How To Work From Home

Could working from home be for you? There are plenty of opportunities with being your own boss and setting up a home office, but make sure you know what you're getting into! Here's the lowdown with working from home.

Working from home is a fantastic option for many women, especially mothers. But being successful in working from home requires a special set of skills that even some of the most dedicated workers do not possess. To be successful in working from home you will need to have the following personal qualities:

• The discipline to work independently and meet deadlines and manage your time effectively
• The ability to communicate effectively with your team whilst working remotely • A workspace within your home
• The ability to convince your boss that it is a good idea

Convincing your boss
Gaining approval from your boss to work from home is probably going to be your biggest hurdle. The following are some tips that you can use to convince your boss to give it a try.

1. Highlight the benefits
Identify then highlight the benefits to your employer. These benefits may include lower business running costs and less-interruptions.

2. Prove your commitment and capability
Convince your employer that you have the commitment to make it work. To do this, make a list of all the examples from your career that demonstrate that you have been able to work independently and achieve results without being directly supervised.

3. Make it easy for your employer
If you already have a work area and computer in your home office it will be easier for you to convince your employer to give it a go because there is less initial investment required from them.

4. Suggest a trial
Suggest trialling the project of working from home. Suggest a time frame with a scheduled project plan and show them the plan that will instil confidence in your manager that you can pull it off.

5. Don’t blow it
Do an amazing job, meet or exceed all of your deadlines and keep your manger regularly updated on your work.

Do you work from home? What are the pros and cons?