How To Manage Your Time Better While Working In A Home Office

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-- Heidi & Jenn

I’m participating in a crowdsourcing project on SparkPlugging.com and I selected a topic that has been asked about by many of our subscribers…  “How to manage your time better while working in a home office”.

Do you frequently have days of getting nothing accomplished?

Do you spend way too much time on the computer?  You’re not alone!

I am an eBay store owner, co-own 2 web sites, have a family and household to run, and as chaotic as it all may seem at times… I DO get it all done.

I am often asked, “How do you fit it all in?” 

As a Stay/Work At Home Mom this can be a big challenge in the beginning. To better manage time while working in a home office, follow a strict, I mean S-T-R-I-C-T schedule and stay disciplined. It’s been a big key to my success in getting so much accomplished. I feel like I am working just enough, not too much, and still have time for my family, housework, and I even cook a healthy dinner 5 nights a week (I take weekends off ;-)).

The FIRST secret to managing your time is…

Absolutely DO NOT turn on the computer! What? Yes, I’m dead serious, don’t even look at it! Keep the office door closed. Do you ever get totally sucked into what’s happening on Twitter, or see the hundred’s of email that you just have to start checking? Been there, done that – right? My office is literally 18 steps from my bedroom…. I can quickly get consumed as soon as I hit the power button on the way by, but I refrain.

Second - Get yourself dressed, from head to toe, and eat breakfast with your family.

After all, they are a big part of why you are home in the first place. If the family isn’t happy… chances are, you’re not going to be very productive.

Third - Run your errands, take the kids to school, and do your housework FIRST.

Oh, and don’t forget to take something out for dinner. Knowing that you have to start cooking, and/or pick up the kids from school can be a good mental alarm to stop working. My ‘stop working’ time is always 4pm. You’ll want to pick a time that is right for you, both starting your day and ending. Knowing you have already accomplished so many of your personal chores FIRST, early on, will definitely make your business day more productive. The less distractions and worrying about time running out, or stopping to run a personal errand while you’re supposed to be focusing on your business is key. Separating your personal and business life is so important.

Now that you’ve accomplished so much already, doesn’t your mind feel so much more focused, creative and motivated to start plowing through your business plan?

Yes, I said PLAN.

If your day is going to flow seamlessly, while being focused & productive – you need a plan.

NOW you can turn the computer on!

Pick a task that needs to be accomplished, or pick a few and spend equal amounts of time on each. After a while you know how long it will take you to accomplish what you need to accomplish. For example, if you know it will take you an hour to check email, take an hour and that’s it, you’re finished move on to the next task. An hour will fly by. I like to use my cell phone alarm as a little reminder that my time is up, and that another task should be started or finished!

For my eBay business, I tend to take pictures of my items for an hour, edit and upload for another hour, list to my store for another hour. For the web sites I co own, I check email for an hour, including visit forums and some networking sites, then work on email alerts for an hour. Some things may take less time, others more. You’ll get your own groove going and have a productive day before you know it!

Then tomorrow — just rinse and repeat!