Self-Employed & Working From Home

SELF-EMPOLYED & WORKING FROM HOME
WHAT’S WORKING FROM HOME REALLY LIKE?

Working from home always sounds like such a treat, and it is most of the time, but there are some aspects about it that are frustrating and hard, I also have a child to look after as well. Shortly after having George I had a friend who always asked me “When are you going back to work?” and I always replied, I have been working the entire time! Working from home is not chilling out, watching Netflix and eating chocolate, because funnily enough that doesn’t pay the bills, although I really wish it did! So today I’m sharing what it’s really like to work from home, my experience and a look into a typical day for me.

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A DAY IN THE LIFE OF ME

Although I get up at 7:30am most days, from then until 11am I have to occupy George and give him breakfast. Very rarely but funnily enough I am able to right now, George plays with himself and I’m able to get some bits done in this time, I set up camp on my dinning room table and George can run in and out and do as he pleases, he also can’t attack the laptop from here.

11am is when he naps and usually for three hours if I’m lucky. This is when I do as much of my to-do list as I can. If it’s not designing a new kit, it’s wrapping orders, cutting kits for my stock, taking blog photos or (very rarely at the moment) writing blog posts. On top of house chores like tiding up after George and doing washing. Cutting just one kit can take 30 minutes and I also can’t use my laptop while I do it, so this is very time consuming and frustrating. I’m hoping to get an iMac so I can carry on working whilst I do my orders and stock which will really help me be more productive.

George normally wakes at 2pm so from here until Brent comes home about around 6pm I’m entertaining him. Going to the park, playing, watching Cbeebies or a film. I usually have to go out somewhere as he has so much energy he needs to burn it off. If I have lots of orders or work, sometimes I’ll ask my Grandad to watch him for an hour just to get a bit more done. George can be such a handful most of the time, unless you’re around him a lot people don’t believe us when we say he just doesn’t sit still so he needs attention all the time while he’s awake.

Once Brent comes home he takes over fully and I get back to work with the rest of my stuff. I used to work until 9:30-10pm and have dinner in-between then. Sometimes I have worked until gone 11pm and I have found that when I do this, I can’t sleep as my mind is racing. So I now have an alarm set at 9pm to stop working, I either stop instantly or I finish up what I’m doing. I try not to run past 9.30pm now.

Beauty and the Chic OfficePIN IT!
THE GUILT

Although George and I do get a lot of time together I feel like it’s too boring for him as there’s nothing to do. Brent and I now share the car in the week, I will have it on Wednesday’s where I go shopping or the Post Office, I will also be taking George Swimming and to Gymnastics, activities to keep him motivated. However, when we are together I can’t stop thinking about all the work I need to be doing and I feel guilty for that. Luckily because he naps whilst I do the bulk of it or he’s in bed I don’t feel bad when I do actually work because he’s asleep anyway.

IT CAN BE LONELY

Yes I live with my Grandad and George but you’re still missing the interaction with other people. I feel trapped inside all the time and want to spend all weekend out and about. I do my Post Office run in the evenings just so I have half hour outside but it’s also a little break from looking after George.

MOTIVATION

Motivating yourself to work can be really difficult. I find my work stuff okay but finding the motivation to work on my blog is so difficult for me at the moment. I think once I have a second computer I’ll find it easier as I can work on my blog while I cut orders. Because I have a set routine I’m okay with finding the motivation to work. Those three hours while George naps are precious and I know I have to do as much as I can in those hours or peoples orders will be late and that is not an option.

We are looking into a nursery for George already because he loves playing with other children and it will be good for him to be surrounded by other people and will hopefully calm him down a bit. It will also give me time to do more work as I am getting busier and some days it’s a struggle to complete everything.

PROBLEMS

If anything goes wrong you have to sort everything out, there’s no one else to rely on. My only cutting machine broke on me two days ago so I had to order a new one instantly, shut my shop and email the twenty customers awaiting orders, letting them know of the issue. Luckily everyone is very supportive and understanding but it still a stressful situation.

SETTING AN EXAMPLE

Running your own business means you get to decide how it’s run. I’m such a perfectionist so I make sure that everything is spotless before it goes out and I try my hardest to get everything out as quickly as possible. If anyone does contact me with any issues, I don’t question them, I will replace it instantly. I don’t mind and I like to run my business like that. I just think about how I would want to be treated if it were me, I’d want a replacement or refund without any further complications and also quick responses regarding my issue. I also like to inform my customers of any troubles I am having such as a broken machine as I feel like connecting with them creates a good rapport, it also puts my mind at ease knowing that I’m being open and honest.

WHAT MY DESK ACTUALLY LOOKS LIKE WHEN I WORK

PIN IT! PIN IT! PIN IT! PIN IT!I’m going to write a full post on some tips for working from home, how to stay organised and switch off as I think those things are so so important. When I worked in a conventional job, I finished at 6pm and would switch off, apart from when I had a rough day with rude customers it was hard to chill out then, but this job just keeps me busy.all.the.time.

I do love working from home, I like being my own boss and doing something I love, and doing it in sweatpants and a cosy jumper, but like everything it does have it’s downsides. But these are things that I can get past or sort out in time. I can’t imagine not being at home with George or doing my own thing, after all the stress, work and tantrums in-between work, it is so nice being with him every single day.

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If you are interested in what my office looked like prior to this, you can check out my Office Reveal.

Comments

  • Ariadna

    Your desk/office space looks so nice and inspirational, it’s the kind of decor I would love to have in my office! x

    Ariadna || RAWR BOWS

  • Amy

    I love this post! I work from home to, and I think people tend to think what I do must not be as hard or stressful and I feel like sometimes what I do isn’t taken as seriously because I do it from home, so I love seeing posts like this which can educate people on what it’s really like.

    Amy // http://www.thenoiseinwonderland.com

  • Emma

    It’s always nice to stumble upon a fellow sticker maker! I love your office set up – mine is nowhere as neat and organised! Great post – a lot of it really resonated with me!

    I’m big on ‘look my best’. I can definitely tell the difference in my productivity when I’m working from home and haven’t done much other than brush my teeth compared to when I’ve done the full getting ready routine that I do when I’m working in the office.

    Em | Polkadotparadiso | Instagram