Apologies for the delay in publishing my latest blog post – I know it is not an excuse but I’ve been really busy!
It’s been all go at the Stevens HQ since my last post. My freelance work is really taking off now, and I’ve been busy squirreling away at a couple of projects. We’ve also got some house renovations coming up that have required shopping to be done, suppliers to be found, and decisions to be made. Plus that’s all on top of being the main carer for a baby that seems to have all of her teeth coming through at the same time.
All this has required me to really think about my time management skills, and to make sure I utilise every part of my day in the best possible way.
In all honesty I think the toughest part of it all has been the fact my baby wants to be held a lot and isn’t sleeping as much as normal. Managing my time is so much easier when I know I will have a set amount of time, at a certain time of day, to get on with things uninterrupted. Instead I have had to rely on friends and family keeping baby entertained, while I get my head down in my office.
For me my office is the key thing to working from home. Having a space where you can retreat to, where the rest of the world ceases to exist, and it is just you and whatever you need to get on with your work (plus possibly something to nibble on!).
The office doesn’t need to be anything special. Mine is our spare room/dumping ground, so I share it with a futon and the Christmas decorations. It just needs to be a quiet space where you can have some time uninterrupted.
Don’t be afraid to set rules about your office. Ask your family not to disturb you while you are in there if you need to. Insist that no one else goes in there to “borrow” anything, as things will go missing and papers will be messed up. You need to be able to go in there and get on, not clear a space and set everything up each time you use it.
I always try to tell my husband how long I expect to be working for each time I head to my office. That way he knows how long it will be before he sees me so can judge whether he needs to disturb me if anything happens.
By saying how long I will be in the office for it also gives me a pre-determined length of time in my head of how long I need to concentrate for, which in turn stops me from procrastinating. After all my little haven of an office provides me with a lot, but it’s useless if I’m not strict with myself!
Laura Stevens 