Seven Tips For Work-At-Home Motivation

Author: Cathy Goodwin

Considering a work-from-home business? Clients often say their biggest fear is loss of momentum. Here are ten tips to keep yourself motivated and productive.

(1) Build structure into your day.

Create a schedule and To Do list every evening for the next day, before you sign off for the day. (And yes - it is important to sign off, even if you return later to complete a project.) Include breaks and email reading time.

(2) Define goals by numbers ("write 1000 words") instead of time ("2 hours on Mega account"). One of the joys of working at home is you get to quit when you're finished ahead of schedule.

(2) Train friends and neighbors to respect your working hours.

Clients tell me about neighbors who say things like, "I told the UPS truck to leave the package at your house since you're always home." Discourage phone calls with a prepared response, like "I will call you after four o'clock today." You will be tested. Prepare to hang tough.

(3) Get the family on board.

Deal with their concerns before you start and be prepared to show how you are creating a win-win situation. Clarify what counts as an emergency - a valid reason to interrupt while you are working - and what can wait till dinnertime.

(4) Build breaks into your schedule.

When I started my own business, I was warned, "Plan to get out of the house! Otherwise you'll never leave your desk."

Frankly, I didn't get it.

Why wouldn't I take breaks? Now as I find myself answering just one more email, or adding two more paragraphs to an article, I see the clock move and realize I must stop if I want to get to the gym or the store before closing time.

Bonus Tip: A dog will force you to get moving, no matter what else is going on in your life.

(5) Make promises you will be motivated to keep.

My weekly ezine motivates me to write at least one article a week. You may be energized by company and client deadlines.

As your responsibilities grow, you will tend to accumulate more and more "real" deadlines and it's easier to stay motivated. But in the early stages, you're isolated, you're working hard and results don't appear immediately. That's why some people hire coaches and consultants to create accountability.

(7) Give yourself time to test your commitment.

Not everyone enjoys the work-at-home option. My clients tell me they need six to twelve months to decide how they are responding to this arrangement. You may decide to return to a workplace where you can see real people everyday. Or you may get hooked on having a dog-friendly, gossip-free workplace where you can open the windows all year round.

----------------------------------
About the author :
Cathy Goodwin
http://www.cathygoodwin.com
Cathy Goodwin, Ph.D., is an author, speaker and career/business consultant, helping midlife professionals take their First step to a Second Career.



Similar Computer Work At Home Articles


Start Your New Work at home Business TODAY
The right time to start your new business is right now. Today. Whenever I suggest that to someone who's going to start their new business "soon", .... >> Read This Work At Home Article

Your Own Work at Home Business - If Not Now, When?
You have wanted to have your own business for a long time. But, every time you sit down to write out a business plan for yourself, you end up discoura .... >> Read This Work At Home Article

Legitimizing your work at home business
So you have started your own home business. Financial freedom, no debt, vacations with family is all visions in your head as well they should be. Befo .... >> Read This Work At Home Article

Starting a Work at Home Business Advice
Many of us dream of the benefits of our own work at home business, however few examine the sacrifices required to turn this dream a reality. Starti .... >> Read This Work At Home Article

Eight Simple Ways To Use Promotional Products Online
With the increase competition on the Internet, it can be hard to find ways to make your company seem different from everyone else. One thing I believe .... >> Read This Work At Home Article

Why You Should Start Your Own Home Business?
When your neighbor must wakeup early morning and run for their live to avoid get angry for their bos, you can wake up what ever you want and go to you .... >> Read This Work At Home Article

Building your work at home business
Advancements in science have facilitated us to execute business from the convenience of our home. The real problem lies in marketing the business a .... >> Read This Work At Home Article

Work At Home, But Don't Become A Slave To Your Business
Although the expressed reasons for wanting to work from home are many and varied, most home based business owners cite the ability to set their own ho .... >> Read This Work At Home Article

The Story of a Successful Work at Home Business
Whether it is in the world animals, recovering drug addicts, or business if the truth were told we do eat our young. As when I was young I would watch .... >> Read This Work At Home Article

Want to Start a Work at Home Business? Then Just Do It!
If you have been thinking about starting your own business, BUT keep putting it off, making excuses, or talking about it, STOP and JUST DO IT ... NOW. .... >> Read This Work At Home Article

Work At Home Businesses Need A Marketing Plan To Succeed
"You can take your cue from some of the business giants out there in order to take your small or home based business to the next level. McDonalds, The .... >> Read This Work At Home Article

Getting Results from your Work at Home Business
The email I received stated "I am opting out of this business. I have been enrolled for almost a year and I have had no results at all." My first .... >> Read This Work At Home Article

Secret Guide To Help You Succeed In Your Work At Home Business
As a beginning work at home business entrepreneur, you wanted to discover the basic strategies that catapulted to the top today's leaders in the busin .... >> Read This Work At Home Article

How You Can Build A Successful Work At Home Business?
So you had that fantastic business idea, the o­ne that's going to be wildly successful and make you a fortune - and even better, you actually did some .... >> Read This Work At Home Article

Your Own Internet Business
The other day I picked up a Reader's Digest magazine (a very popular Canadian magazine) and glanced at the cover. The designers of Reader's Digest are .... >> Read This Work At Home Article

Why Should Start A Work At Home Business?
Working from home is a dream for many – but actually going ahead and starting a home business is very difficult. So what makes so many people want to .... >> Read This Work At Home Article

Adding Profit to Your Work from Home Internet Business
Many individuals, from all walks of life, are making the decision to work from home. There are an unlimited number of work at home business ideas; how .... >> Read This Work At Home Article

Work at Home Business Success – Do You Have The Right Mindset?
Do you have the right attitude, the right mindset, to begin your home business venture, and most importantly, make it a success? Yes! No! Not sure .... >> Read This Work At Home Article

Choose another article category

accountant
BB Portuguese provides Portuguese to English trans
Build your online business
Building Your Work At Home Website
E-mail and Newsletters
Exchanging Work At Home Links
Find your dream career with access to 1000’s of ca
Home Business General
Internet Marketing
Make money online
Marketing ideas
Online marketing and advertising
Promoting Work At Home Business
Search Engines
Tips for your Home Based Business
Work At Home Business
Work At Home General
Work at home ideas
Work at home jobs
Work At Home Opportunities
Work from home success
working as a mentor
Working At Home
Writing Work At Home Articles

Back to Articles | Back to Home Page

Work At Home Jobs | Free Home Based Business Opportunities | Make Money Online | Free Work At Home Opportunities | Work At Home Articles

Computer Work at Home Careers