ask Marybeth
___________________

Our intention here is to answer some of the questions you ask about
common problems that come up during the day while working 
at home.  We all have times when we simply can't figure 
  out the answer.  Marybeth  is here to help!

Question

I've been working very hard to keep my business and
personal life separate. I work specific hours each day and
have someone come over to watch my two little girls. My
challenge begins the minute I step into my home office. I have
so many things to do, and barely know where to start. Then
once I do finally get going, it seems I'm easily distracted
and constantly interrupted by telephone calls. What am I
doing wrong?

Answer

First of all I want to assure you that you are not alone
in your dilemma. Three of the biggest challenges people
face while working from home are prioritizing, staying
focused, and dealing with interruptions. You've hit on all
three! I can't go into too much detail here, but can give
you some general suggestions that should make a measurable
improvement.

A great place to start is to identify your "high-priority"
or "income producing" activities and make sure you're
focusing most of your attention on those. All too often we
begin our day with a huge "to do" list, and go right to the
things that are easy and comfortable, rather than the tasks
that really count. There may be stacks of papers that need
filing or e-mails waiting for your response, but you really
should be focusing on soliciting more business, setting
appointments with prospective clients, or finishing the
month's end report. You can get so immersed in "busy" work
that before you know it the day is over, you didn't
accomplish anything significant, and your business begins
to suffer.

I also encourage people to decide on a "theme" for the
day, and figure out what absolutely MUST happen before they
even walk into the office. It gives direction and clarity,
and helps eliminate that confused feeling of not knowing
what to do next. For example, Monday's theme may be "find
new customers", Tuesday's might be "follow-up calls",
Wednesday's could be "balance accounts", etc. The filing
and e-mails can be done after you've accomplished the most
important items for that day. Of course these examples may
not be the themes that apply to your particular job or
business, so decide what would be appropriate for you. When
you walk into your office with total "clarity" about what
needs to happen, it makes all the difference in the world.
You'll end up with an overall sense of accomplishment as
well.

As far as the telephone, let your voice mail or answering
machine take all your calls, rather than being interrupted
in the middle of something else. Think of it as though
you're hiring your own personal secretary -- for free! If
it bothers you to hear the telephone ringing, shut off the
ringer. Check your messages when you're ready to make your
phone calls. If you're waiting for a particular call, leave
the ringer on and check the message immediately or get a
caller id machine so you can see if it's the call you've
been waiting for. 

When you do get on the phone, tell the person on the other
end that you only have a couple of minutes, and get right
to the point. This way you can easily get off the call if
it goes on too long.

Good luck to you all!

Marybeth