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Many people dream of starting a side-gig, thinking it will be an amazing experience, only to be disappointed.
Maybe it’s harder than they thought, or they aren’t getting the results they’d hoped for.
If you’ve experienced this, don’t give up. It doesn’t mean a side-hustle isn’t for you. Learn how to approach working from home and you’ll start to see better results.
How to approach the work-from-home experience: 8 smart tips
Success doesn’t happen simply because you want it to. It takes time and effort.
Thankfully, that doesn’t mean your side-hustle has to turn into a grueling job. You can do part-time, remote work and still create a profitable business without giving up work-life balance.
Here are some steps to implement when you engage in a work-from-home opportunity.
1. Find the right career for you and your needs
The first step is to find something you’re passionate about, or to find a way to gain the skills needed to build a business you’ll love.
Leveraging your passion will motivate you when you’re tired or just don’t feel like working. You know there’s a bigger purpose.
Think about what you love to do or who you love to help.
If you’re not sure that you can pull something off on your own, start by engaging in part-time work with a company like Vector. You’ll learn how to schedule your time, set goals and priorities, and even learn leadership skills that you can use now and in the future.
2. Set and keep office hours
You’ll want to stick to your schedule the majority of the time. Doing so will give you a feeling of accomplishment and freedom while contributing to your work-life balance.
The wonderful thing about being your own boss is that you get to work during times that are best for you. Consider:
- What’s most convenient
- When you’re most alert and productive
- Your family’s schedule
A great way to create a workable schedule is with a time-tracking app. According to Zapier, the best apps for small businesses include:
- Toggl Track
- RescueTime
- Harvest
- HourStack
- Everhour
3. Establish boundaries
A top complaint of people who work from home is that the people around them don’t respect their schedule. Kids, partners, parents, and friends may falsely assume you’re available whenever, simply because you’re working remotely.
It’s important that you show those around you how to respect your time by honoring yourself and your schedule first. It might be difficult in the beginning, but over time they’ll get used to it.
Tell your family to pretend you’re not there, to imagine that you’re working in an office out of the home. If you have little kids, have them help you create a stop sign. You can hang the sign on your home office door as a reminder that you’re not available. Or you can create a standing sign to put on whatever table you’re working at if you don’t have a dedicated home office. Be realistic about childcare needs and seek out support from a babysitter or daycare as necessary.
4. Plan your day
Not only do you need to set a schedule, but you also need to know what you’re going to do during your working hours. This can take a bit of trial-and-error—and that’s ok.
You’ll need to find time for:
- Marketing tasks
- Administrative tasks (like financial tracking and bill paying)
- Client calls
Play around with your schedule and find out what works best for you. You might find that you enjoy variety in your schedule, and it’s beneficial for you to switch gears and do something different every hour. Or you might find that you prefer batch work. For example, you might discover that you like doing all your client calls in the afternoons or on a specific day, while you prefer marketing in the mornings.
5. Remember that a side-gig is a real job
Social selling can be fun, so much so that it doesn’t always feel like work. If you feel this way about your job, that’s great! When you love what you do, you’re more likely to stick with it.
However, it’s important to remember that your side-hustle is still a real job. You don’t want to show up haphazardly for yourself or your customers.
Stick to your schedule. Honor your commitments. Dress the part. Doing this will help you create a truly profitable business.
6. Invest in home office supplies
Not everyone has the space for a dedicated home office. If you do, though, invest some of your income into creating a comfortable environment that’s conducive to productivity.
Even if you don’t have a home office, you can still invest in some office supplies that will make working from home more comfortable, including:
- An office chair
- An ergonomic, wireless keyboard
- A monitor/laptop stand for better posture
7. Routinely leave your house
Let’s say you have a work schedule, and you have your office space all set up. That doesn’t mean you have to spend every minute of your day at home.
Periodically, work in a different environment, like a park, your backyard, or a coffee shop. Doing this will provide a respite so you can feel rejuvenated, creative, and productive.
8. Set time aside to sharpen your skills
It doesn’t matter how good you are at something—you can always get better. There’s always something new to learn, some way to help sharpen your skills and talents.
Just look at professional athletes. They are elite, at the top of their game, earning millions of dollars a year. And yet, they’re out there practicing regularly.
By developing your own skills, you can grow your side-hustle into a truly profitable business.
Your work-from-home approach impacts your work-life balance
One of the main reasons people want to work from home is because of the freedom a side-gig promises. Freedom to set your own schedule. Freedom to set your own rules. Freedom to be the boss you’ve always wanted to work for.
It’s imperative, then, that you learn how to approach your work-from-home opportunity in a way that promotes balance, not chaos and stress.
Thankfully, when you implement balanced side-gig success tips and work for a company like Vector, you’ll be two steps closer to a side-hustle that is profitable while providing you the freedom you crave.
Are you looking for a fun work-from-home opportunity? Contact our team to schedule an interview.