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Making Working From Home Work For You
Working from home has become a revolution of sorts, with a vast increase in the number of remote workers across the globe over the past decade. In 2017, a study by Flex Jobs found that more people than ever before are choosing to quit their jobs and work remotely, to allow them to have a more flexible way of working. Check out the best webinar software of 2021 from Webinarcare website.
A survey from Flex Jobs of 5000 professionals, found that the number of people who say they’ve quit their jobs to work remotely due to a lack of flexibility has almost doubled from 17% in 2014 to 32% in 2017. What this statistic says is that with an increasing number of opportunities to work remotely, and work to your own flexible schedule, people are feeling more inclined to take the leap from traditional ways of working and find a new role that fits their needs.
This is a trend that has become more apparent in women than in men, mainly women who have left their pre-pregnancy roles to work in a remote and flexible way around family life. However, it’s not only moms (and dads too) who are choosing to work remotely - Global Workplace Analytics’ research showed that 80% to 90% of the US workforce would like to telecommute at least part-time, with the ideal amount being two to three days a week.
50% of the US workforce has a job that’s compatible with part-time telecommuting, with 20 to 25% telecommuting on a regular basis. Studies have shown that telecommuting tends to be more popular with slightly older workers, with the typical remote worker being 45 years old or older and college-educated.
There’s no denying the fact that working from home has become a growing trend, but just because remote working is becoming increasingly popular, that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s a perfect fit for everyone. However, if you are smart about how you go about working from home, you can give yourself the best chance of success working in this way.
For tips and advice for making home working work for you, take note of the guide below. Have a read of the tips, implement them, and home working should work perfectly for you.
Find the right role
It doesn’t matter where you’re working from; if you don’t find the right role, you won’t enjoy what you’re doing. The fact is that everyone deserves to enjoy their work because your work life takes up such a large portion of your time each week. However, there are a lot of people who work in roles that they hate, despite working from home. The good news is that this doesn’t have to be you - you can take your career into your own hands, it’s just a case of knowing what you want and need from it.
If you are going to make working from home work for you, which means ensuring that you have the motivation to work in a productive and efficient way, then you are going to need to find that perfect role. Perhaps you’ve always loved your job but just can’t continue to work in the office as it impacts your family time? Or maybe, there’s an area that you’ve always wanted to go into but have never taken the leap of faith? The fact is that if you are going to really benefit from home working, it pays to find the right role. This might mean discussing ways that you can tweak your current role, or it may be finding a whole new one, it’s completely up to you.
Alternatively, start a business
Another option, if you don’t feel that you will ever find a role that will make working from home an enjoyable experience for you, is to quit your job and start a business of your own. The fact is that the majority of home workers do this - run businesses of their own, which means that it’s easier to do than you would think. It’s just a case of finding that ideal business concept that you can make a go of.
You might already have an idea for a business or you might not, it doesn’t matter either way. Take some time to think the idea of starting your own business through. Look at the areas that you could go into - take your skills and experience into account for this. Say, for instance, you’ve spent your life working in PR, perhaps you could launch a small PR firm that’s run virtually. Or, say you’ve always worked as a journalist in-house, perhaps you could go freelance and work exclusively from home?
Create a dedicated workspace
When it comes to successfully working from home, one of the most important things to remember is to create a dedicated workspace. Don’t make the mistake of attempting to work from anywhere in your home, such as the living room, for instance, because this can end up causing a distraction.
If you’re working in the room where the TV is, for instance, it’s all too easy to switch it on and become engrossed in daytime TV. The fact is that if working from home is going to work for you, you need to take it seriously and treat it like a normal job. That’s why you need a dedicated workspace that is quiet and free from distraction. If you don’t have a spare room in your home, perhaps you could consider creating an outdoor office in a shed or purpose made ‘hub’. If this isn’t an option, then the next step is to think about setting up a small office area in the corner of a room that is as free from distraction as possible. Cloud technology can help you to create your own virtual space at an affordable low cost. Tools such as Windows virtual desktop on azure and Office 365 Business Premium are your perfect companion if you`re planning to set up your own office at home.
Invest where you need to
Obviously, if you are going to effectively work from home, you may need to invest in a few items, to help give you the very best chance of success. You’ll need a suitable working desk, a comfortable computer chair, and a range of other office essentials. You will also need to check the internet speed that your home currently has, and may want to consider upgrading to a faster service, like the one that www.Optimum.com/ offers.
The fact is that if you’re going to work virtually from home, you will need the highest speed internet possible to ensure that you are able to work effectively. From simple tasks like sending emails and monitoring your website to attending video meetings and webinars, your internet will get a lot of use, which is why it’s so important to ensure that you have good quality internet that’s in place.
Have set ‘work’ hours
One of the biggest mistakes that many home workers make is failing to have set work hours. If you don’t have set times that you work between, you may find that you struggle to work effectively. It’s far too easy to keep telling yourself that you’ll do this and that later, and that you’ll spend some time off and the work, but then not end up getting half of what you need done. This is why having set work hours is so important.
If you want to make home working work for you, you need to have a selection of set ‘work’ hours in place. It’s usually best to set these hours to match regular office hours so that you can communicate easily with customers, clients or other workers when you need to. You will find that by having set work hours in place, it becomes much easier to stay on top of things and ensure that everything is getting done on time.
Tailor your work to you
A great tip to take note of when it comes to home working is tailoring your work to you. If you want to give remote working every chance of success, it’s vital that you tailor the work that you do to you and your personal circumstances.
What makes remote working such an amazing concept is the fact that you can tailor the work that you do specifically to your circumstances. You can design a role that perfectly fits your life and needs, so it’s important to take advantage of this and tailor your work to you.
Remote working is incredibly popular today, with an increasing number of professionals choosing to go down this route and work in a more convenient way. The truth is that this method of working has the potential to be highly successful, however, it’s important to ensure that you know how to make home working work for you.
That’s the fantastic thing about home working; you can tailor how you work and what you do to meet your needs perfectly. That being said, one thing it’s important to bear in mind is that it might take a little time to get into the swing of things. However, once you’ve got to grips with this new way of working, you should find home working highly enjoyable and easy to adapt to. Give yourself a month or so to get into the swing of things - it might take time, but once you’ve found your feet, you’ll never want to go back to your old way of working.
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