Running a home-based business offers many challenges and being a work at home mom offers many more! The number one challenge and probably the most important is staying organized; so things not only in your business but also in your home life remain as stress FREE as possible. To avoid work consuming your time and having the housework getting behind I will outline a few important steps to staying organized which I have found very useful.
Staying Focused - Setting Work Hours:
The hardest part about being home and working your home-based business is staying focused. Many things can and will interrupt your day unless you set work hours; treat your home-based business like a j.o.b. First and foremost is to establish the minimum number of hours you wish to work each week. Once you have done that then it is important to block out the hours on your calender to avoid interruption. Make sure when determining these hours that you take into consideration the best hours with the least amount of distraction.
My main reason for starting my home-based business was so I could work around my family however once I started I realized my families schedule and demands change on a monthly basis. Now how do you keep a focus on your business and still remain there for your family? This is when I realized the easiest way to do this is to gather the school calender, home calender and my business calender at the end of each month. I start by blocking off the activities for the month ie: orthodontist, school plays, school holidays etc. Then I block off my work schedule making sure I have my minimum hours that I originally established when I set out to start my home-based business. Now that I have my families schedule and my work schedule all mapped out on the calender I can arrange whatever else comes up without taking away from my business. This helps me stay focused and not get distracted; I find that I get much more accomplished with my business this way and avoid the easy distractions. My family and friends have also learned to respect that I am still only available to them certain hours of the day since I am working even if I am home.
Recruiting Family Members to Help: It is very easy to try and take on all the work load yourself however this is not the wise thing to do since you will discover burnout very quickly. Not only will you burnout from exhaustion but you will get very frustrated and overwhelmed. Recruit the kids to help out with the easy tasks such as folding the laundry, the vacuuming and more importantly make them pick up after themselves. You can even recruit the kids to help out with the business; they can help by preparing mailings, making copies, stuffing envelopes, etc. Obviously if you have small children this may be a little more difficult that is when you will have to rely on your significant other to help out.
Learn to let go; maybe the house isn't as tidy as you would like it but remember you are home for the family. You have to have some trade offs in this deal.
Organize, Organize, Organize: It is very important to stay organized not only in your business but also in the household. I find lists and calenders are my savior without them I would never make an appointment. Get rid of the clutter starting with your desk or daily work space. Keep it simple! Once you have a system into place it is easy to remain organized. The hardest part is to get there; I find bins and trays work best for us. I use the stack trays for all the important things that come into the house via mail or school.
Once your work space is organized them move onto the next section of the house. Again keep it standard so the rest of the family will know the routine and were things go. Once you get the family involved with your new system things will start to fall into place; you will find everhting in the household and business running much more efficently.
By Lisa Burkhardt Editor of http://www.work-home-today.com; great resource for work at home ideas and opportunities.
Arthritis and You in the Workplace
A Center for Disease Control and Prevention recently reported that arthritis limits millions of working Americans' productivity, activity, or ability to work. According to the Arthritis Foundation's coverage of the report, state-specific data shows those reporting arthritis-related work limitations ranged from 25 percent in Nevada to 51 percent in Kentucky. The state median is 33 percent. These significant statistics come with a price tag with another CDC study showing state-specific earning losses in 2003 which ranged from $78 million to $4.3 billion due to arthritis. In that same year, the total cost of arthritis to the U.S. economy was $128 billion.
A previously released CDC report also shows unemployment is higher in every state among people with arthritis. CDC also anticipates that the number of people with arthritis will increase significantly over the next few years, resulting in a loss of human resources and a greater economic impact across the country.
"A strong nation needs a strong workforce," said Geroges C. Benjamin, MD, FACP, FACEP (E), executive director of the American Public Health Association. "This study shows that our workforce is hindered, in some states quite substantially, by arthritis. Public health, in partnership with employers and communities can change that."
Perceptions play a large role in empowering those in the workforce who suffer from arthritis. Co-workers who are unaware of you arthritis can become resentful if they feel you are not doing your share of the work.
Even those who may know about your arthritic condition may think of it as "aches and pains." Because arthritis and related conditions are often "invisible" diseases, it makes them harder to explain. Or employees with arthritis may become worried that they will be treated differently or denied opportunities if people know about their arthritis. Or they may be tempted to ignore their body's warnings and work harder to cover up their arthritis.
In all reality, it's necessary to carefully consider when and if to tell an employer about your disease and how it affects you. If your company has a strong commitment to hiring people with disabilities, your disease could be an asset. It could also be an asset if the position requires someone who understands the effects of chronic disease. To aide in making your decision, consider three things:
1. Whether your disability is obvious.
2. Whether you need special accommodations in order to do the job.
3. The effort it will require to keep your arthritis hidden.
Depending on your answers to these considerations, you may choose to remain silent about your arthritis.
On the other hand, arthritis, or a related disease, is likely to raise questions in your employer's mind about your ability to do the job. It's important to discuss arthritis with your supervisor at a time when neither of you is under pressure. Make it plain you are not looking for sympathy, but for ways to resolve the problem that will benefit the company, your co-workers, and yourself. The goal of the meeting is to generate a supportive atmosphere. Be prepared to offer suggestions for possible changes, based on research you did before the meeting.
Know as much as possible about the ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act), items you need to do your job more effectively, the costs of these items (called assistive devices), and resources to help your employer. Tax deductions or tax credits may be available to certain employers who provide accommodations and/or jobs for people with disabilities. Chances are the changes you may need may not cost much.
Realize that subtle discrimination in some companies may still exist, especially when it comes to promotions. Some unions may have a problem with allowing workers with disabilities to take jobs that have been reserved as rewards for workers with seniority. Your company's personnel manager may ask the union's help in working out a solution in such instances.
Acheaway is now available for home use to soothe the aches and pains associated with arthritis, psoriasis, tired joints and sore muscles from an active lifestyle. Thousands have benefited from the pain relieving power of these safe, natural, non-prescription treatments.
A previously released CDC report also shows unemployment is higher in every state among people with arthritis. CDC also anticipates that the number of people with arthritis will increase significantly over the next few years, resulting in a loss of human resources and a greater economic impact across the country.
"A strong nation needs a strong workforce," said Geroges C. Benjamin, MD, FACP, FACEP (E), executive director of the American Public Health Association. "This study shows that our workforce is hindered, in some states quite substantially, by arthritis. Public health, in partnership with employers and communities can change that."
Perceptions play a large role in empowering those in the workforce who suffer from arthritis. Co-workers who are unaware of you arthritis can become resentful if they feel you are not doing your share of the work.
Even those who may know about your arthritic condition may think of it as "aches and pains." Because arthritis and related conditions are often "invisible" diseases, it makes them harder to explain. Or employees with arthritis may become worried that they will be treated differently or denied opportunities if people know about their arthritis. Or they may be tempted to ignore their body's warnings and work harder to cover up their arthritis.
In all reality, it's necessary to carefully consider when and if to tell an employer about your disease and how it affects you. If your company has a strong commitment to hiring people with disabilities, your disease could be an asset. It could also be an asset if the position requires someone who understands the effects of chronic disease. To aide in making your decision, consider three things:
1. Whether your disability is obvious.
2. Whether you need special accommodations in order to do the job.
3. The effort it will require to keep your arthritis hidden.
Depending on your answers to these considerations, you may choose to remain silent about your arthritis.
On the other hand, arthritis, or a related disease, is likely to raise questions in your employer's mind about your ability to do the job. It's important to discuss arthritis with your supervisor at a time when neither of you is under pressure. Make it plain you are not looking for sympathy, but for ways to resolve the problem that will benefit the company, your co-workers, and yourself. The goal of the meeting is to generate a supportive atmosphere. Be prepared to offer suggestions for possible changes, based on research you did before the meeting.
Know as much as possible about the ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act), items you need to do your job more effectively, the costs of these items (called assistive devices), and resources to help your employer. Tax deductions or tax credits may be available to certain employers who provide accommodations and/or jobs for people with disabilities. Chances are the changes you may need may not cost much.
Realize that subtle discrimination in some companies may still exist, especially when it comes to promotions. Some unions may have a problem with allowing workers with disabilities to take jobs that have been reserved as rewards for workers with seniority. Your company's personnel manager may ask the union's help in working out a solution in such instances.
Acheaway is now available for home use to soothe the aches and pains associated with arthritis, psoriasis, tired joints and sore muscles from an active lifestyle. Thousands have benefited from the pain relieving power of these safe, natural, non-prescription treatments.
More Tips For Fitting In At The Workplace
A lot of times, the amount of satisfaction that one receives in a job is in direct relation to the way they interact with their co-workers. There are McDonald's employees that are happier then rocket scientists due to their attitude and demeanor while in the workplace. To that end, we've assembled some more tips on how to be happy on the job.
- When you first start a job, it can be hard to make the first new connections and friends. A great thing to do that many people tend to avoid is to take the opportunity to chat it up with some of your co-workers over lunch. While you may feel that you'd be less stressed out eating alone or with a friend from outside of work, it can really pay off to get to know your coworkers outside of the job. A lot of times you'll find out some unique aspects of the person that you wouldn't have normally seen!
- Keep your complaints about the job to a minimum. While it's OK to joke about some sort of minor annoyance that occurs on the job, be sure to not have a negative attitude when it comes to the task that you were hired in to do. Coworkers may feel that you are taking your position for granted as well as undermining their happiness in the job, and that's never a good thing. Keep your workplace criticisms to yourself when you're getting to know everyone.
- When you get an opportunity to volunteer for some sort of additional task, do your best to take the opportunity. You don't need to sign up for every task imaginable; co-workers may see you as being a goody two-shoes, but it's definitely important to show a zest for your job.
- Be sure to keep a positive attitude while at work. Things may happen - not every workplace is jerk-free and you're bound to make a few mistakes while you're getting started. Keep your sense of humor about you and realize that the transition to a new job is tough.
Keeping the right mindset and being sure to interact with coworkers can be two great steps when it comes to workplace satisfaction. Let your bosses see that you're a worker, a team player, and enthusiastic when it comes to taking on responsibilities. You may find yourself fitting in sooner than you think!
Jonathon Hardcastle writes articles on many topics including Business, Recreation, and Finance
- When you first start a job, it can be hard to make the first new connections and friends. A great thing to do that many people tend to avoid is to take the opportunity to chat it up with some of your co-workers over lunch. While you may feel that you'd be less stressed out eating alone or with a friend from outside of work, it can really pay off to get to know your coworkers outside of the job. A lot of times you'll find out some unique aspects of the person that you wouldn't have normally seen!
- Keep your complaints about the job to a minimum. While it's OK to joke about some sort of minor annoyance that occurs on the job, be sure to not have a negative attitude when it comes to the task that you were hired in to do. Coworkers may feel that you are taking your position for granted as well as undermining their happiness in the job, and that's never a good thing. Keep your workplace criticisms to yourself when you're getting to know everyone.
- When you get an opportunity to volunteer for some sort of additional task, do your best to take the opportunity. You don't need to sign up for every task imaginable; co-workers may see you as being a goody two-shoes, but it's definitely important to show a zest for your job.
- Be sure to keep a positive attitude while at work. Things may happen - not every workplace is jerk-free and you're bound to make a few mistakes while you're getting started. Keep your sense of humor about you and realize that the transition to a new job is tough.
Keeping the right mindset and being sure to interact with coworkers can be two great steps when it comes to workplace satisfaction. Let your bosses see that you're a worker, a team player, and enthusiastic when it comes to taking on responsibilities. You may find yourself fitting in sooner than you think!
Jonathon Hardcastle writes articles on many topics including Business, Recreation, and Finance
Work Stress Management Tips
Not being stressed at work isn't a gift that some people possess; it is in fact an effort that only a few of us manage to put into our lives successfully. The truth is that we take more time thinking how to solve a problem we get into rather than thinking of how to avoid the problem from occurring in the first place. Stress at work has a similar story. Almost all of us get stressed at work very easily and very few of us manage to avoid it, though the solutions are very simple.
The main problems at work are mismanagement of work. A lot of people tend to fail in managing their work properly and end up either falling short of completing it before the deadline or with very poor quality of the work. This leads to the idea of the boss getting a bad impression and therefore less chances of promotion or even being fired if the work was important or this was not the first time you screwed up, and eventually all of it leads to stress. We should learn to manage our work properly to avoid such problems from occurring. First of all, keep a daily schedule of how much you plan to accomplish in each days work.
Plan it in such a way that you do not overload yourself and just do as much as you need to do daily to finish the work a day or two before the deadline. Doing less work each day means you can give it more concentration and improve on the quality of the work too. A good technique is to start with the hardest part of the work first and then approach the less hard ones later. Though this sounds like a more stressful way of handling work, however, the effect is quite the opposite. Once the hardest and most important part of the job is complete, the person can relax while doing the remaining parts.
Self belief plays a major role in stress control. Having enough faith in yourself that you can handle anything and everything without much trouble help make you confident through your work and relieves you from stress. Another thing that sometimes tends to buy us stress is when we involve ourselves into others problems. Do not trouble yourself with problems of your coworkers. Manage your work in office and your life at home in some balance. Good management is the number one stress killer.
Jonathon Hardcastle writes articles on many topics including Employment, Education, and Business
The main problems at work are mismanagement of work. A lot of people tend to fail in managing their work properly and end up either falling short of completing it before the deadline or with very poor quality of the work. This leads to the idea of the boss getting a bad impression and therefore less chances of promotion or even being fired if the work was important or this was not the first time you screwed up, and eventually all of it leads to stress. We should learn to manage our work properly to avoid such problems from occurring. First of all, keep a daily schedule of how much you plan to accomplish in each days work.
Plan it in such a way that you do not overload yourself and just do as much as you need to do daily to finish the work a day or two before the deadline. Doing less work each day means you can give it more concentration and improve on the quality of the work too. A good technique is to start with the hardest part of the work first and then approach the less hard ones later. Though this sounds like a more stressful way of handling work, however, the effect is quite the opposite. Once the hardest and most important part of the job is complete, the person can relax while doing the remaining parts.
Self belief plays a major role in stress control. Having enough faith in yourself that you can handle anything and everything without much trouble help make you confident through your work and relieves you from stress. Another thing that sometimes tends to buy us stress is when we involve ourselves into others problems. Do not trouble yourself with problems of your coworkers. Manage your work in office and your life at home in some balance. Good management is the number one stress killer.
Jonathon Hardcastle writes articles on many topics including Employment, Education, and Business
Women Multi Task Because They Have To
My husband calls it prioritising. I call it being lazy. I have never seen him do more than one thing at a time. God knows how he gets by at work but at home he makes an issue out of having to lift his feet so I can vacuum beneath them, while joggling the baby on my hip to keep him quite and stirring the spag bol to make sure it doesn't burn all on top of helping little Daniel with his homework.
Monday morning I woke up at 5am to the dulcet tones of a fractious, screaming, teething baby interspersed with the other half's incessant snoring. Who needs sleep? All this and I still don't wake up grumpy - I let him sleep in.
After soothing the baby, feeding the toddler, putting on the washing and preparing him upstairs breakfast, he comes down in a panic about not having his shirt ironed. What is his problem? He has more than one shirt and he wants the one that's not ironed. He's flapping about so unnecessarily and insists he can't do his own shirt because he's busy looking for his keys! Can this man not see what I'm doing? Does he seriously want a divorce?
In the usual way of the world, he is finally packed off to work, the kids are scrubbed, fed and watered and the house is in a state that might even pass the mother in laws standards. I make it out of the door with 2 minutes to strap the offspring into the car before making my way through the traffic, stopping off at pre-school, then the babysitter and finally into the office where I work.
Disaster of disasters, the car refuses to start! Please god, not on a Monday morning. All the prayers in the world are not helping and I have to phone the office and let them know I'm going to be late. I've tried ringing the other half but I really should have known how much help he would be.
Unbundling the kids from the car, we go back into the house so I can phone the garage. At least my husband managed to get one thing right and it turns out when he took out our insurance policy, I am entitled to a courtesy hire car.
At ten fifty the hire car turns up and, having been through the same feeding and cleaning process with the rugrats, I go through the rigmarole of re-strapping them back into the car and we're off to begin our day two hours late.
Of course, the hire car is virtually running on fumes so a quick pit stop is called for. I pay for the fuel at the kiosk and make my way back to the hire car with a feeling of impending doom. What is that all over the window? Child number one got bored waiting and found a half eaten bar of chocolate down the side of the seat which he has proceeded to smear all over the window so he can draw faces in it!
This is going to cost me, I can just see it! With a little sense of relief, I drop them off at their various points and finally arrive at work hot and flustered, leaving the hire car in my normal spot.
I spend the rest of my day working at double speed to make up for the lateness. Getting back into my hire car at five o'clock, I look around to see where the sweet sickly smell is emanating from and remember the chocolate encrusted window that has been sitting in the heat all day.
I don't have time to deal with this now. I have to pick the kids up, get home and put dinner on, thus starting the evening ritual all over again before not sleeping again tonight. Starting the hire car, I realise that something is stopping me from moving off and I get out of the car already knowing what it is.
The car park attendants are so hot round here that I forgot to inform them that I had a hire car today and not my normal car. I've been clamped. That just about does it for the day. I call my husband, inform him in a voice that tells him I mean business that he WILL be picking up the children tonight, he WILL be cooking dinner tonight and he WILL be sleeping in the spare room tonight. After securing a sheepish 'yes dear', I hang up the phone and make my way to the pub.
Expert working mother Catherine Harvey looks at the use of a hire car to get her out of a difficult position. To find out more please visit http://www.car-hire-uk.com/
Monday morning I woke up at 5am to the dulcet tones of a fractious, screaming, teething baby interspersed with the other half's incessant snoring. Who needs sleep? All this and I still don't wake up grumpy - I let him sleep in.
After soothing the baby, feeding the toddler, putting on the washing and preparing him upstairs breakfast, he comes down in a panic about not having his shirt ironed. What is his problem? He has more than one shirt and he wants the one that's not ironed. He's flapping about so unnecessarily and insists he can't do his own shirt because he's busy looking for his keys! Can this man not see what I'm doing? Does he seriously want a divorce?
In the usual way of the world, he is finally packed off to work, the kids are scrubbed, fed and watered and the house is in a state that might even pass the mother in laws standards. I make it out of the door with 2 minutes to strap the offspring into the car before making my way through the traffic, stopping off at pre-school, then the babysitter and finally into the office where I work.
Disaster of disasters, the car refuses to start! Please god, not on a Monday morning. All the prayers in the world are not helping and I have to phone the office and let them know I'm going to be late. I've tried ringing the other half but I really should have known how much help he would be.
Unbundling the kids from the car, we go back into the house so I can phone the garage. At least my husband managed to get one thing right and it turns out when he took out our insurance policy, I am entitled to a courtesy hire car.
At ten fifty the hire car turns up and, having been through the same feeding and cleaning process with the rugrats, I go through the rigmarole of re-strapping them back into the car and we're off to begin our day two hours late.
Of course, the hire car is virtually running on fumes so a quick pit stop is called for. I pay for the fuel at the kiosk and make my way back to the hire car with a feeling of impending doom. What is that all over the window? Child number one got bored waiting and found a half eaten bar of chocolate down the side of the seat which he has proceeded to smear all over the window so he can draw faces in it!
This is going to cost me, I can just see it! With a little sense of relief, I drop them off at their various points and finally arrive at work hot and flustered, leaving the hire car in my normal spot.
I spend the rest of my day working at double speed to make up for the lateness. Getting back into my hire car at five o'clock, I look around to see where the sweet sickly smell is emanating from and remember the chocolate encrusted window that has been sitting in the heat all day.
I don't have time to deal with this now. I have to pick the kids up, get home and put dinner on, thus starting the evening ritual all over again before not sleeping again tonight. Starting the hire car, I realise that something is stopping me from moving off and I get out of the car already knowing what it is.
The car park attendants are so hot round here that I forgot to inform them that I had a hire car today and not my normal car. I've been clamped. That just about does it for the day. I call my husband, inform him in a voice that tells him I mean business that he WILL be picking up the children tonight, he WILL be cooking dinner tonight and he WILL be sleeping in the spare room tonight. After securing a sheepish 'yes dear', I hang up the phone and make my way to the pub.
Expert working mother Catherine Harvey looks at the use of a hire car to get her out of a difficult position. To find out more please visit http://www.car-hire-uk.com/
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