As mentioned in a previous post, we recently got a health club membership. Since we knew how out of shape we were. BTW… pay attention to your weight gain if you work from home, I gained over 35lbs in the last few years. The early part of the week we took the mandatory fitness test that’s required to use the facilities (just another money grab) During the test we had a 30min discussion with one of their fitness “experts” and he went on to explain confuse us about nutrition and how much and what we should be eating. Long story short… to eat the foods which are recommended it would surely send me to the poor house. Why is it that all the foods without all the fat, calories, etc is so expensive? Yea, I read all the package labels the last time I was at the supermarket, for what we were told to look for and what to avoid.

Final comment on this whole watching what you eat… why is is that everyone seems to have their own opinion. What we were told at this fitness test is not the same as what’s published by the Canadian Gov’t. And I’m sure if we spoke to another personal trainer they would say something different.

Hope you enjoyed the extra hr of sleep this am. I forgot to set the clocks back, so I was up and about my usual time.

Chris….

p.s. Why is it all the foods we especially like is no good for us… hope my deepfryer does not hear

p.p.s Do you believe in Karma? A good friend (rip Rick) totally believed in Karma and I must say I’m becoming a believer.

My legs cramp, my toosh is constantly sore and it seems that I now have a pinched nerve (sciatic) running down the back of my leg. With no cushion left, I seriously think it’s time for a new chair for my home office. 7 years x’s at least 10hrs a day x’s 7 days a week x’s over 200lbs.. yep the poor chair is down to it’s frame now.

Here’s today work from home Wednesday tip;

How to Choose An Office Chair.

There are so many different types of office chairs available. From swivel task office chairs to an executive office chairs even ergonomic office chairs.

There are also low back, mid back and high back office chairs.

The options are endless from an office chair with adjustable arms or an office chair with no arms at all.

So how do you choose the office chair that is right for you?

Before choosing which office chair is right for your needs, first consider what are you going to be using the office chair for?

Are you purchasing an office chair for the work place or is this an office chair for your own use at home.

If you’re shopping for an office chair for the work place, consider the person’s position this office chair is for.

If you are looking for an office chair for someone whose in an authoritive position, like a C.E.O., President, or Manager. You would probably look for an office chair that states, “I am the boss!” This type of office chair would most likely fall in the category of an executive office chair. These types of office chairs usually have a high back are pillow soft or leather. It is important for this office chair to be very comfortable, especially when the person sitting in it is making important company decisions.

Maybe you need to purchase an office chair for a secretary or receptionist. Some factors to keep in mind for this type of purchase are how easy does the office chair move around?

Usually you would want to choose a swivel office chair. Swivel office chairs usually have the option of low, mid or high back. A swivel office chair is ideal for someone who needs to move around the desk a lot. Secretaries are constantly moving from the computer, to the fax machine, to answering the company phone. You may also want to consider an office chair with adjustable arms or an office chair with no arms at all. You wouldn’t want to restrict an employee who needs flexibility.

You should also consider how long you would be sitting in your office chair. For those who will be spending a long period of time in their office chair it is important to pick an office chair with the right lumbar support.

Maybe you need an office chair for someone who works in something like printing production. Quality assurance production requires someone to be in the same position for a long period of time. Usually those in this position have a high desk or work station. You would probably want an office chair with a high lift and excellent back support. Usually these office chairs are mid-back or high-back.

If you are purchasing an office chair for yourself at home consider your needs. What kind of back support do you require? There are office chairs that can be specially contoured to your own back. What color office chair best fits your décor? Office chairs come in a variety of colors from black to burgundy and many more. There are many different kinds of office chairs to choose from if you can clearly define your needs.

Courtesy of Toby Pizur. 

Let me repeat that again… I work from home! How easy it is for others to forget that though you’re home, you’re just like the rest of the working population and do have work to get completed.

Yesterday I totally forgot to make my usual “work from home Wednesday” post, as I was a bit occupied learning a new software/tool (Camtasia). What a cool tool for making presentations, videos, tutorials etc.

When working from home you MUST set some rules or you’ll constantly have to stop working to do odd jobs, take phone calls.. drop coffee off for some & their friend! Make it clear to everyone around you that though you didn’t have to punch the time clock or put on some uniform for the 9-5, you still do have to work.

One of my main distractions is the family phone, so I’ve decided not to answer it when I’m working. My girls know that if it’s an emergency (and their school also knows) that they can reach me at my office line. If you work from home and share the same phone for both work and everyday family life, may I suggest that you get a second line dedicated to work. This way you can filter the calls you accept.

BTW.. don’t give the business line number to friends or you’ll find yourself back in the same situation.

Enjoy the rest of the week!

Chris…

It’s “work from home Wednesday” …  today I’ll like to speak at bit about staying connected. The internet is the fuel behind this entire telecommuting revolution, since it’s made it so simple to keep in contact with the outside business world.

As a home user, you can choose from four Internet access options:

•  DSL: DSL stands for digital subscriber line. It uses ordinary telephone lines and a special modem to provide an Internet connection that can transmit high-bandwidth information to a user’s computer. A DSL line can carry both data and voice signals. The data part of the line is a dedicated connection to the Internet and does not interfere with use of the telephone. DSL is high speed and is always connected to the Internet.

• Cable Internet: Cable Internet uses your local cable TV line to receive broadband Internet content. This data rate far exceeds that of modems and is about the same as DSL. Your local TV cable company is typically the cable Internet service provider.

• Dial-up access: This may be the best option if you are on a tight budget. Dial-up access uses a modem and a telephone line to connect to the Internet. The drawbacks of using this option are that data is typically transmitted at a slow rate and it blocks the telephone line.

• Satellite Internet: If cable or DSL aren’t available in your area, or if the slow dial-up access speeds are not acceptable, consider using satellite internet. It’s available to you if you live in the Northern Hemisphere and have an unobstructed view of the southern sky. The service is expensive and the data rate is not as fast as a direct line, but it is a good connectivity alternative if you live in an isolated location.

Analyzing Your Time - Work Smarter Not Harder
How well are you managing your time?
Do you end the day wishing for more hours? If this describe you, there are ways to get more from your day without having to need more hours.

Time management is a very important skill for anyone working in a flex-based environment. For mobile workers it can be the difference between sanity and insanity.

Creating and keeping a schedule will require some effort initially but once you get into this routine, it will become second nature to make plans and stay organized. You will need to breakdown your activities based upon Work and Home/Chores.

If you analyze the time spent doing various activities over a period of one or two weeks, you will see patterns developing. Those patterns are what you need to track. They will be either time wasters or maximum use of time.

Work

* Telephone calls and dealing with email can be two of the biggest time wasters we have.

* Keep all calls short and on topic. It’s not the time for socializing and catching up on gossip.

* Have separate email accounts for work and personal use. Leave reading the personal email until you are not on “the clock”.

Working in a remote environment it can be very easy to get side tracked and forget what your original purpose was.

* Make sure you stay focused and if you have to, use a timer.
* Set time limits for how long you have to work on a specific task.
Don’t set unreasonable limits, as you will frustrate yourself.

Keep favourite sites and search engines bookmarked. This will save valuable time. Save information in a text file that lists different sites and what information is found there.

Save your reading/writing/training for times when you know that you will not have to worry about interruptions. Nothing is worse than trying to learn something new and having the phone ringing from co-workers asking questions or looking for information.
Chores
Your first priority, especially when working from your home office is your job. Save chores for after work hours or for break times. If you allow yourself to get caught up in household chores, you will not get any work done.

Don’t forget you still need regular breaks and time to eat. It is too easy to get caught up in work and miss meals or not take a break and you will pay for that later.

Organizing your day to include regular breaks and scheduling your work tasks will enable you to work much smarter and it will also be lesss stressful.

This piece is courtesy of Catherine Roseberry.