Beating The Business Blues Working At Home

The main reason people set up a home business is to have low overheads, escape the daily traffic jams and be the boss. But working from home also creates a feeling of isolation and when motivation is low it evens become difficult just going through your emails.

If you have an internet business and you live alone the problems just get compounded. There will be days at a time when you do not meet another living soul. So how do you beat the business blues?

Here are some tips:

Join a fitness club and pop out every time your energy levels start sagging. You do not need to use the gym every time… sometimes you can go straight to the wet area.

Get into the habit of having lunch somewhere nice that is not too expensive. At least you will be see some (live) people and be fresh when you get back to the office. Meet a friend for lunch now and again. Chatting about something else apart from will help to break up the day.

Keep some plants in the office and have some fish in an aquarium. Alternatively keep a cat or dog as a pet. They make great companions and a dog will even accompany you when you go for a walk!

Make a collection of your favourite music and have a decent stereo in the office. You can listen to some soothing music when you are feeling low or something more upbeat if you are feeling motivated.

Try and take regular breaks. The great thing about working from home is that you can pop into the kitchen and rustle up a snack or if the weather is nice do a spot of gardening! In the military they did a test on soldiers who marched for hours without a rest.

They analysed soldiers who had a five minute break each hour. Guess what… the soldiers who had a short break every hour actually ended up marching further than the soldiers who did not stop at all!

Join at least one networking organisation. There are many different types. Some meat early in the mornings, others at lunch and some meet after work. Some meet weekly whilst others meet every month. Join the one that fits in with your lifestyle and get into the habit of attending it regularly.

You can now even network online with like minded people. There are many types of business networks on the internet. One advantage of being a member is that most people are more than willing to help if you have any questions that need answering.

Finally ensure that you have a dedicated office at home. Spend some money and buy new desks and chairs. Ensure that the lighting is soft so that you do not get tired so quickly.

Bear in mind that if you work from home you will probably spend a lot of time in your home and it is essential that you enjoy working there.

Do you have any tips on how to beat the business blues for people working from home?

Business Phone Blues

I work for a specialty after market auto parts retailer. We have no showroom, so around twenty percent of our business comes from the Internet while eighty percent comes from the telephone. We send out catalogs to those who request them or anyone who has placed an order in the last year. We also advertise in the back of automotive magazines. Needless to say, telephone sales are truly the lifeblood of our business. As of late, however, I've been wishing that weren't the case.

My company's business phone system has what I would call, the absolute most annoying hold message ever produced. My boss, the owner of the company, is a really nice guy. Unfortunately, he is a really nice guy with a very pronounced speech impediment. One day he decided that instead of the traditional hold music, he would play a repeating digital loop of him announcing our weekly specials. We are a very busy company. In fact, most days find our sales reps on the phone from the time we get in until the time we leave. As you might guess, with such a high volume of calls, many people are left on hold.

When our customers finally reach a sales rep, I would estimate that about thirty to forty percent of them do an impersonation of my boss... no kidding. The other sixty or seventy percent usually compliment us on the "funny voice" doing our ads. I've had a few who were offended by it, thinking we were trying to make fun of those with speech impediments. The thing is, almost everybody has something to say about the hold ads. I even had one customer complete an extensive order while doing his version of "the voice". Since our boss is a really great guy, my coworkers and I are less than amused on one hand, yet highly entertained on the other. My only problem is that while most of my colleagues are spread out over a huge office, my cubical is right next to the boss'. I have to keep a straight face during some fairly good impressions.

I miss the hold music.