Hope helps brighten your work-at-home journey (or plan.) So, I’ve mentioned a few times here that I went from being busy on the road to working quietly (and effectively) from home. You can read about that HERE when you have a moment.

While a lot of people fantasize about this option (ditching their job for a home-based or online business), others have a tough time conceptualizing being driven, productive and enthusiastic at home…and I can understand both sides and have enjoyed having a home office/studio as well as working in businesses, in a group environment. That’s why I’ll say a trillion times if necessary – mindset is key!

Working from home takes discipline (no expert here by the way), which is a lot easier to maintain when you enjoy what you do.

I mention some challenges and refreshment ideas near the end of this post, but as we’re focusing on the bright side….

Onto some of the benefits work-from-home entrepreneurs, consultants and remote employees experience:

• shorter supermarket lines (you can go anytime during the day. Mornings to afternoons are light as a feather, and customer service tends to be brighter since there’s less of a rush.)
• frequent fresh air moments – Whether that looks like watering plants outside (using a can: there’s a water usage restriction on right now in Bim btw), taking a walk or jog around the neighbourhood, hanging out the clothes on the line (if you do your laundry that way), breezing on the balcony with a hot drink or smoothie – whatever ‘floats your boat.’
• shorter bank lines (If you’re into online banking like I’m fast becoming a fan of, that’s a big time-saver, but there may still be a few times when a bank visit may be necessary.) Thankfully, my bank has short lines and good service but I’ve noticed (and experienced) some winding congalines of frustrated and antsy people inching up to exhausted tellers and that rarely ever happens when (or if) you happen to go to the bank just after typical ‘work hours’ start, when most people are at their desk waiting to go to the bank at lunch.
• pace household duties with freelance work tasks and enjoying a rest day instead of cramming major cleaning into the weekend and greeting the next week groggy. P.S: pacing ourselves is important regardless of the design of our day ’cause cleaning can be intense and involves a lot of physical work that can leave you a bit winded and not quite up to tackling a business task right after. Housecleaning is a job in and of itself so tempo matters.
• Save money on meals. Instead of buying expensive mochas that cost Bds. $8.50 (Usd.$4.25) or peanut smoothies made with just whey powder and peanut butter ($9.00) then having to buy breakfast and lunch 5 days a week, you can make shakes, soups and meals. I’m no pro but my cooking skills went up significantly since I started working from home.
• What traffic? The main thing to study when it comes to numbers is website traffic and client consistency. Bye-bye early morning road runs (compassion to you loyal mums and dads who take your little ones to school, although I’m sure that brings its own highlights too.)
• Take a short siesta or change your working position and setting when compelled. Yes, there are some innovative companies and co-working spaces (I mostly see those online) that provide cool, practical and ergonomically-friendly options like standing desks, sweet sofas, cosy cafe-style areas and fabulous furnishings to suit different work modes but you’ll save buying loads of diverse furniture when you work at home. A few hours blogging from a cafe, sit-down sesh on a bench at a quaint venue, day in a hotel’s business centre, or an intentional visit to a co-working space help add an ‘accent colour’ to your work-from-home week.
• Blogging – you can blog from home – anywhere really.
• Reduce single-use plastic items like disposable cups, straws, cutlery, plates. I figure you’re not using those at home, and if you’re ordering take-out, hopefully, they’re packaging sustainably.
• ¡Adiós! office drama. Now, lemme say here that I’ve had lovely work amigas along the way, and have also endured a girl-bully experience and a couple inappropriate incidents. It’s great when there’s a healthy work environment where everyone does what they’re supposed to, treats each other well and gossip isn’t on the daily menu, but that’s not always the case.
• You get to design your own office, studio or workspace to match your essence, taste and needs. What colours, background sound, air quality and temperature, lighting, desk style, stationery supplies suit you best? Refreshing your decor is one way of de-cluttering your space and re-setting and boosting your productivity and joy factor.
• Save gas money or daily transportation costs.

• Business hours. I mention these in my Business Clarity Map. As an entrepreneur, these are up to you. Set the span of gifted time that works best for you so you can serve your clients/customers refreshed and not from a place of exhaustion.
• Outings become adventures.

Well, there you have it – some of the benefits of working from home (or anywhere.) Mindset matters; so does momentum and your sense of internal motivation. There are days when it’s the ‘bees knees‘ and others when you’re fighting the urge to bus’ de door open and get some oxygen – so you do just that.

Go for a walk, or in the garden, or on the balcony…to refresh your approach.

mindset

motivation

momentum

Working from home reveals compulsions you may otherwise not have been aware of, like how money exposes character.

I used to be on the road from morning ’til morning, sometimes making pit stops at home or the beach for a bit before heading out to sit in traffic en route to another studio session, finally getting in at dawn – only to repeat (by grace) the next day. P.S: Singing all day means very little full meals since you’re not meant to sing on a full stomach so my eating habits and rest rhythm was nowhere near healthy for years.

If you happen to have a corporate job, make a note to enjoy those fresh air moments when you can…

Quality of life matters, whatever the design of your day.

Thanks for reading.

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‘Bright Benefits To Working From Home‘ was first published on ‘Joy within’ blog

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