Shlomit Wolf
When you work from home sometimes getting respect is a tough nut to crack. In the D.C. area it’s not as much of a problem because plenty of people work from home on a full or part time basis; but it can still be a problem.
So how do you make sure that your work is respected?
- Have a schedule and stick to it. You can’t expect others to respect your time if you don’t respect your time
. -Be professional. If you take personal calls all day, chat online for hours, and update your Facebook profile several times a day, and brag about taking 3 hour lunches, how can you expect anyone to take you seriously as a work at home professional?
-Don’t downplay what you do. Women (moreso than men) have a tendency to downplay their work by making statements that use the words only or just. “Well I just run a small little craft business.” or “I only work to bring in a little extra money.”
-Have respect for yourself. Yes it’s nice when others appreciate what you do, but don’t think that you need to obtain anyone’s approval of your life choices.
Comments
On the downplaying, excellent point. I always remember Brian Tracey in a seminar educating us solo professionals to say "I'm the President of my own professional services company." - maybe not those exact words, but definitely the President bit. My first reaction was - Oh, that's a bit much. Then I thought about what he was teaching us. I.e. to stand up, be proud of what you do and the service you deliver. And if you are a President in your mind you will have more chance of being respected by prospects and clients.
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