by Lisa Ann Schleipfer

Created on: August 25, 2008   Last Updated: January 03, 2010

As the modern business world evolves, telecommuting has fast become the most popular trend of the new working world. It is estimated that by 2009, 14 million Americans will become telecommuters.

With all the time spent at home, it may be difficult for some of those work-from-homers to ignore all of the housework or home improvement tasks that surround their new work space. Here are some tips to help adjust to this untraditional work environment and keep the house clean!

Know your expectations. Are you a neat freak? Can you handle a little clutter? Are you the in charge of housework in your home? Answering questions like these can help set rules for cleaning up. When transitioning to working from home, boundaries can ensure your profession remains a priority.

If you live with others or have a family, make sure to define everyone's chores and responsibilities. Just because dad's office is now in the spare bedroom doesn't mean he's going to be mowing the lawn or making the bed everyday, even if mom is still commuting 30 minutes or more to the office.

If it's just you and your cat, setting limits with yourself is just as important. Perhaps doing the dishes every evening is essential to getting through your working morning without worrying about what is in the sink.

Separate work. Make sure that you have a workspace, whether that is an office, a desk or table, that is yours and yours alone. Preferably, your workspace will not be within eyeshot of a full laundry basket or bill-covered table. Keeping a separate work space will better able to separate what is house work and what is this-pays-my-bills work.

Make a contract. Designate cleaning time by picking one hour of every day for housework. Put on your favorite music, or television show, or DVD and allow yourself that one hour to conduct household tasks. Throw in a load of laundry, sweep the floor, dust the living room, or fix a picture frame, whatever you choose. It is amazing what can be completed in 60 minutes. This process is effective for several reasons:

Picking up once a day eliminates clutter and build up of messes, so when the weekend rolls around and there is more time for larger cleaning jobs, they are easier and take less time to complete.

Allowing that one hour fulfills the contract and alleviates the guilt that comes with being at home all day and not spending all of your time on housework.

The cleaning hour allows a break from the work routine, without being detrimental to your workload, and maintains the flexibility associated with working from home.

Accept changes to this schedule as they come. Sometimes, deadlines rule, and the cleaning hour has to be chucked for career tasks. Don't stress, another cleaning hour is scheduled again for the next day. Alternately, reschedule your cleaning hour for later in the day, after your deadline has been met. Think an hour is too long? Start out with just 30 minutes.

Remember to set boundaries, have a separate workspace, and contract cleaning time to balance housework while working from home!

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