A defined work at home schedule … why do you need one?  One of the promises – and draws – of working at home for yourself is the total freedom that it can provide — no time clock to punch, no time sheets, and no one to dictate to you exactly how you will spend each moment of your working day. Very attractive indeed!  However, there is a huge downside to this freedom if you are not extremely careful.

What is this downside?  Simply this – you could very well be wasting a lot of your precious time on unproductive activities, and this can absolutely destroy your business.

A friend of mine is a civil engineer and spends time every day filling out detailed spreadsheets to account for every minute of his work day. He is employed by a large company, and his day often includes work on a multitude of different projects for different clients. He completely detests the activity and I have always thought of it as a waste of time.

Not any longer. My work from home business recently took off and I soon realized that I simply could not get all of my critical tasks accomplished each day without adhering to a defined work at home schedule.

So guess what?  I now have my own spread sheet and agenda for the day and I have improved my productivity and reduced my stress immeasurably. If you don’t think you need a schedule for your home business then please think again.  Then read on …

After going through a period of relatively low productivity – you know, those days when your “To Do” list seems to grow exponentially each time you look at it – I knew something simply had to change.

Now, I must admit I was going through a tough period of time in my life for a number of reasons.  However, I am old enough to know that there is never a perfect time in one’s life.  In my case, there are simply a few issues that I am dealing with this year, and next year these obstacles will be traded in for new and fresher ones.

So, after studying the different uses of my time and seeking advice from some other work-at-home business people, I discovered five important reasons for me to embrace the idea of adhering to a work at home schedule and embracing time management:

1. It’s far too easy to waste time doing unproductive and low priority tasks
2. It’s far too easy to get sidetracked or distracted from your current (important) task by less critical ones
3. Unscheduled work time has a way of overlapping into your free time until you’re left with no free time at all
4. Your free time has a way of overlapping into your work time and you can fall behind on important work projects
5. When you concentrate your time and effort on the highest priority tasks and projects, MUCH more work gets accomplished!

I am sure that I’m not the only home business person making prudent use of the work at home schedule. I recently had the pleasure of taking part in an online forum where people from all walks of life had decided to embrace the concept of time scheduling and found it to be much more freeing than restrictive.  After all, when you are the one setting up the work schedule and not a “boss”, you are completely free to schedule yourself for a leisurely lunch with a friend, an afternoon off, or a even a whole day off if needed – whenever you decide.

Now that is freedom!  :-)

If you are having difficulty setting up your work at home schedule and tasks/priorities for each day, each week and each month then give this a try – simply consult with a close friend or family member and ask them for some helpful input and tips for designing your schedule.

To Success @ Home,
-Scott