This killed me. The things we do to amuse ourselves in the office.
Happy Friday!
Working from Home is…Work!
One of the things that many people have a hard time understanding is that working from home involves, well, actual work.
There is no such thing as a passive income. At some point in the process, you have to work on your income. Whether its managing your affiliate sales while working from home or managing your investment portfolio, there is mental work going on.
You have to put forth effort in order to be successful, no matter what you are doing. Be wary of work from home "opportunities" that require only a "small" set-up fee and then promise that you do not have to do any work.
If it sounds too good to be true, the old adage goes, it probably is.
WAHM Summertime: Create a Routine
I don’t know about you, but summertime wreaks havoc with my work from home schedule. My son is home all day, and I want him to have fun summer-y experiences — like swimming lessons and day camp. So this means that I need to rearrange my schedule while trying not to go crazy.
One of the suggestions for the work from home schedule is to create a routine. Brandie Kajino writes this over at Sparkplugging:
Routines can help the body, mind and business stay on its rails. Leave
a little wiggle room for a spontaneous day trip to the beach, it is
summer after all.
Just because it’s summertime doesn’t mean that everything has to go out the window. We still have "wake up time" and "bed time." My son still does workbook and has reading time. We try to do certain activities in the morning, and others in the afternoon.
And my routine changes as well. I do a little more work in the evening, after my son goes to bed. And sometimes I get up a little earlier on Saturday morning to squeeze in a little more work.
Figure out what works for you, and do your best. You loved summertime as a kid, and your children need to love it, too.
Dinner and Working From Home: Simple, Fast Meals
One of the things that I find a little challenging, in terms of working from home, is that on some days getting dinner done is a real hassle. However, over at WiseBread, there are some great ideas for simple meals that only take a few minutes of preparation.
My favorite suggestion from the list is the crock pot. I have been using a crock pot for years. At least one meal a week — and very often two (or more!) — is made using a crock pot. For extra ease of preparation, I like to load up the crock pot the night before, cover it and stick it in the fridge.
All I have to do is remember to pull it out of the fridge and get it going at the proper time. And for that, I usually set a calendar alarm on the computer.
Win The 3 Secret Pillars of Wealth
If you are looking into developing a vision for the future of your home business, it can be helpful to read the book The 3 Secret Pillars of Wealth. In it, James Burns, Esq. describes ways for the home business owner to crack his or her own "wealth code."
Over at Home Biz Notes, there is a drawing for the book, based on comments received.
Friday Fun Video: Bean Bag Chairs at the Office
This is a great video promoting telecommuting. A funny way to spread bet work from home message.
Happy Friday!
Do You Feel Like the Worst WAHM Ever?
One of the great things about the Internet and technology is the fact that it is possible to connect with others with similar interests and tastes. And problems.
One of the more interesting things I’ve come across lately is this page from Mommy Track’d. It’s about the worst working mom moments. And I’m a WAHM who has fallen subject to some of them as well.
I still remember shutting the door and leaving my then-two-and-a-half-year-old strapped securely strapped into his high chair so I could finish an interview over the phone. He doesn’t remember the 10 minutes he spent screaming bloody murder, but I still feel bad about it.
Household Employees? Don’t Forget the Employment Taxes
Even though tax season is over (thank heaven!), it is never too early to get things in order for next year’s taxes. And one thing the work at home professional has to think about it employment taxes for household employees.
According to cpasense, who cites the IRS:
Household employees include housekeepers, maids, baby-sitters,
gardeners, and others who work in or around your private residence as
your employees.
This means that you will need to pay the employment taxes for these folks. Although you might be able to get around it if you contract with them at the outset as an independent contractor. To be sure, ask a tax attorney or an accountant.
Promote Your Home Business Blog Offline
When you have a home business blog, it seems counterintuitive to promote it offline. After all, aren’t your readers more likely to find you online? It may be so, but it is possible to round up new readers — and through them find even more — if you do a little more to promote your home business blog offline.
Over at Scribefire, Darren Rowse offers some tips that can help you promote your home business blog offline:
*Attend conventions and conferences. Mingle with people and get to know them!
*Business cards. Make sure the cards for your home business include a Web address for your blog.
*Meetups. There are a variety of blogger meetups (as well as Twitter meetups) that you can attend to meet people and share your blog.
*Stickers. Create stickers with your home business blog address — and a cute or clever picture.
Don’t forget, though, that when you set out to meet people and promote your home business blog, you need to return the favor and visit others’ blogs as well.
National Leave the Office Earlier Day
Today, as I found out from Home Biz Notes, is National Leave the Office Earlier Day. The idea is that this is supposed to help improve productivity. You know, when you have to be more efficient so that you can leave the office earlier.
But what about the home office?
Really, though, this comes on a bad day for me. I’m already behind. Summer has started (so my son is out of school) and I really don’t feel like I have time to leave the home office early.
So maybe what I’ll do instead is take a longer "lunch break" with my son. We can go out to lunch and go to the park. But then I’ll have to get back to work. It’s not really leaving early, but it does have the benefit of spending more time with my son — and less in the home office.