Tips from working from home

Hi All,

I met up with my boss last week and spoke to him about the possibility of coming back to work part time but 70% of the hours would be working from home. He has spoken to some people in the company and they are talking about some options. So I am not entirely sure if its going to be a yes or a no.

So I was just hoping to get some tips from people that do work from home.

My DD is nearly 6 months old and she is fairly good, doesnt sleep much during the day but is happy to play by herself. What I am mostly worried about is that when I want to do something, she turns in to a horror and doesnt want to go to sleep when she is tired.

What sort of hours do you do at home? Would you work the normal 9-5 or would you work in the evening when your children are asleep or when their dad is home to help you out?

My days at the moment are like this... Monday through to wednesday I am at the gym from 9am to 10.30am (thats when I get home) and I also try to get to a class in the evenings, they start between 6-7pm and I am normally home by 8pm. DD is in bed and asleep by 8.30pm. And on Thursdays and Fridays the only things I need to do is the food shopping and cleaning the house and washing.

I still would like to get to the gym, but I am worried about it just being all too much..

So pretty much some tips and advise would be great!

TIA :)

I've been trying to work from home for a while now with very poor results. It was all supposed to start months ago - at a time when DD was having 2 or 3 hour sleeps twice a day and was happy entertaining herself for a decent length of time when awake. Starting work was delayed until recently so I am now trying to work with a baby who sleeps for 40 minutes, twice per day. She is also going through a bit of a clingy stage. Throw in that now she's on solids it can take 1.5 hours to feed (bottle, then a break, then a couple of different food types, clean up etc). So, I've given up trying to work through the day at all and am trying a few hours on Saturday afternoon and then Sunday when DH can take DD. Its been very frustrating and TBH if I hadn't given a commitment to my really, really good employers that I would complete a particular project I wouldn't be doing it. After this baby is born if I do any work I will make sure the kids are either in day care, or my Mum is here to look after them.

Get up and dressed in the morning. Don't be tempted to stay in your jarmies, it just doesn't work.
From the start discourage friends dropping in during your precious work time, make it clear you must work. I can't tell you the hours I lost when people know you're home and drop in for a coffee.

I was tempted to wait until the kids were in bed at night, but I was often too tired to concentrate by then.

My work hours where a bit funny (which is the whole point I spose). DD would often have a feed about 4-5am, I would find it hard to get back to sleep as I would instantly start listing my tasks, so I just got up then - finish around 8am.
It was amazing the amount and quality of work I could get done. Kids asleep, no phones ringing - everything was so still the time would fly.
I would go back in after lunch and make a couple of phone calls (30 mins) , and Dp would take the kids for an hour between 7-8pm (catch up calls etc).

I managed to spend the full day with the kids, and not be too tired. I was never up much past 9.30-10pm.

I can tell some people would run screaming from the room at the though of being up so early, but it really worked for me.

Other tips - write a task list and stick to it.
Rewrite it at the end of the day so you don't wake up in a cold sweat thinking you have forgotten to do something.
Clean your work area each week, it's amazing how messy you get when the boss isn't around.
Block your time a week or a month ahead. Put in me time, family time, gym time, work time. Stick to it like glue.

It can be hard with kids but they always win in the end so its best to work around them...

good luck with your decision...!