Working from Home

How do people do it? Work from home, I mean. I've forever admired those who can run successful businesses from their homes because it's always been somewhat of a mystery to me how they accomplish this. In an office setting you have your desk, you have your schedule, you have your deadlines. At home there are these things as well, but at the office, other than the water cooler and contraband Facebook time on your computer, there are few distractions. At home? Oh, where do I begin?

First of all, there is the issue of mustering up the self-control to follow the requisite self-imposed schedule. Then there are those dishes you didn't finish up last night. How is your creativity expected to flow if there are dishes in the sink? And while you're in the kitchen you might as well fix some chicken salad and whip up a creme brulee for lunch later, right? There's that phone call to Mom you needed to return and lying on the couch is next month's issue of Real Simple magazine that arrived five days into this month. That needs perusal. And speaking of mail, you'd better go check it. Of course, after you've gone outside to check the mail, you'd better get on your computer and check both your email addresses. Nine times. And what about the sock drawer? It needs organizing, not to mention the laundry in general. And what's this? A sale at Target? Sure, I'm there! I don't even have to clock out.

So you can see the dilemmas.

These dilemmas are now mine as I have become the newest member of the at-home workforce. After butting my head against the "seeking employment" wall for a few months, my husband and I decided this was the perfect opportunity for me to take the time I've found myself with and do what I've always wanted to do, which is write. And although I have been tortured by, I mean, faced with all the above mentioned distractions, it's not like I've accomplished nothing in my work-from-home experiment. In spite of distracting stories on the news (how did that TV get turned on anyway?) of mothers rescuing their children from the jaws of mountain lions, the files on my computer have been filling up. And in the process I have concluded that some of the distractions which threaten my output can actually feed it. For instance, I wrote this entire article in my head while taking a hot shower this morning. So, really, the fact that it was an extra long hot shower is canceled out by its resulting productivity. This is one distraction that I can now label instead: my planning station.

And then there is that siren call of the TV that when answered can become my nemesis. But, where else would I learn stories of wildcat-battling moms? And how else would I witness that clever way the Law and Order guys solve crime? (Does it amaze anyone else that Law and Order seems to be on all day? Not that I would know from experience, mind you. . .) What others may call a time waster is really a feeder of creativity. I'll call this one my research medium. In fact, I've been wanting to do an article on the complexities of extended family dynamics and obscure '80s references. And wouldn't you know it? Gilmore Girls is on.

Maybe this working from home thing isn't such a bad idea after all.