The Artist's Eyes by Jenn Lee

When working from home in an home office it is sometimes difficult to create a perfect harmony between work and family life. Where do you draw the line between the two? It is very important that the two don’t bleed into each other. Creating this definition between work and personal life is an art.

As an artist, I have a downstairs studio in my home where I spend many hours working on several projects at a time. It sits facing the afternoon sun so I get a lot of light. It’s important to have a lot of light so as to keep the afternoon lack of motivation from sneaking in.  Everything is also organized and in it’s place so I don’t waste time and energy searching endlessly for things I need. As the saying goes, an organized space equals a clear mind, thus a more creative mind.

At the same time John and I have our office/den downstairs as well. I find at times it’s hard to keep the two areas separated. As I sit here right now, I have my easel, roll around paint storage cabinet and other misc. project related supplies spread around my computer desk area. How can I be keeping my personal time separate from my work time, you may be thinking right about now. Well it’s easy really, with a little will power and self determination.

If you are working a 9 to 5 for Mr. Big Business, you have a defined schedule right? You wake up, have your coffee and maybe peruse the newspaper or internet a little before you get ready. You take your shower and get all spiffed up for the day in your work attire, right? Then it’s off to commute to work, punch in the old time clock and get to work. You have your breaks, your lunch hour and then at 5, commute home.

Working from home can work with this same routine. You wake up and go through the same routines, the only difference being you don’t have the commute. That’s right, you still need to have a routine. Your subconscious often does not kick in it’s a work schedule unless you go through the routines. Go ahead and drink that coffee, enjoy your newspaper or internet surfing till your coffee is done. Then get ready for your day just as if you were meeting with someone. I don’t mean you have to dress up in a suit and tie or dress, but get dressed, do your hair and other hygiene related routines, but get dressed, don’t stay in your pajamas!

Going through the routines will kick start your brain into work mode. Make sure to take your breaks, eat lunch and quit when it’s time to quit. Separation between work and personal time will keep you from getting frustrated with too much work and not enough free time. Burning out on your work will start chipping away at your creative energy as well as affect your family by you taking away from their time.

Believe it or not, there is such thing as harmony working from home and your personal life. Creating a separate work space in your home and a schedule can create artistic harmony….in this artist’s eyes.