When you work at home, the boss is great!

Yesterday, I took a break from working at home and talked it up for a while with my cuz and BBF, Tracy. Tracy moved to Colorado about 20 yrs ago after her jaunt in the army. We see each other every couple of years, but talk for a couple of hours by phone almost every week. We get talking, and the time just flies by.

Which was the subject of our talk yesterday. I happened to mention that my 2nd son was going to be 18 in June. Tracy was astonished! She couldn't believe time had passed so quickly. I then mentioned that my oldest son, Mike was going to be 30 this year! Holy moses, where did the time go!

I remember joking with the 17 year old a few years ago. He was into one of his "I can't wait to grow up" deals. I told him, "You just wait, you're 14 now, next thing you know, you'll wake up and you're 40!" Of course, he thought I was full of horse poo. Tonight, didn't he say, "Wow, I can't believe I'm going to be 18 soon. Seems like I JUST turned 17!"

And that got me to thinking about home business, and how it is so easy to get permission from the boss (you) to take a day off. And how one day can lead to another..........

I have on occasion thought, "Hey, I deserve a day off." And, I put a request in with the boss(me) and lo and behold, the boss says yes.

So, I take the day off and loaf around (cleaning house), take a long car ride ( to the grocery store), and generally stay away from business. What happens?

The next day, a kid is sick. I'm busy all day emptying the pukey bowl, washing out pukey clothes, and cleaning puke off the rug. I get no business done.

The next day, another kid has a dentists appointment, I have Girl Scouts in the afternoon, and again most of a day has gone by with no work done.

And that's why I have learned to do my biz at least a little everyday. I know if nothing else I will ALWAYS wake up around 6 a.m. (I may sleep till 7 on a Sunday!) and run my ads, do my emails, and set my schedule for the day. And I will ALWAYS run my ads at night. And I ALWAYS have flyers and brochures in the car. Even if I have a day off due to appointments and such, I can still hang flyers when I see a bulletin board.

My AmeriPlan bag always has a book, postcards addressed to prospects (easy to do in waiting rooms) and a note book to jot down my ideas.

Because, I know if I "sleep" instead of "work" f or what seems to be only a day or two, I may wake up one morning and it will be years later. And I'll be amazed and say, "Where did all the time go?" And I'll still be stuck in the same rut. And that, my friend's is what keeps me working every day- whether I want to or not. Even if I've had a bad day. Or a bad week. Or a doctors appointment. Or a Girl Scout cookie sale, yadda...yadda!

While working at home is great and you really can't ask for a better boss, it does take a lot of discipline to stay focused. How do you stay focused and keep "Your eye on the prize?"

3 comments:

Military Momz said...

What a great post and boy time sure does fly. My baby just turned 14 and I was like, WHAT??? Sheesh!

Anonymous said...

Carolee, You're right as long as you're disciplined, working at home is a great opportunity to make best use of time and at the same time staying flexible to accommodate all the little things that occur in families. the dentist appointment, the sick child, etc. I just realized that I've been a SAHM for the last 12 years. The years seem to have gone by in a flash. I've been fortunate to stay home with the kids but restarting life after all these years is an uphill task!

Unknown said...

I so agree with you Carolee....I try to schedule my creative, work time just as I would anything else...but it does take a lot of discipline..and like you sometimes I just take the day off.... geez...the things that come up the next day are mind boggling!!!!