successful home working
Archive for March, 2010
Unexpected pleasures
41 year ago
A and I have noticed before that it’s amazing what can happen when you let go of trying hard, and go off and do something else entirely. I’ve been doing a lot of work lately on content for the site and articles for other websites and blogs. But with the move coming up next week, like it or not, I’ve now got no choice but to spend time on packing and getting organised.
We were busy with this yesterday morning and part of the afternoon, but when I arrived home and looked at my Twitter account, I discovered that in my absence Work from Home had been recommended by Enterprise Nation members and put on their Amazon Wish List! Quite made my day, if not my whole week.
And a welcome reminder right now that good things happen all by themselves without planning, strategising or my direct involvement. Phew, long exhale, shoulders down…
Moving house, home…and work
10When you work from home a house move means uprooting your business as well as your home, with the potential for more upheaval and more stress, as we can testify, being on the point of moving for the third time in less than two years.
The part we have come to dread most is not the sorting through of ‘stuff‘ or even the packing, but the bureaucratic process you have to go through to change your address. And worst of all, the attempts to organise anything to do with phones and broadband. (In fact as we speak A is ranting in the next room about BT unilaterally putting a stop on our broadband rather than transferring it, thus triggering a substantial charge because our contract has time to run). So much time and energy taken up on something that should be simple.
Much more satisfying is getting rid of things. You’d think we’d have nothing left to dispose of, but a second bag is on its way to the charity shop and the recycling bin is bulging. We shall be lean and mean when we get to the new place!
Getting away from the desk
0Tomorrow I’m giving a talk about work/life balance at a training event for translators and interpreters at Bath University, so I’ve been busy with final preparations. I find when rehearsing talks that the worst place to be is at my desk, as somehow it works much better if I move around.
So I’ve been able to multitask by combining work with some cleaning and tidying in advance of our house move in April. A very satisfying outcome and no doubt very good for my body to get a workout as well. I just need to remember to leave the Dyson and duster at home when I set off for the Uni tomorrow!
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It’s good to talk
01 year ago
One of the major problems of working from home is that being in the same place all the time makes it very difficult to get any perspective on challenging issues and you can end up tearing your hair out. I speak from experience!
So I’ve been trialling the Work from Home Audit, which is a phone or Skype conversation with me to talk about your sticking points and come up with creative ways to get round or through them. The results have been far better than I ever dreamed and I’m thrilled that Kate and Fiona have made so much progress on their home businesses – and are having fun in the process! You can read what they say about our chats on the new Work from Home Audit page.
Can’t see the home working wood for the trees? Get in touch and we’ll chat. You’ll feel much more positive afterwards!
Jelly at Glove Factory Studios
01 year ago
I’m really excited to have another venue for Jelly, the beautiful and quirky Glove Factory Studios at Holt near Bradford-on-Avon. They are described as a contemporary renovation of an industrial heritage building and have to be experienced – the website has some lovely pictures, but you have to be there to appreciate the place, which is light, airy and full of character. As well as office and studio space, there is a gallery, cafe and outdoor exhibition spaces in the process of being finished.
Glove Factory Studios is owned by Alix Paver and Nick Kirkham of Great Western Studios, and is a part of the Forwardspace family. The Old Church School – another Forwardspace property – is owned by Gavin Eddy who believes in the many benefits of Jelly as strongly as I do, and whose Frome coworking space, is home of Frome Jelly. Forwardspace is also working on another characterful conversion in Taunton, The Collar Factory, which I believe is due for completion later next year.
Holt Jelly is on Wednesday 24 March from 10 am to 4 pm and all you have to do is book a place and turn up with your laptop to take advantage of free wifi access and inspiring surroundings for the day.
Moving on
2Good news this week – we’ve finally found another house to rent after two months of searching. A house that will accommodate two home offices and all our furniture. We think we’re pretty minimal in our possessions but having always lived in older properties, which have larger rooms, we’ve discovered we have too much for modern houses, which tend to have fitted wardrobes and appliances.
We will probably have to put everything in storage for a while as the owners of the new house are moving away to start a business and won’t be ready to leave at the time we have to move out of here, but it’s a huge relief to have found somewhere. And we had already booked a few days in Spain for the interim period, so we‘ll be moving in when we get back.
It looks like it’s going to be a busy time as we pack up to leave while I continue to add to the site (Work from Home Audit coming very soon) and start Jelly at a new fantastic new venue, Glove Factory Studios in Holt near Bradford-on-Avon. More about that soon as well.
