While you may think that it would be great to work according to your own schedule, having a schedule is very important. Working at home can sometimes mean that your family time and your work time get mixed up and you end up working on a constant basis. Having a set time for work and a set time for family is absolutely imperative when you are working on your own schedule. Determine the hours that you will be working and when the day is finished, stop working. There is a great danger in spending too much time on the job when you are not sticking to a schedule.
You should also make sure that you have a specific place to work in your home that is your office. This is especially important for customer service jobs. You don't want to battle with the television and noise of your family while you are working with customers. In call center jobs it is also important that there be a limited amount of background noise while you are on the phone. Find a place in your home that you can use for your workspace. A spare bedroom or room in the basement is ideal so that you are set apart from the rest of your family.
Distractions are everywhere when you are working at home in customer service jobs. Be careful that you are not falling victim to the distraction of everything that you must do around the house while you are supposed to be working. It is very easy to decide to clean up the kitchen or get those dishes done when you are supposed to be at work. Try to make sure that you do not mix your home life and your work life even though they are both taking place in the same location. Consider that you would not be able to get those dishes done if you were actually working outside of the home. They will still be there waiting for you when you finish for the day. Or better yet, someone else in the home could do them for you.
Working at home is never as easy as people believe it will be. You will have to be disciplined about your schedule, your work time, your work place and many other things that you would not ever have to think about when you work outside of the home. There are many advantages, but don't overlook the disadvantages when you are making your decision to work at home in any position.
