10 Reasons Why Working From Home is TheBomb.com

For over 5 years now, I have worked from home doing odd jobs, blogging, web design and development work, and now virtual assisting. I've spent more time at home than I have in an office and in this post, I am going to tell you all my favorite parts about it.

Pajamas all day, baby!

Today, I got up and did something I have been wanting to do for a while. My husband and I went out and I got my nose pierced. I didn't have to ask anyone for permission nor did I worry that I'd be forced to take it out on Monday. I wear my lip rings all the time now. As a matter of fact, as I write this I am touching up my hair with pink hair dye. Yeah, pink. I've been dying my hair crazy colors and experimenting with cutting my hair short for the last year. I don't have to worry about maintaining appearances during working hours and I absolutely love it! It's freeing to not have to get up earlier than I need to just to get ready and feel rushed doing so. I prefer to get ready on my own time.

Hands down, my favorite part of working from home is that I can roll out of bed and sit down at the desk or send an email as soon as I roll over. I won't lie to you, I have done just that only to have to go back and brush my teeth after a call. Confession: I have taken a call without wearing pants! Don't worry, I'm dressed more often than not. I'm not an animal, obviously. It's just a wonderful experience to not have to worry about what you are wearing to the business meeting and worrying about what piercings/tattoos are going to offend who. Working from home allows me to not have to worry about stuff like that and I love that about my job. I'm just saying, no one LIKES wearing a bra.

Set Your Own Schedule

When you work for yourself, you answer to (almost) no one. You can finish up a call and go grocery shopping. You don't have to return to work until after the kids are in bed. I, however, keep a schedule for myself. As a virtual assistant, I may not have a boss but I do answer to my clients. I have things that I need to do for them and they expect reasonable turnarounds. I help them with so many things, some more urgent than others, and it works better for me if it's laid out in the beginning that I will not be answering them after 5:00pm. This way they don't come to expect me answering their emails after 5 and I can find time to live my life. I could work after 5:00pm, of course, and just not take new requests after hours but since I'm already available, I might as well work it. It gives me free and clear evenings to myself.

It's all about that work/life balance, you know? That's why we work from home. I don't have kids, though, so keeping normal working hours isn't a massive inconvenience. It helps, to be quite honest. When other companies out there keep the same business hours, I can make calls right then and there and expect to have someone answer me. It could be a pain if I have to call them after 10:00pm and wait for a call back that won't come until at least 9:00am the next day and I could be busy then. This just leads to the phone tag game. However, that's why I keep regular business hours. If I had kids running around I would have to rework how I tackle my day and prioritize calls for nap time (protip). It can be done, though, and that's why I love the freedom that working from home allows. Imagine breaking free from that ball and chain because you do not have to work when you don't want to.

Work Comfortably

Posture-smosture (just kidding!). Sometimes I want to lay back in my chair while making calls and sometimes I grab my laptop and sit on the floor. It's about being comfortable for me. I prefer to work where I want to work. I'm most comfortable at home, obviously. Some people have trouble separating home and work. It was difficult in the beginning since my office is where I game and at the end of the day, I didn't want to sit there anymore. Then one day I realized I wasn't chained to my desk. I can get up and walk away and I do. When I'm sick of the desk, I get up and move. It can be tiring to only see the same 4 walls every day.

Some people actually work on the go and I've seen many blogs from women who work and travel in campers/RVs. Not being tied to your desk can help you experience more while continuing to bring in an income. You can go on vacation and travel to anywhere that has internet. It can allow you to spend more time with family. Having even more family time is invaluable and something that I know everyone wishes they had but only few can say they can. You don't have to miss out.

No Traffic Jams At Home

Okay, this one I admit I don't have much experience with. I don't have my license. Thankfully working from home allows me to not have to worry about getting it and a car and keeping up with maintenance and insurance costs. That saves me a ton of money. It helps that my husband drives so I can still get to the store when needed and go where I need to but at least that's not two cars, two insurance payments, two car payments, double the gas, double the oil, and double the tires.

I'm not spending any time in early morning traffic to get to work and at the end of the day, I'm already home. Think about your commute to work? Say it's 20 minutes from home to work, that's 40 minutes a day you could be saving. 40 minutes worth in gas. Multiply that by 5. Doesn't working from home sound even more tempting?

Fewer Distractions

I know working in a conventional setting can be quite distracting. Personally, I find being surround by other people to be the most distracting. I people watch and it happens before I realize it, usually beginning with a noise made by someone else. It keeps me from being able to put 100% focus on my work because I catch myself doing it often. I prefer to work alone and be alone. I don't like to make chit chat when I am trying to work. I like to get what I need to done so I can move on to the next item or clock out early (see point #2).  I like that I can choose the level of distractions in my home office and I feel more motivated, and can maintain that motivation, to work on the things I need to get done.

I won't lie to you. I know that this can go both ways. My house is pretty quiet during the day. It's just me and my dogs. If you have children that are staying home with you, it could be a different story.

Get Stuff Done

I have never been more productive in my life and I'm not alone! It might relate to the lack of distractions, being able to work when I want to, or even that I want to get it all done and go back to living my life. More people who work at home feel like they are more productive remotely than in an office.

One study, entitled "What Leaders Need to Know About Remote Workers" shows that an overwhelming 91% of people who work from home feel like they are more productive and get more work done than when they were in an office setting compared to the 9% who feel they don't. 91%! That's seriously impressive. Despite this number being based on employee self-assessment, that is a massive margin and shouldn't be ignored. Work at home peeps get more done!

The Possibilities Are Endless

I love blogging. I've been doing it for many years and I enjoy it. I've also become pretty close with my clients and I am truly very lucky to have them. They are absolutely wonderful. However if I were to lose them, there are others. I can market and promote myself to find other clients or find myself other business ventures. I've just begun to spread my wings. I have more skills than just the ones I utilize at work daily. The possibilities to make money from home are endless. Chances are you already have the skills you need to work from home but you just don't know it yet. You just have to find what you are good at or are passionate about. There are unlimited resources for you to learn more about whatever you may choose. Anyone can blog, just pick a topic that means something to you and get to writing. There are others just as passionate as you who will want to read it. As a virtual assistant, I am just putting the skills I have obtained in other avenues to use for those who know how but don't have the time.  There are so many other ways you can make money from home than just the ways that I do. You can write, draw, make, cook, create, teach, record, play. You may even be able to get paid to monetize your hobbies. The possibilities are endless!

People Think You're A Super Hero

People are amazed by my job. When I say I am a virtual assistant, people are both confused and astounded. I have to explain the things I do. I am essentially a personal assistant that works remotely and some people can't understand how that works but it's simple. I can do all of the things that an in person assistant can do but I don't have to be there. They ask so much questions about it, how it works, how I do it, how I found my clients, and how I learned to do it. Thankfully I am lucky in that most of my clients were handed to me. The others I have received were through my clients and word of mouth. I know a few bloggers who also get the same questions. It's amazing to some people that there are some out there who don't have to work the conventional 9 to 5. It seems like such mythical dream job to them and that I am lucky to have gotten to do it.

It's not such a fantasy and it's not impossible. With some hard work, anyone can do it. If it's something you want to do, you can achieve it. Start building your business today. Just think about where you can

Paving the Way

We're modern pioneers and we are making headway for more people to be able to work from home in the future. Many businesses believe that giving employees this amount of freedom will cause a decline in productivity because they are unable to keep an eye on their workers. However, companies are learning that employees are happier and more productive when they aren't forced into a cubicle and that letting us stay home can actually benefit them as much as it benefits us. How so?

"For employers telecommuting can limit absences, increase productivity, and save money." - Simon Slade

Simon Slade, CEO of Affilorama, who understands the benefits of hiring remote employees at his company says, "By allowing employees to work remotely, you can hire the best of the best while not limiting yourself by geographical restrictions. At Doubledot Media, 19 of our 28 employees work remotely, and I have seen no difference in job satisfaction or work performance. If anything, my remote employees' production rate is higher because they are better equipped to avoid distractions.” He also adds that "telecommuting saves me money because they pay for their own computer, electricity and other utilities." (Monster.com)

It seems like a no-brainer, right? Well, you'd be surprised. Some company heads seem to want to keep things old school but I think they will come around. More and more companies are jumping on the band wagon and are slowly allowing more of their workers the flexibility to work from home.

Worry Less, Limit Stress

I feel like after I have laid out my other points, this one has got to be obvious to you. I am much more relaxed working at home and wouldn't trade it for the world. If you offered me more money to return to an office setting, I'd probably turn you down. All of the things I mentioned make working from home worth it for me and I love what I do and where I do it (and my furry co-workers!). There is stability in it and I find that to be an invaluable benefit. Less stress at work shows in other aspects of your life. It's easier to unwind, deadlines are easier to make, you're comfortable and distracted, and you're not fighting through traffic to get there. The study shows that people who work remotely are more happy than those who work in an office. If that doesn't make you want to quit your desk job, what will?