Running a business from the comfort of your home can be both rewarding and challenging. While a home-based business offers flexibility and convenience, it can also blur the lines between work and your personal life, leading to burnout and a lack of work-life balance.
Here, YEC members share some of the strategies that can help home-based business owners set boundaries and maintain a healthy balance between both aspects of their lives.
If not managed carefully, a home-based business can quickly feel like it’s taking over your life. What’s one good way you can set boundaries between your home-based business and your home life so you can still enjoy some work-life balance?
1. Hire a Housekeeper
A housekeeper is an essential ally for maintaining boundaries between your home-based business and personal life. A clean and organized home reduces distractions, helps you stay focused during work hours and increases productivity. With a housekeeper taking care of the household chores, you'll have more time to devote to your business without sacrificing your personal life. —Monica Snyder, Birdsong
2. Stick to Set Working Hours
One good way to set boundaries between your home-based business and your personal life is to establish clear working hours and stick to them as much as possible. This means setting specific times during the day when you will be working and then communicating those hours to family members. It’s also important to avoid working outside of these designated hours and to instead focus on your family. —Eddie Lou, CodaPet
3. Create a Physical Space for Work
Creating a physical space to work will help your brain switch from "home" to "work." You can go all out and buy new furniture or you can keep it easy by just going into a room and simply closing the door. Sometimes you need to be creative if you have a small space, so even adding a curtain to divide work from home will do. Don't be afraid to think creatively! —Shu Saito, SpiroPure
4. Keep Tools and Resources Separate
You can better manage your home-based business without it consuming your life by investing in resources specifically for your job. For instance, I have two computers—one for work and one for my off hours. I never log in to my work accounts on my personal computer and vice versa. This strategy helps me draw a clear line between my career and personal life. —Chris Christoff, MonsterInsights
5. Develop Time management Skills
Making things time bound helps improve work-life balance when working remotely. All you need to do is clearly estimate the time you'll require for completing a particular task, set the deadline for it, and complete it within the set time. By doing this, you'll be able to efficiently manage your time, which in turn helps you keep up with your personal and professional commitments. —Stephanie Wells, Formidable Forms
6. Set Boundaries with Family Members
One of the biggest challenges of running a business from home is ensuring everybody in the household treats it as a real job and a real business. Try to set reasonable boundaries with your family members—but, keep yourself in check too. For example, you can establish "working" hours during which you cannot be distracted, but outside of which you cannot check your phone. —Solomon Thimothy, OneIMS
7. Create Start and End Rituals
One of the best tips is to make sure you have a go-to-work and end-of-work process. Set up a ritual that starts your workday. Mine is sitting down with a cup of coffee and opening my email. This is a trigger that it is time to work. Then, have a ritual to end your day. Mine is as simple as closing my laptop. It is my signal that my day is done. Having these triggers will create real separation in your life. —Zane Stevens, Protea Financial
8. Get Out of the House
A simple solution is to take your work outside your house if possible. Going to a café or coworking space regularly will help set the boundaries needed to stay productive and maintain a good work-life balance. Experiencing a change in physical space will naturally make you less prone to distractions and procrastination while also helping your mind recharge. So, get out sometimes to manage things. —Blair Williams, MemberPress
9. Detox From the Digital World
Unplug and unwind! Schedule a weekly "digital detox day" to disconnect from screens, emails, and social media. Reconnect with loved ones and enjoy some quality time for a healthy work-life balance. —Pratik Chaskar, Spectra
10. Get Dressed
At the start of the day, dress for success. When you are off work, dress down into relaxed clothes (whatever suits your style). This way, you actually feel like you are getting off work. Also, put down the phone and stop checking emails. —Peter Boyd, PaperStreet Web Design
