Being self-employed is the bomb. But whether you’re a fully fledged independently employed person or you’ve just taken a leap into the unknown and are currently sat at home waiting for the phone to ring, there are a few things you need to remember. Obvs, everyone has their own routine BUT stick to these rules and you’ll never find yourself waking up in a cold sweat dreaming about missed bills and angry bosses. Or, at least, it will happen slightly less often.
1. Your bed is naaattt a good workspace
NEVER. EVER. Work in bed. Please. It’s not conducive to good work, and it’s definitely not conducive to a good mental state. Hitting snooze (again, and again, and again) only to finally drag yourself upright and pull your laptop out from under your bed onto your duvet then eat breakfast in bed (that consists of an old cereal bar)….no, just no…..
2. Have a proper routine
The great thing about working from home is you can work whenever - and wherever - you want. But that doesn’t mean you don’t need a bit of structure in your life. Even if it’s just going to the gym once a day, or having a set time for when you finish work (and make sure you stick to it) these are all the little things that help you stay sane and motivated.
3. Your housemates’ food isn’t your food
We know the feeling. You’re sat at home, working hard. It’s raining outside. And cold. And the nearest decent shop is a good fifteen minutes walk away. So, you start thinking - ‘maybe I could make an entire meal out of things I’ve pinched off my housemates? An egg here, a piece of bread there...who’s going to notice the difference?’ Well, they might not notice just the once, but make a habit of it and you’ll find yourself public enemy no.1. Plus, cooking is a good thing to include in that routine of yours (see above.) Therapeutic and all that.
4. Get yourself a great, easy-to-carry tablet that doubles as a laptop
Still lugging around that old laptop from uni, praying every day that it isn’t going to break? We hear you. So before it packs in and says its final farewells, how about you save yourself some trouble and pick up one of these MS Surface tablets from Currys PC World. It’s super light and portable AND doubles up as a laptop - all you need is a keyboard and you get the best of both worlds. In fact, it’s got a three position kickstand so its basically like having an actual computer. Plus, if you’re often on the move, even better - it’s the thinnest and lightest Surface ever with 10 hours of battery life. Winning.
5. Don’t forget to see your mates - and have a social life
One of life’s great mysteries - why, after sitting at home for a whole day with nothing but Spotify for company, do you not feel like rushing out to go and find human interaction?! No, instead you feel tired, lazy and want nothing more than to curl up on the sofa in front of EastEnders. But don’t do it. Making plans and getting out of the house is essential unless you want to become some anti-social, boring old-before-their time person who talks about nothing but cat videos (yeah, we know they’re good, but real people are good too…)
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This article originally appeared on The Debrief.