A home-based business - sometimes it's hard to get to work

Have you heard about the kids who live across the street from the school and are always running in as the bell rings? Or about the employee who lives just around the corner and is usually the last to arrive each morning?

Strangely enough, the same can be true for an entrepreneur who has chosen to be home-based. Discipline often has more to do with being late (or not arriving at all) than anything else.

When deciding whether to be a home-based business or have an office at another location, the key determinating factor is whether you have the discipline to be home-based. It doesn’t matter why you aren’t in your office when you should be; it matters only that you aren’t!

One would think that needing to earn a living would create the discipline to get in the office, but those who procrastinate or have difficulty focusing have provided this or a similar scenario: On my way into the office, I stop to make myself a cup of coffee. While the coffee is still brewing, I get dressed and see the pile of clothes that need washed. The coffee is done, so back to the kitchen to pour a cup and fix breakfast. It’s a bright sunny morning, so I choose to have my breakfast on the deck. Looking around, I see there are weeds to pull and flowers that need attention. Time to put the clothes in the dryer. Replace the gardening and laundry with mowing, dusting, cooking, working on a hobby, watching TV, etc., and you can see how easy a day can go by.

However, there are a few easy-to-establish habits you can adopt fairly quickly. First, write down everything you want accomplished to keep your home in the condition that will allow you to “go to work”. Maybe choose a day that you do laundry, one for yard work, etc. Always allow at least one hour a day for a quick run-through of the house first thing in the morning to do the little things that aren’t scheduled (pick up magazines, empty waste baskets, etc.).

Set a schedule and to-do list for your work tasks. Have specific days for chosen tasks (pay bills, write an article, out-of-office appointments, etc.). This will help create concentrated blocks of time.

Being home-based isn't for everyone. Knowing what should be done and actually doing it is the issue. Some people just need to separate home from office. And that's not a bad thing, considering that the additional business revenue achieved will most likely far exceed the costs associated with leasing an office!