Work Towards Making Yourself Happy While Working From Home

Do you work from home and wonder if there are better ways you could do it? I have got everything how I like it now having been working from home for myself a number of years but I know some of you are really new to it. A fellow blogger is keen to share her experiences and advice with you as a virtual assistant so I will pass you over to her. It may help you if you are considering starting a blog too.

Hello! I’m Debz from Get Virtual Assistance. I live in Hampshire and have been working as a virtual assistant for just over a year. I’ve actually been working from home for 18 months and really love it! Seeing as lots of us are going to be working from home long term, I thought I would share some tips with you.

Routine

This isn’t the same for everyone, as often if you’re working for an employer you do have more set hours. However, even if you’re able to work flexible hours, try to stick to a routine as much as possible. I say this, writing this at 6pm on Saturday evening so I know it isn’t always possible.

What I have found with working from home, is that there is always the temptation to work. With my laptop in the spare room, it only takes a few minutes to check my email or listen to a voicemail. This is okay, but if they were tucked away at the office I wouldn’t be able to.

A work/life balance is really important to try and maintain and keeping a routine at work is a big part of this.

Workspace

If you now know you’re going to working from home, invest in making sure your workspace is comfortable – and fun! I’ve made sure that I have a decent, supportive chair and a mouse mat with wrist support built it too.

Then I made sure I had lots of photos up around me, some nice canvas prints and lots of really nice stationary. After all, I spent a good chunk of my day sat at this desk, why wouldn’t I want it to be somewhere I enjoy to be?

Home Comforts

As tempting as it is to work on your pyjamas all day, I have found that getting up and getting dressed makes a massive difference to how I feel – especially after a few days. That said, there is absolutely nothing wrong with having some home comforts.

Get some fluffy socks, a blanket you can put over your lap and if appropriate don’t be afraid to put on some music in the background.  Make sure you have some nice drinks to enjoy throughout the day and take some time away from your desk, especially at lunch.

What To Eat For Lunch

As much as I love a Tesco Meal Deal, one of the things I have enjoyed most about working from home is hot lunches. I can have a tuna jacket potato without someone complaining about the smell or easily heat up last night’s dinner.

I have really enjoyed making some interesting tortilla wraps and even the odd fish finger sandwich. There are lots of healthy and nutritious meal ideas out there for lunch, so why not take advantage of being able to prepare some of these at lunchtime?

Make Time For Yourself

Don’t let your while day be consumed by work. The chances are in the office you broke up some of the day – a chat by the photocopier, a quick gossip in the smoking area and lunch with a friend.

When you work from home on your own these aren’t possible, but that doesn’t mean you should spend the whole day in front of your computer screen.

Take a walk at lunchtime, have a cup of tea on the sofa in the afternoon or simply a snug with the dog for 10 minutes. Just something that takes you away from work and allows you to go back to the task at hand a bit refreshed.

These are things that work for me but if you have any others please share them below!