what I was in for. Oh, I THOUGHT I knew… it would be great! Sleep till 9:00, slug around the house in my PJs and slippers sipping coffee, catch the morning news cycle, etc, etc. With the proliferation of work at home opportunities and record numbers of working adults opting to use their home as their office, why do so many struggle with how to do it? For me and many others that I’ve had the pleasure to talk with over the past six years, the problem comes down to treating it like a real job. So here are a few tips to help you do just that.

Tip Number 1 - Separate Work and Home

Not keeping your work life separated from your life is the first mistake almost every work-at-homer makes. Not only is this an important consideration for you and your ability to mentally differentiate, it is also very important for your family. In the beginning, I had a heck of a time getting my wife to understand why I wasn’t cleaning the house everyday, so I invited her to stay home with me one day and help me. Anyone who has a creative type job can understand how derailing it can be to take a simple phone call, let alone interrupt your flow to see if we need milk. Establishing good lines between work time and home time will go a long way toward keeping you productive and the rest of the family happy!

Another big separation I strongly suggest is a dedicated work area. I know everyone doesn’t have the luxury of a whole room set aside just for work, but even if you’re setup in the corner of the laundry room (yep, I’ve done that!), keep an area that is only for your work. It lets the family know when you’re working and it will give you the ability to get up and “leave work” when you’re done. Besides, nothing destroys the work flow more than having to clean off your “desk” so you can set the table for dinner! And speaking of dinner…

Tip Number 2 - Keep Regular Hours

Not necessarily 9 to 5, but regular. In my circumstance for instance I’m up by 7:00 am every morning and spend about half an hour checking overnight email and posts in Reader. From 7:30 to 9:30 I generally take a break, take my daughter to school, visit with my wife before she leaves, and get some chores started. About 10:00 everyone is gone and I get some good reading, writing, and phone time in till about 3:00 when my daughter gets home. I usually try to get everything done before 3:00 then another quick read before bed and that’s my day, usually. The point is, making (and KEEPING) a regular schedule helps you better manage your time and (biggie here) lets everyone else in the house know when you’re working and when you’re not! For me, it is much better to get as much done as I can while everyone is gone (or asleep!). However you organize your day, be sure to define specific, and different, hours for your life and your work, because…

Tip Number 3 - Remember, Working At Home Is Still Work

That’s right, working at home is still work. It’s not all PJs, coffee, and Oprah, you have to put some serious effort into this! Granted, without the distractions of a regular office (birthday parties, 90 minute lunches, etc) you can probably get more done in less time but only if you’re working. Face it, as interesting as Springer might be today, he’s not helping you earn a living! As fun as it might be to go outside and play catch with the dog, she’s not helping you earn a living! (Feel free to insert your own distractions here if you like…) If you are depending on the work you do at home to put food on your table, then you’d better work! This is the number one reason work at home opportunities fail for most people, they don’t treat it seriously… and if you’re one of the ones who can’t, you should keep your job working for the man - at least he’s giving you a steady paycheck!

Bonus Tip - Take On A Partner

Before you skip right over this one, stick with me for a second. Doing almost anything by yourself is going to be harder than doing it with help. Find someone else who is similarly situated and agree to work as Accountability Partners. When you worked for the man, your boss made sure you were on-time, didn’t take too many sick days, and made a meaningful contribution to the business. While it would be a lot more fun without that kind of accountability, the reality is most of us would get into serious trouble without it. If you’re lucky, in addition to keeping you on track, they may turn out to be one of your best friends as well as a source for ideas, back-up while you’re on vacations, etc, etc.

Working from home has been fun, rewarding, and incredibly stressful for me…all at the same time. Over time, I’ve refined these strategies to help me keep my sanity, hopefully they’ll help you do the same! Don’t wait. Take the next 10 minutes and write down (with a pen on a piece of paper)…

- two things you can do today to better separate your work life and your life (play)
- the best work hours for your situation

- and one person you know that works from home that might be willing to help you stick to it.

Now that you have your list, do it! If you’re married or live with someone else, sit down and talk over this list with them and get them on board! Then work your schedule tomorrow and before you take off for the day, stop back by and let us know how it went! I’d love to hear from ya!

- Thom Rigsby, Life In the Internet

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