My daughter called one day last week.  She is 32 and lives in New York City.  She was laid off in March from her job as an editor at a PR design firm.  This is the third time she has lost a job through no fault of her own and of course, in NYC, jobs are scarce.    So, having established a good reputation and a lot of connections, she thought she would try free-lancing for a while.

Of course I encouraged her since I know that she is organized, is better than most people at planning ahead, and is well disciplined when she wants to do something.   But I didn’t think about one aspect of her delightful personality.  She lives in New York because she is a high energy, fast-moving urban type of gal.

“I don’t know how you stand this!”  She sounded like an 8 on a scale of 10 for misery.  “How do I stand what?”  I asked.   “Staying at home alone all day….”    Oh, that.  I laughed out loud.  I had offered lots of advice on how to find jobs, had sent her several links for helpful websites, and was offering lots of cheerleading about how well she could do.  I mean, I am her proud mother, ok?

What I hadn’t done was clue her in to my “work at home” success tips.  Even though I don’t mind being at home alone, I do have to get out just like anyone else.  I plan my work in 3 -4 hour chunks and then take breaks to do other things like walking in the park, going to the gym, meeting friends for lunch, checking out the book store or library, and going to networking and professional events.   I also do a lot with friends in the evenings to balance my quiet days.   But I’m not sure even those tricks would help my sweet social child.

With lots of people looking for new ways to earn income, I know many are thinking of how great it would be to have a home-based business.  There are some great perks – no fancy wardrobe needed, time to exercise, ability to eat food that’s actually good for you, no sitting in traffic, etc.   But there are some requirements that need to be considered.

Here are some traits that matter:
1.    Are you self-motivated?
2.    Can you avoid distractions?
3.    Are you organized?
4.    Can you stay focused?
5.    Can you prioritize your to-do list?
6.    Are you good at managing time?
7.    Are you knowledgeable in technology?

But even if you are good at all of the above, if you are a people person who needs interaction with others, or prefer conversing with humans who will actually answer you instead of a cat who purrs regardless, working at home might not be your cup of tea.   Know thyself….   Try spending a couple of days alone working on your idea to see how it feels.

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