One of the biggest challenges for me as I work from home is The Creep!
Work tasks slowly creep into my day. Because I work online, any time I pop in to check email or Facebook, I can come across a work task. It doesn’t even matter if it’s urgent. If I don’t take care of it right away, it weighs on me and makes it more difficult to be present to my children. If I do take care of it, it feels like I’m putting out fires all day long.
The solution: to work during work hours. Even though I have the flexibility to work anytime, I have set work hours. There are predictable blocks of time in my day for me to get work tasks done. There are busy seasons when a project is due and I might need a few extra hours in the evenings or on the weekend. But for the most part, I try to work when I work. And when I’m not working, I close the work related tabs and windows.
This small shift keeps work from slipping into the rest of my life.
I am with you! I then also struggle with sneaking those fun emails and internet-based searches into my work time. Like right now! Ha!
Oh I NEVER sneak in fun emails 😉