How much to work when you work at home?

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   Bill Manningposted 14 years ago

   When you have a "normal" job, how much you work is easy. Once your day ends you clock out and forget about your job until the next day.
   
   But when you work for yourself at home I find I'm always wondering if I put enough time in, or if I don't take enough time off.
   
   You know that how much you make depends totally on you and you alone, nobody else. If your not making as much as you want, and who does, you feel you should work more.
   
   You could do nothing but work all the time, day and night until you make what you want. But that could take years or forever.
   
   In the meantime life happens, as they say. When I do take time off and have a day off I feel guilty almost. I know I want to make more and a day off is not going to help that.
   
   So for those who work for themselves at home, how do you decide your working "enough" and when you should take time off?

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      thisisoliposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      When the wife breaks down in tears about how I ignore her all the time it's usually a good time for a half hour break

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   CMHypnoposted 14 years ago

   I always feel that it is never enough.  I tend to do at least some work 7 days a week, and never feel that I have put enough time in. Ironically, I started working for myself to gain free time and enjoy a less stressful lifestyle.  But I do love the flexibilty and the fact that I no longer have to commute

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   Princessaposted 14 years ago

   When you start isolating yourself from friends and family because of your work is because you are doing too much.
   
   My husband used to work at home which meant very long hours - to finish at 3 or 4 in the morning would be usual for him. 
   
   On the plus side he had flexible time for travelling and family holidays.  But I don't think that made up for all the time he spent in his office working day and night.

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   livewithrichardposted 14 years ago

   I make a plan and set goals. When I was at my traditional job we planned using a 777 rule: next 7 days, 7 weeks, 7 months.  Now that I work for myself I have adapted that rule to an 874: 8 hours, 7 days, 4 weeks.
   
   If I have the plan in front of me I can keep on tract. But even then I have to adapt to other circumstances and that is easy if you have a plan in place.
   
   Plan out your day the day before, set goals for the week, month, etc.

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   Nelle Hoxieposted 14 years ago

   When I had a "real job" I averaged 80 hours a week at the office, brought work home, and dreamed about it, so I never just clocked out and forgot about it.
   
   Now I continue to work monster hours at least six days a week. Sunday is family day and we try not to work, but sometimes one of us has to.
   
   I have very aggressive income goals and I relax a little when I see that I'm meeting them. But things change so fast that it's not possible to relax for long.

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6. 75

   Bill Manningposted 14 years ago

   Thanks for all the replies everyone, it's always nice to know your not alone.
   
   When I first started out working for myself I seemed to have a lot more energy and passion for this. I had so many ideas, so excited about what I was going to do.
   
   The fear of running out of money played a big part too!
   
   But now that I make enough money and know a lot more I find it harder to push myself and keep up with it all.
   
   Working online is basically a matter of making content, doing it right, then repeat,,, and repeat,,, repeat,,,
   
   It gets tedious after a while and the excitement is gone. I still love doing it and would not have any other kind of job, ever.
   
   It just gets hard when your all alone all the time and the passion for it has been replaced with boredom.

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   rebekahELLEposted 14 years ago

   Bill, many jobs require work at home. In all of my years of teaching, I can't ever remember leaving my work in the classroom once I left the building.
   
   I think working at home requires an immense amount of discipline to stay focused. If I'm working at home, I have to make a list the day before of what needs to be done. I do think there needs to be a shut-down time, though. Otherwise it's all work. I think it helps if the home has a specific office/room for work.

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      Bill Manningposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      Hey there rebekahELLE! Yeah a plan or some type of structure is what I'm missing. I just get up each day and figure out what I feel like doing, then do it.
      
      Often that ends up with me doing fun stuff and no work!

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         livewithrichardposted 14 years agoin reply to this

         Hey Bill, in my 874 rule above I have to plan in the me time too.  There is no way I can work 8 hours straight.  I'll put in at least 8 hours every day but they're not always consecutive.
         
         Having structure is a good thing. It keeps me focused on the important things.  At the end of every night, I assess what I completed for the day and anything that I didn't complete goes to the top of the list for the next day. 
         
         I think I wrote this before but I spend 2 hours on my hubs, 2 hours on my blog posts, and 2 hours split between doing social networking, keyword and other research, and backlinking.  But I also have to fit those 6 hours around my permit consulting business, so I'm usually working between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m.
         
         If you love what you do, can you really call it work?

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            Bill Manningposted 14 years agoin reply to this

            Yeah I do like what I do for work. I just get distracted easy. Building a new website is always fun at first as it is different.
            
            It's maintaining it that becomes a chore.
            
            BTW I still have not really done any work yet today.

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   Lily Roseposted 14 years ago

   I don't do enough!  Every day I say I'm going to do more, but life gets in the way.  My primary job is being a stay-at-home-mom and that has been "getting in my way" of hubbing for the last several months.  My oldest just recently started kindergarten and my youngest will start preschool in the fall and I look forward to having time to myself for the first time in 6.5 years that I will for sure devote, at least partially, to maintaining, improving, and adding to my hubs.

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      toknowinfoposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      Set realistic small milestones for each part of the day. Know what you want to accomplish, so you will know when you get there. Be kind to yourself, because we often are too self critical.  If you haven't achieved what you wanted ask yourself where will  you be in a week, a month, a year at the rate you are progressing. Keep your eye on the big picture. And pat yourself on the back for getting done what you did get done.

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   soneblomposted 14 years ago

   Hi everyone! Its good to know Im not the only one trying to fit it all into one day:-)I could never get housework out of the way because Im alway thinking about what to write and stop to make notes!
   Thanks for inspiring me, now I will plan my day wiser and put my time into more profitable use housework and all! God bless..

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