Working from your home office
WITH THE advent of MNCs in India, many companies like "Healthscribe" and "Yodlee Infotech" are adopting the culture of allowing employees to work at home through telework (also known as telecommuting) programs. Telecommute has allowed employers to boost employee morale and productivity thereby attracting and retaining valuable workers. Thanks to the telecommunications and computer technologies, the elderly, parents with small children and others for whom working away from home is not always feasible are now gifted with the option of working from home.
Telecommuters sure do avoid the hassles of commuting and the stresses of being away from home for long hours. But they too face challenges with time management, teamwork, technology and with co-workers, managers and even with family, says Michael Dziak, author of "Telecommuting success".
Whether you are a medical transcriptionist working from home or an entrepreneur running a home based business, finding ways to tackle the challenges of a home-based career will help make it a positive experience.
Here are a few things to consider for boosting your productivity while working from home:
Create a suitable workspace: Having a specific location for your work will help you stay organised. If you have an extra bedroom where you can set up your office space, you can block out the distractions by simply shutting the door. If you cannot allot a room for yourself, design the space to suit your personality and the household space available. With the creative use of bookshelves, wall units, folding curtains and plants, you can make the most of an open or shared workspace. Communicate to your housemates about your desired workspace and request them not to disturb you while you are `at work'.
Choose a suitable work schedule: You may have opted to work from home to have a flexible schedule; nonetheless it is beneficial to choose a work schedule so that you can provide your work associates with specific timings when you will be available to work with them. That way your housemates will also be supportive. If you cannot stick to a 9 to 5 work schedule, choose a schedule that would work best for you keeping in mind your family responsibilities and personal needs. Some people fix their working hours during late nights and during their children's nap times. Early risers too accomplish a lot more during the morning hours when their family is still in bed. Whether you choose a strict or flexible schedule, make a 'to do' list and check your accomplishments at the end of the day. Stick to deadlines.
Get professional with communication: Installing a separate telephone line is an effective way of making clear distinctions between your work and home life. If this is not possible, answer your phone in a professional manner during your business hours. When you finish working, let your answering machine take the business calls for you. Take care not to send work related emails from your personal email account. Having a separate account for work related emails can protect you from getting distracted.
Socialise: Update your career knowledge by joining professional organisations, chambers of commerce or business networking groups. Meet people face-to-face as often as you can. Even though technology has enabled us to work in virtual space, the power of the face-to-face encounter cannot be underestimated. It is good to meet up with some people of the office once in a while. If you work for yourself, be sure to find others who do the same and meet regularly for coffee or lunch.
Self-discipline and motivation: You will have to make a concerted effort to maintain a degree of discipline. Make sure to get out of bed at a reasonable hour, get ready as you would if you were going out to work and plan your workday. Discipline yourself to ignore household chores or personal temptations during your office hours. If you are able to achieve a certain degree of discipline, you would be able to do things like taking the odd day off to watch a movie or take the kids to a park or read a book and still feel satisfied that you are working hard.
Now, are you tempted to walk to your supervisor and discuss the option of working from home? Wait until you do your homework.
Keep a log of your job related activities for a couple of weeks.
Determine the tasks that can be done from home and the ones that can be done only at the office.
Ascertain how your telecommuting would meet the departments' needs, enhance productivity, impact costs, help your supervisor, etc.
Determine the cost of setting up the infrastructure at home that would help you telecommute effectively.
Decide on the schedule you are seeking. Determine how you will work to stay connected with other team members and how you will arrange for supervision. Once you gain the confidence of handling your work from home, request a meeting with your supervisor. If your request is denied, find out precisely what your supervisor's concerns are, to see if you can do anything else to make telecommuting a reality. If the answer is still "No," remember that telecommuting is a supervisory option and not an employee benefit or right. You need to accept the answer as "No" or consider looking for another job that is more appropriate for telecommuting.
Before you take up a telecommuting offer, inform your neighbours, friends, relatives and helpers about the time you can be reached and the hours you cannot be disturbed. If you take the time to plan ahead and execute efficiently, you will find that working from home can be convenient, productive and rewarding.
MANJULA S.
faqs@cnkonline.com
Printer friendly
page
Send this article to Friends by
E-Mail
Opportunities
