An often overlooked, disregarded, under-appreciated, and conveniently forgotten ‘secret’ to working at home is that cleanliness still counts! This is not just limited to the workspace area of the house; it applies to the whole house including the work-at-home occupant. After all, a major part of being productive is feeling productive. It is certainly hard to be or even feel productive if your desk is piled sky-high with a mountain of soda cans and the remains of your last meal.

If you are completely dedicated to the task of separating your workspace from the rest of your home, then you do not have to clean it at the same time if you do not want to. You should still make sure it does get properly cleaned frequently. It might be a good idea to add this to your ‘to do’ list or your scheduler to emphasize the importance of keeping your new work environment clean. Almost all businesses of any size have some sort of chart detailing whose job it is to clean which part of the office on which days, and your home office should not be any exception to this rule.

Any place that people live, germs breed. That is an indisputable fact, and if you live and work in the same place, you have more exposure to germs. Ask yourself if the cost of some extra cleaning products, especially anti-bacterial wipes and soap, are worth a significant decrease in the chance of becoming ill. Chances are that this is a fairly simple answer; yes. Buying cleaning products is not a panacea in an of itself, you have to use them regularly and properly to product your interest in staying productive and healthy.

Personal hygiene is a major part of the equation too. If you used to wake up, iron your clothes while you watch the morning news, go for a jog, take a shower, shave, put on deodorant, get dressed and head out the door, then the only part of this routine that should change is the very last part. Just because you are not leaving the door does not mean you should not be taking care of yourself in the same way that is gotten you to where you are today.

Just because you may not be face to face with peers, customers, or suppliers does not mean you should neglect your appearance. You might think that cutting corners and saving a few dollars on deodorant or aftershave is a good idea, but these are small prices to pay to be in peak shape. Clean without, clean within should be your motto, and it will help keep you razor sharp. The downside to not being clean in terms of hygiene vary from case to case, but it is never beneficial beyond saving a few dollars in the very short run. You risk distancing yourself from any person or group(s) that have routine contact with you, but most of all you risk losing that professional aura that can be extremely difficult to recapture.

Let us not forget that working from home is, well, working from home. As much as one tries to separate the two, they still manage to come into contact from time to time. If your neighbor’s son accidentally threw his football into your backyard the parent(s) are likely to come over to ask permission to visit. You certainly do not want to answer the door to your house with an untidy work area, dressed in your pajamas, and smelling like you might be allergic to soap. Instead take the time to ensure that your work at home cleanliness is more work-like than a never-ending lazy weekend experience.

Author Bio: Jackson Matheson is an acclaimed researcher on success, opportunities, fraud, and pitfalls in network marketing. He examines and reports on top home based businesses and their exceptional and not-so-great business practices. He recommends ACN Presskit and ACN Integrity.

Category: Marketing
Keywords: acn, network, marketing, multi-level, mlm, home, based, business