A home working day

First aid instructor Andrea Bonacker shares her home working day

Today’s guest post began as a casual exchange on Twitter in which Andrea remarked ironically on the glamour of her home working day, something I’m sure many of us have done!

I’d been thinking for a while about a ‘day in the life’ type series, and wanted to call it What Do Home Workers Do All Day? like the recent TV programme about artists.

But as I described the other day, life online is always changing and I’m having to use lots more keywords in order to be found by Google, so that title wasn’t possible. Bit of a shame, but here’s Andrea to fill us in on her ‘glamorous’ day with an athletic cat:

As a freelance first aid instructor, there’s no such thing as a typical home working day. The most significant distinction in my schedule is between having days ‘in’ working from home and days ‘out’ when I’m training.

It could be one day of training one week, and the following week I could be away from home for a few days on the trot, delivering several courses back to back. I cover the North of England all the way up to Scotland, so planning sensible logistics is important.

So let’s have a look at my home working day:

6am: A stint of yoga and meditation followed by an early morning jog and shower to start the day. Usually my morning run is a great time to start sorting work things out in my head.

7.30am: Breakfast (at the moment I’m into fresh fruit salad with yoghurt and homemade granola) and coffee. Dylan (our cat and my work and playmate) is already waiting for a session of chasing up and down the stairs with me before he joins me in my upstairs office.

8am: Dylan goes to sleep on the office chair while I get on with work. If I was running a course the day before, the first thing is to sort out all the paperwork – scanning documents, candidate data input and processing of feedback.

Once that’s all done it needs to be posted off for the qualification certificates to be issued – a good excuse for a leg stretch and short walk to the post office.

Back home it’s time to sort out the training equipment. I might put a load of triangular bandages in the washing machine while the resus(citation) manikins (I use the famous Anne) need taking apart and cleaning ready for the next course.

Occasionally I get funny looks from visitors when they stumble across these strange looking bodies lying all over the hallway. Once the van is loaded up and replenished again it’s time for lunch (and for Dylan to have a good yawn and stretch after a busy morning in the office).

12am: Lunch is usually a light affair and could be anything from a bowl of homemade soup to a quick salad. I always try and have a tasty lunch prepared the day before so I don’t get too distracted. Off to hang up the washing before heading back upstairs.

The afternoon is spent sorting out client emails and phone calls, updating course handouts and web pages, sorting out a course venue or keeping on top of receipts. A short break for a cuppa tea and some biscuits is a must.

By late afternoon I start some preparations for dinner and then get back to the computer to follow up on articles in my ‘save for reading later’ folder before my partner gets home. After dinner it’s time to wrap up by planning what’s on the work menu for the next day.

I really love the variety of my work. The main course I deliver is outdoor first aid so I get to travel to some great places. Training days for me are full of buzz with physical activity and interaction with students, meeting such interesting and lovely people.

I try and combine my trips away with exploring these areas for future walking or cycling trips. I’m not sure I would enjoy working from home all the time but with my days ‘out’ I also really enjoy a home working day as a nice contrast of quiet time.

Andrea’s business First Aid Training plus is based in Preston and offers a wide range of first aid courses delivered at your own premises and tailored to your activities and environment.