Get it Done While Working from Home by Managing Interruptions and Distractions
Entrepreneurs who work at home are confronted with a whole set of challenges that other working people don’t have – your four year old interrupts you with "Where’s my toy?"; the laundry and sink of dirty dishes stare you in the face; a stack of magazines you want to read or a TV program you want to watch tempts you…
But if you want to move your business forward and successfully juggle your responsibilities, you have to learn survival skills. Here are two common challenges we face and some suggestions on how to cope with them.
Challenge – Interruptions from children, relatives, and friends
• Schedule your work hours while the children are asleep.
• Hire a nanny to care for the children during work hours, and get dad to watch them in the evening work hours.
• Have a separate work area so you can either shut the door or teach people that when you’re in your separate work area you’re not to be disturbed.
• When people call to chat, kindly but firmly remind them you’re working and will call them back when your work day is finished.
• Make sure they know your work hours.
Challenge – Distractions of personal or household business
• Remove all non-work related items from your separated work area.
• When ideas come up, jot them down on sticky notes to do later, and keep focused on your work project.
• Make a commitment to your work hours and stick to it.
What helps you manage interruptions and distractions when you work from home? I’ll be sharing more get it done while working at home solutions in an upcoming blog – like what to do when you feel stuck, uninspired and overwhelmed.
Tags: challenges working from home, distractions during the day, entreptreneur working at home, interruptions from kids, manage distractions
