While the demands can be strict in the corporate world, work-at-home parents face a temptation that their corporate counterparts seldom experience.
I am talking about the temptation to work 24/7 (especially when a deadline looms). I am talking about the difficulty of separating home from work because work IS at home.
Can’t sleep at night? The office is just a room away. Does that stack of dirty dishes seem daunting? You can always go to the office and work instead of facing it. Want to get away from fighting kids? The office makes a convenient excuse when you don’t even have to get into the car to go there.
That’s not to say that I didn’t ever bring work home when I worked in the corporate environment. I did. It’s just that the boundaries were much clearer between work and home.
When I brought work home back then I knew that I was crossing a boundary and intruding into my homelife. Now, with my “office” housed in the former breakfast nook behind the kitchen, the boundaries between work and home are less clear. It’s all too easy to slip away from what should be family time and closet myself in that home office.
When those temptations occur, I sometimes find it necessary to remind myself why I became a WAHM in the first place: to find greater balance in my life.
What about you? How do you handle the temptation to work 24/7?
Contents (c) Copyright 2007, Laura Spencer. All rights reserved
19 responses so far ↓
1 Randa Clay // Apr 16, 2007 at
I’m not very good at managing this temptation actually. I feel like there is so much to do and so little time, so I stay up too late working rather than getting the sleep I need. It’s terrible.
2 Cotiso // Apr 16, 2007 at
I don’t :P. I work 24/7 until i burn out, do almost nothing for couple of days, then start all over.
3 Harmony // Apr 16, 2007 at
Hmmm, there seems to be a theme here. I can’t stay away from the computer either. Since I am new to working at home, my fear is not making enough money.
4 Lillie Ammann // Apr 16, 2007 at
I think we’re all challenged with this. I try to avoid working on Sunday, but this weekend I made an exception for a phone conference with a client. The 30-45 minutes he said we needed to discuss revisions turned into a 3-hour conversation. Then I spent another couple of hours actually making the revisions.
But I have generally been doing much better and am trying to train my clients that Sunday if off-limits. I’ve spoiled them so much they expect me to be available all the time.
5 Tom Chandler // Apr 16, 2007 at
It’s a problem for me also. I write several blogs and — couple that with a full workload — and the temptation is to never leave the house. Not good.
6 Lars-Christian // Apr 16, 2007 at
This is something I always struggle with when I’m working with online stuff, and I wish I had better ways to handle it. All too often I find myself just sitting down and spending too many hours in front of the computer working on various things online, and sometimes other parts of my life suffer because of it.
I think one of the keys to avoiding it is to be more productive when you’re actually working. Unfortunately I’m not all that productive..
7 Laura // Apr 16, 2007 at
Randa, Cotiso, Harmony, Lillie, Tom, Lars-Christian… Wow!! It appears this is a more common problem for writers than I had ever imagined.
8 Sara // Apr 16, 2007 at
Hi, It’s nice to find out I’m not the only one who works like this.
I always find that I am spending too much time working and not enough time with the kids, which is why I decided to stay at home and work anyways. I often end up working until the wee hours of the morning too which can make you cranky in the morning.
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9 Alfa // Apr 17, 2007 at
I chant “health is wealth.” and staying in front of the PC 24/7 will damage my health/wealth. So there..
10 Mihaela Lica // Apr 17, 2007 at
What an interesting entry. Once I told Lillie she should start a meme and that topic has already great related entries. Now I tell you the same thing: start a meme. I’m sure you’ll get puzzling answers. I’ll give you mine soon… at eWritings. š
11 Laura // Apr 17, 2007 at
Welcome Sara and Alfa. Stopping work when work is at home seems to be a common problem.
Hi Mihaela! I’m not exactly sure what you mean by suggesting that I turn this into a meme. I’m actually behind on memes, so I may just let this one rest while I catch up. (Of course, responses to this, or any of my posts, are welcome.) One thing is certain. This topic seems to have hit a nerve with a lot of people.
12 Matt Keegan // Apr 17, 2007 at
This is a tough matter for those of us whose businesses are located in the home. What I often do is this: I make myself go outside to do some yard work or I take a walk. On weekends, I give myself “permission” to do wrap up work for a few hours on Saturday morning then I only check email messages throughout the weekend. Sunday mornings I am at church with my family and Sunday afternoons we try to keep that time for ourselves.
Still, I know I can easily work upwards of 70 hours per week. Therefore, it is critical that I use every moment wisely.
13 Mihaela Lica // Apr 17, 2007 at
Hi Laura,
With the meme I mean: you should tag some people in the post. Make an upgrade. Anyway, I consider myself tagged. š
I have an unrelated question: how is the “howtodothings” site? Does it generate a decent revenue?
14 Laura // Apr 17, 2007 at
The HowToDoThings site is currently undergoing a revamping, so I can’t really vouch for them one way or another. I think May 1st in their target date.
I really enjoyed working under their old system. Hopefully, the new system will also pay well.
If you need an invite, let me know. I’d be happy to recommend you based on what I’ve seen of your blogging.
15 laura // Apr 17, 2007 at
Thanks for stopping by Matt. You bring up an interesting point. I think it is necessary to use every moment wisely.
16 Sarakastic // Apr 17, 2007 at
I have the same problem, if you figure it out, let me know!
17 Laura // Apr 18, 2007 at
Hi Sarakastic! I’m not sure there is an answer, although Matt had a really good point about making himself do something else.
18 Paula Neal Mooney // Apr 19, 2007 at
Wow, look at all these comments!
Great…we must be working a lot.
I like to work and I love to write, and I know there are times when I just can’t sit at the computer any longer — so I get up and go watch TV, braid my hair or go outside or go to sleep.
Balance is a beautiful thing…
19 Laura // Apr 20, 2007 at
Thanks Paula! Balance seems to be a “hot button” for writers.