Conference calls when you work from home

Working an office job means, inevitably, meetings. However, since I work partially remotely, meeting in person in the office is not always an option. Conference calls and phone meetings have become the answer to that.

I like doing conference calls because it gives me more flexibility in scheduling meetings. I don't have to limit them to the two days each week I'm in the office. And since I have a home office completely separate from the rest of the house, I don't worry about not being able to hear the other person or getting distracted. Really, there have been a few instances in which meetings in the office have presented more challenges than phone meetings! Of course, the fact that I can refill my coffee and doodle without anyone seeing it is just a bonus.

That's not to say that conference calls from home are easy. They require just as much preparation and attention as any meeting. Sometimes more so since listening to someone on the phone is not the same as sitting across from them at a conference table.

The key with conference calls from home is to treat them the same in your schedule as a face-to-face meeting. Take notes, don't try to multi-task on another project, and do what you need to in order to get everything from the meeting that you need to move forward with the project.

Do you have conference calls or phone meetings? Do you find them more or less effective than face-to-face meetings?

Vacation-ready office

[ETA: I'll be leaving tomorrow (Wednesday) morning instead. A family member is in the hospital, so I need to move my vacation up a few days.]

On Saturday morning (very early), Bean, Bunny and I will load up in the car and drive about 20 hours to visit my family in Illinois.

This week, in addition to getting my house ready to be a quasi-bachelor pad for a few weeks (Hubby is staying home) and packing, I'm getting ready to work from the road.

Since my office is paperless, and all my work is online articles/posts right now, it's pretty easy to pack up my office for vacation. In fact, all I'll have to do is put my laptop, calendar, notebook and a couple of books in my bag and it'll be ready.

I have to make sure I won't have any deadlines on my driving days this weekend, but other than that, the work itself is ready.

I will be letting my clients know I'm working from the road, though. I'll still be working while I'm on vacation, but I want them to know I'll technically be out of my office, and unreachable during the days I'll be driving.

I wish I could leave my work behind for the few weeks I'll be gone, but I'm just thankful I get to go at all, so I'll gladly make it a working vacation.

What do you do in the office to get ready for vacation?

Federal holidays and working from home

nixxphotography / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Today is Labor Day. My husband is home from work today, glad to be sleeping in and lounging around in his "dad shorts." Across the nation people are going to parades, having barbecues with friends and family, and taking advantage of furniture sales.

In the days leading up to today, I debated how I'd spend my Labor Day. On one hand, it's a federal holiday, and it would be nice to have the day off to spend with the family. On the other hand, having Hubby home to watch the kids would mean I could get a lot accomplished in the office.

It's a common dilemma for the work-at-home mom. Having your husband home an extra day makes it very tempting to get caught up (or ahead) in work. But you don't want to be one of those moms who's always working. After all, isn't one of the reasons you work at home to spend more time with the family?

Of course, depending on your industry it may be easier to take federal holidays off. If you work from home because you telecommute for a company and that company is closed for the day, chances are you aren't going to work. On the other hand, if you work in, say, phone sales, working on federal holidays might be a good idea.

Only you know if working on federal holidays is a good option for you or not. However, it's important to remember that if you do, you should make time here and there to not work. Everyone needs time off to recharge and get away from the office, even if it's only briefly. Don't let yourself get burnt out because you're trying to maximize your time.

Ultimately, I decided to split the difference and work in the morning, then spend the afternoon and evening with the family. (I know. Everything in moderation, eh?)

Are you working today? Why or why not?

Working vacation vs. vacation

In mid-September, I'm planning to take Bean and Bunny up to Illinois to visit my family. Not only do I feel like I could really use the vacation, but it'll be my mom's birthday, and most of my family hasn't met Bunny yet. So I'll be braving the 18-hour drive with a potty-training two-year-old and a four-month-old.

photostock / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

And as if that wasn't complicated enough, I'm still trying to decide whether this will be a working vacation or a normal vacation. Do I want to set aside time, even if it's less than normal, to work, or should I put work on hold for the couple of weeks I'm up north and play catch-up when I get back?

If I decide to put work on hold during that time, I can work ahead with my two main clients between now and then. If I decide to work while I'm on vacation, I can reduce my work load a little so I can still enjoy the time I have.

There will be at least four days during my vacation I won't be working. Since I'll be the only driver on this trip, I won't be able to work during the travel days. But since the kids are little, they're going to nap, and I could use that time every day to do a little writing.

I would love to simply close my office and take two weeks off, which I could do if I work ahead a little, but I don't want to feel overwhelmed coming back from vacation and having two weeks of work to catch up on in the office, on top of having to get back into the routine with the kids.

What say you, readers? Should I work "part-time" while on vacation, or close the office completely? What would you do?

Why I don't use my iPhone as a personal organizer

My husband is a bit of a techie. He loves gadgets and seeing how games and technology develops. He listens to gadget/tech podcasts and loves his iPhone and iPad. When I tell him about an upcoming appointment or event, he tells me to email or text him with the details, and he puts it in his phone's calendar or on Google Calendar. We don't have a family calendar on the wall at home because there's no point.

Hubby has often urged me to use an electronic calendar on my phone or online to keep track of everything. He argues that I could figure out my schedule, add article and project deadlines, and update it quickly and easily as things change. I could even keep my daily task lists on my phone!

Yes, that's true. But I will always and forever use a paper day planner for my scheduling and bound notebooks for my task lists. I will always and forever scribble appointments and article deadlines in the squares of my paper day planners. I will always and forever cross off tasks as I complete them, a black line through the middle of the writing.

And here's why.

If I don't write things down, I have a hard time remembering them. Appointments, tasks that need to be done, anything. I have to write them down. So by having physical day planners and task list notebooks, I can physically write things down, and I can be sure they'll get done.

On top of that, what do I do if the network goes down? Or my phone battery dies? With paper and pen, I always have access to what I need to do, even if the technological gods are against me.

I can see how using Google Calendar or your phone's organizer is helpful, especially if you're on the go a lot. But I'll stick with my Luddite organization techniques, thank you. And when the Internet goes down, I'll still be waiting at the coffee shop for our lunch date.

What it means to be a WAHM

My bosses

I am a full time freelance writer. I am also a work-at-home mom (WAHM).

In many ways, my life as a writer and my life as a mom blend together seamlessly. In other ways, I find myself wondering if my children are sacrificing for my career, or if my career is sacrificing for my children.

I think sometimes people think WAHMs have it "easy." After all, they get to work from home, they get to play with their kid(s) all day, and they get to do it all in their pajamas with Days of Our Lives playing during nap time. Right?

Well, not so much.

In order for me to be successful as a WAHM (which means success as a writer and as a mom), I've had to approach my day very differently than a SAHM (stay-at-home mom) or a WOHM (work-outside-the-home mom) does. The biggest difference is in my daily schedule.

I have a very detailed daily schedule. In fact, according to my schedule I have very little down time. In practice, there's more down time than it appears, but I've padded the tasks I have to do each day to allow for distractions or side-tracking caused by "my bosses" (see photo above). If I don't have a very structured schedule, it's too easy for me to not get things done because I figure I can do them later. As it is, I can look at my schedule and simply do what it says to do during a certain time slot and know that, by the end of the day, I'll have gotten through the things I needed to do.

I also get up earlier than the rest of my family. My husband gets up around 7:15 every morning to get ready for work during the week. Bean is up between 9:30 and 10:00 every morning. (Bunny kind of does her own thing.) I get up at 5:00 a.m. every morning (including weekends) and get ready for the day, then spend time working until everyone else gets up. Having that extra time is what I need to get my day going on my terms so I can have a good day once the kids are up.

Though this is one thing I'm still working on, being highly organized is also key to being a successful WAHM. Not only do I have to stay organized to stay on top of deadlines and in contact with clients, but I have to stay organized to stay on top of my home responsibilities. I have lists and a calendar and I write everything down so I don't forget anything.

The biggest thing, which I know I've mentioned many times, is balance. When you work from home, you can't work all the time, and you can't let yourself get distracted so that you don't get anything done.

It's not easy, but I have to tell you that making it work is definitely worth it to get to spend so much time with my kids, and to get paid to do what I love so much.

The Work-at-Home Dress Code

When people talk about working from home, one of the perks that inevitably arises is the ability to work in pajamas all day. And some people do. I have. It's easy to do that when you have two little ones to chase and your work is all online so you don't have to meet clients face-to-face.

However, lots of people who work from home say you shouldn't work in your pajamas. They say getting up in the morning and dressing for the day as if you're dressing for work puts you in the mindset of work. You may even be motivated to get extra work done if you're dressed for work.

I can see that side of it. In fact, that's what I've been trying to do in my own work day lately: get up in the morning and get dressed (including shoes), and work before the kids get up for the day.

For me, it is about putting myself in "work mode," but it's also that I feel better when I get dressed in the morning. I'm more awake and motivated. I feel ready to tackle my day. I've found it's also less tempting to curl up for a quick nap on the couch if I'm dressed with shoes on than if I'm wearing pajamas.

I'm not saying I wear business professional (or even business casual) clothes every day. But I get dressed in something comfortable, something I like, and something I would be happy to meet a client in, if the need arose. I'm happy in jeans and a t-shirt or a casual skirt and top.

What do you wear to work at home?

My Daily Schedule

When you work from home, no matter the industry or field, finding a balance between your work and home life is imperative. It can be easy to let your work self get distracted by things at home (TV, Internet, laundry, etc.) or let your home self get distracted by work (emails, phone calls, articles, etc.). Many people find they either procrastinate terribly, or they never close their office. Neither is healthy.

Finding balance is something I've been working on for a long time, and I'm finally feeling comfortable in where I am. The key for me has been building a schedule that includes home and work tasks throughout the day. This enables me to get everything done I need to for work, but gives me the breaks I need to get home tasks done, as well. Since that's the way I have my schedule set up, I can be comfortable walking away from work when it's time to clean, and I can be comfortable walking away from house work when it's time to work.

You can see my detailed daily schedule here.

How do you balance your home and work life? Do you find yourself drawn more to one or the other?

Things may be picking up

I've been working from home since before Bean was born. I've been working full-time from home (with a particular company) since mid-May. It's a good job in a good field, and I enjoy it.

Well, I found out recently that I'm technically still in the running to be a guide for About.com. I applied for the position way back in March, and when I hadn't heard anything after a while, I just figured it had been filled. Well, when I was perusing their available Guide positions recently, I found out it was still open, and they still have my application. If I get the position, it will definitely add to my workload.

There's also a similar position I just put my application in for, and am hoping to get some news on it soon.

In addition, I heard from a previous client (I did an editing project for her) who will have work for me soon, and will also have some referrals for me. (Squee with me, won't you?) I don't know how soon this work will be, but it'll be in the "near future."

So it looks like I'm going to be a busy writer. I'm glad for the work, of course, but it may mean I need to adjust my daily schedule to accommodate the additional workload(s).

Right now, I like my work/writing schedule. It allows me to spend a great deal of time with Bean, stay on top of the housework (I can't think if my kitchen is a mess!), and keep up with my writing. I work throughout the day, for no more than three hours at a time.

On a good day I get about nine hours of writing in a day, and on a bad day, it's still at least four. But I don't know if "four on a bad day" would be enough if I get an About.com position and the work from the previous client and referrals. Especially considering the fact that I have a baby coming in the spring!

However, I still intend to work throughout the day with no more than a three- or four-hour writing block at a time. Not only do I start to get a little burned out after three or four hours and need a break, but that's about all Bean can handle, too.

So the question becomes whether I add time to the beginning of the day before Bean gets up, at the end of the day after he goes to bed, or on the weekend when Hubby is home? What say you, freelancers?

My New Office Space

As you probably know, we've moved. We now live very near to Hubby's office (we can see it from our balcony, actually, and Hubby walks to work) in a cute little two-bedroom apartment.

My office space is actually in the dining room at our table for now. We have a friend staying with us for a couple of months, and when he gets his own place, I'll be moving to the desk he's using now. When that happens, I'll have a bit more room to spread out (and keep things out during and after supper), but for now, this is where I am, and I'm happy with it. I'm in a good location in the house, I can have eyes on Bean as I work, and I have room on the table for what I need to do.

The only thing there's no room for at the moment is my printer, but since I do minimal printing, that's fine for now.

I'm still getting my space set up the way I want it, so I don't have pictures yet. But I have an office space, and I'm excited to be working in my new space!

Where do you write? (If you send pictures, I'll post them!)

BIC and me

Have you ever heard the term "BIC" in regards to writing? It stands for "butt in chair." I picked it up from Natalie Goodman, author of The Anti 9-to-5 Guide. BIC time means time you're actually sitting at your computer or paper or whatever and writing. Not emailing or tweeting or updating your Facebook page as you wait for your next free episode of Family Feud, but actually writing.

Getting back into the office

After spending time with family and friends, indulging in delicious home-cooked meals, and laughing and sharing stories from your past, the holidays are over.  It's the first Monday in 2010, and it's time to get back to work!


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My Writing Time

Christi Corbett has a guest post up at Pimp My Novel about writing time/space.  I admit, I also had her romanticized vision of a writer's space/time before I became a full time writer.  Now things are very different.

I will admit that I usually get anywhere from 20 minutes to an hour and a half of uninterrupted writing time in the afternoons (during the week, at least) while Bean naps, but in the evenings and on weekends when Hubby is there to help so I have extra writing time, I actually get less done.

I'm going to do what Christi did and keep track of my writing time interruptions to share with you next week.

Do you get uninterrupted writing time?  If so, how much?