c





   

You enjoy a degree of freedom and flexibility not available if you work in a commercial
office. You can structure your own working hours and wear anything (or nothing) you like as
according to your own convenience. You can also take break whenever you wish to, whether
simply taking a rest or going out shopping at 11 am.

If today you decide to start working from 6am, tomorrow it¶s probably going to be 10am.
Similarly, if this week you work 40 hours, next week you aim to up the ante and add another
10 hours to increase your productivity and earnings.




 

By working from home, you save money on a lot of things. First, no expenses incurred on
daily commuting and traveling. No train ticket to pay, no petrol to fill up, and no parking fees
to remit. You also do not have to worry about the exaggerated monthly office rental, while
the utility bills e.g. electric, phone, water and so on are already consolidated into your home
bills for peace of mind.



 


Without traveling and commuting, there is no morning traffic stress to face. There won¶t be
any rushing on your part to arrive early as to make sure you get the limited parking space.
Being close to family is also a major plus. While you¶re getting busier and more successful
your family at least can see you¶re still around. In contrast, being a successful corporate
office worker often translates you into having less and less time at home. You don¶t want to
trade career success with family abandonment, do you?







 






Having the say to most of your work indicating that you are in complete control of your life.
You are the master of your own universe. Your routine is not under the influence or directive
of your boss and your management. If there is anyone to report to, it is your customers and
clients. The important thing is to make sure you deliver your job according to your
customer¶s specification.





  

If you realize, many of those working in the office look diligent in the presence of their
superiors, and become almost completely useless without supervision. They take smoking
break every other hour, go out for lunch at 11.30am, gossip about their boss¶s new personal
assistant and so on. Working from home means there is no one to monitor you except
yourself. Hence your goals and objectives are genuine. You do not fake them. Because you
know if you do, you¶ll go back working in office very soon.


I recently had a conversation with a friend about the advantages & disadvantages of working
from home compared to working from an office. A case can be made for either side, and
since I have been on both sides of the fence myself, I think I can provide a unique perspective
to this debate. Today, I will be looking at the benefits of working from home:


 

 

The average commuting time to work is approx. 30-45 min. At one point, I had a 90 min.
commute. Multiply that by two to get back home at the end of the day, and you have spent
close to 10% of your day just on transportation. Working from home makes you save all of
this time. This can help you get a little bit more sleep in the morning and have more time for
yourself in the evening for activities & leisure.


 

  

If you work from home, you may not even need a car altogether. This can save you $300-400
a month plus the costly gas, parking, and insurance expenses. Simply not taking the bus or
subway will save you $50-100 per month in bus tickets or passes. Arguably the biggest
money saving benefit from working at home is the transportation cost savings.


 

 

 

I remember that one of the biggest expenses I had working from an office was on food. You
get fed up of packing a lunch after a while, and once you start eating out, it¶s very hard to
stop! Not only that, but just walking around stores and boutiques during breaks, you are more
likely to spend money that you normally wouldn¶t if you were working from home. Plus, at
home, you can be more creative with your lunches, and it will never feel like a ³packed
lunch´. So not only you save money, but you eat healthier as well.

!
 "


 "

When I would take public transit to work, I would get sick at least twice per year. That¶s just
transit. There is also the threat of getting sick at the office, where if one person has a virus,
it¶s almost impossible not to get it. I would lose about 7-10 days per year on sick days,
something that I never encountered working from home. This also makes you save money on
health costs since you are not in need of medication or doctor visits as frequently.

# 

 
This can work for both employees or self employed people. You can deduct your internet,
phone, supplies, and even the square footage that you use in your home to work. For self
employed, it¶s a must, and for employees, you can always ask for your company to pay for
your internet access, phone line, and supplies. This saves you the cost of having those items
also as personal expenses since you already have it for business usage in your home.


$

 

When working from home, you are not under the same discipline as office workers where
you absolutely need to be working from 9 to 5 every weekday. Chances are, your schedule at
home is much easier to bend. Therefore, if you have appointments or you need to buy
something at the store quickly, you do not need to take a day off from work. I know some
office workers that have to take a day off from work if they want to do some personal
shopping or errands, otherwise they just do not have the time outside work hours. It¶s much
easier to tie in your personal schedule with your work schedule when you work from home.
!


  
Just off the top of my head, I can think of at least 5 people I know that had to take extended
time off from work due to stress, burnouts, and the likes. I¶ve never ever heard of that from
anyone working from home. An office can bring about a lot of competition, gossip, and
backstabbing among co-workers. This type of environment takes its toll after a while both
mentally and physically. Working from home will save you these headaches.

% 
  
With all the time that you are saving from not having to commute to work, and not
socializing half the day with co-workers, you end up getting a lot more done when you are
working from home. As long as you remain motivated and driven, working from home is
much more effective to deliver results.

!
 

 
Sadly, an office is riddled with a few people that take joy into bringing everyone around them
down. This is not done by the gossiping & competition I talked about above. This is the lingo
that is used daily by people in the office. Some people will just complain about everything
and it affects the psyche of everyone around them. I have seen people with great potential
have their momentum & motivation completely destroyed in a matter of weeks simply
because they were spending their breaks and lunches with these office ³parasites´ that will
badmouth the company at any given opportunity. When working from home, you do not have
to deal with these types of people. You only have to answer to yourself, and as long as you
keep a positive outlook, you will have nothing to worry about.


&
   
 
" '
 
Obviously, if you are home more often, you will dramatically increase the chances of
spending quality time with your loved ones, and at the end of the day, isn¶t that what we all
want? I know I would have loved for my parents to have been home more often when I was a
kid, so this is a huge positive that cannot be denied. Working from home allows you to have
such freedom which you just cannot put a price tag on.

As you can see, there are many advantages to working from home. Tomorrow, I will be doing
the reverse and looking at the positives & benefits of working in an office environment.
Check back tomorrow for what will be an interesting comparison


1. Spending more time with your family - When I was single and had no kids I never wanted
to stay home. I always wanted to be out doing something. After I became a 'Mom,' I really
hated to leave my house each morning because it meant that I also had to leave the kids. I
hated to see their eyes fill with tears as I would leave. I also didn't want someone else to 'raise
them' as I went to work each day. I wanted to be there for their 'firsts' in life; the first time
they spoke or the first time they walked. I wanted to witness those things. So spending more
time with my family and being there for them meant a lot to me and still does.

2. Set your own hours - Since you are your own boss, you get to say when you will work. No
more having to dread that awful alarm clock. If you want to sleep in, you actually get to sleep
in. If you want to play with the kids, have lunch with a friend, visit your family or even just
sit and watch TV, you can. Just keep in mind that if you do too much of these things and
don't actually schedule in time to 'work' you may find yourself having to get back out there
and work out of the house all over again. It all comes down to scheduling. Since it's YOUR
time, you make the schedule and decide what time you'll start, take breaks and so forth. You
can decide if you want to work days, nights or split shifts (which is what I do.)

3. You get to choose a job you enjoy - the beauty of working from home is finding something
you enjoy doing so it doesn't seem like actual work. Turning your hobby into a profitable
business is a great idea, just make sure there's a market for it.

4. You control your money - whatever money you make after expenses belongs to YOU. You
can put it back in your business and make even more money (this is always best) or you can
choose to spend it all. It's up to you, just be smart about it and t hink about the future of your
business.

5. No dress code - You do not have to wear a uniform, a shirt and tie, a dress, business suit or
anything else that may be uncomfortable. If you want to work in your favorite pair of comfy
jeans, in your sweats, in your shorts and tank top, in your pajamas or buck naked (although I
wouldn't recommend it) you actually could. Once again, YOU'RE THE BOSS.

6. No more commuting to and from work - If you're like me and hated driving to and from
work, this is going to be one of your favorite advantages. For me it meant no more driving in
the rain or fog in the winter. It's not that I don't trust my driving, it's the other knuckleheads
out there that drive like maniacs. I'm just glad I don't have to deal with that everyday
anymore.

7. Save more money - You can actually save more money if you work from home than if you
work away
from home. In my case, I save ton of money on gas because I no longer have that long
commute to and from work, not to mention the wear and tear on my vehicle. I also save on
daycare because the kids are now home with me. I save money because I no longer have to
eat out for lunch while at work.

8. Tax benefits - Home Based Businesses receive numerous tax advantages. I'm not an
accountant (nor do I play one on TV), but I do know I get to write off a lot of things since I
work out of my house. I get to write off things like: any start up costs, a portion of my rent or
house payment, my computer, any supplies I buy for my business, telephone and electric bill,
advertising and many more. Talk to your accountant or book keeper to see what you can
write off. Believe me, the more write offs the more you will save on taxes.
9. Less Stress - Since you're working from home you no longer have a boss telling you what
you can and can't do. Stress from other coworkers is now a thing of the past. Depending on
what field you worked in, you no longer have deadlines, hard to please customers and the
stress of not getting paid what you're worth.

10. More Free Time - this goes hand in hand with things I've mentioned like not having to
commute to and from work. Because you don't have to commute (at least by car), you have
more time to do things you enjoy, whether it's spending more time with family and friends,
playing golf, getting to actually make yourself breakfast instead of skipping it or eating on the
run. So there is so much more free time. I actually know a guy who works at home and makes
very good money. He spends most of his day playing his Xbox or watching DVD's. In the
morning he checks his emails, answers any questions from his customers and checks his stats
from his websites. The rest of the day is his to do whatever he wants. How great is that?

Working from home really has changed my life. I get to take advantage of all the things I've
mentioned above. Plus, my family life is happier. I'm now there for my family. I don't have to
answer to anyone. I can't tell you how great that feels. If you are contemplating working from
home, I do recommend it. Just don't jump into it blindly. Make sure you take all the necessary
steps to ensure your success or you'll find yourself right back out there working away from
your home.