The Lesser Known Realities of Being A Freelancer / Work From Home Parent in Bangkok

“Working from home” is a buzzword for my generation — Gen Y aka Millenials.

Technology has advanced so much that things like working from home — or from anywhere in the world —  a legitimate option.

In this post I wanted to share some of the unexpected surprises that hit me when I transitioned into a freelancer / work from home career.

Being your own boss is not as “cool” as it appears

I have always wanted to be my own boss. It just sounds cool. But is it really? Yes and no. I do like the freedom of choosing my projects and having the flexibility over my schedule. But what is tricky is all the other roles I have to play along with CEO:

• HR manager to ensure I am motivated every day
• Accountant / finance manager to ensure invoices are issued and payments are timely
• Business development manager to ensure there’s always new work or projects in the pipeline

Trying to get work done at home sometimes takes much longer

I think there’s this assumption that working from home is “easier” because what is better than being in the comfort of your own home? But it’s not easier. There are so many things going on around me at home that sometimes I find it hard to focus and then it takes even long to get work done. If I am in an office or working outside my home, I can focus on the task at hand, get it done and then worry about home stuff when I get home. But when your home is your office, trying to make a clear physical and mental divide between the two turfs takes effort daily.

Working from home does not automatically mean more quality time with your child 
So I totally thought that working from home would be the ideal solution to spending more time with my son because I will be at home more. Turns out it’s not quite as I imagined. When I’m working it doesn’t matter where I am because my full attention and focus is not on my child; sitting next to him on the couch while he watches TV or plays or reads while I tap away at my laptop is not quality time, in my opinion. Even if I am working from home, I still have to dedicate a significant amount of quality time to my son without any work distractions.

Having a fluid schedule and flexibility actually makes weekly planning a time-consuming aspect of working from home 
This one sounds vague and it is rightly. As a freelancer, I have a lot more flexibility with my time and I can choose what I want to do with it — my schedule is never set in stone. If a friend wants to meet for lunch or coffee, I can easily swing it and push back what I intended to do that day to another day and so on. I know there have been weeks where I have overcommitted to social engagements or been a bit complacent about my work schedule because I don’t have tight deadlines to meet or a boss to report to. But that’s a slippery slope I do not want to slip down. I have to be very mindful every week about where and how I’m dividing my time between my child, work, social engagements and personal life. My trick is to pencil everything into a weekly calendar on Sunday evenings for the week ahead so I can see very clearly how and where I’m spending time and if I need to make adjustments.

Being hyper-organised about everything is necessary — no excuses
I now juggle three schedules a day — my son’s, my own and my work — so that leaves only one option to ensure everything gets done: be hyper-organised about everything. It’s become a necessary daily habit and there’s very little room to be lazy about it because of the three schedules any one can fall off balance in a second. Again, working from home can sometimes give the illusion that simply because I’m home, I’ll have “more time” to get things done and it’ll be easier. It’s not true. I have the same amount of time and I’m battling to get more done in one space so there’s no choice but to be organised all day, every day.

Working alone also means having to deal with bad moods and loneliness frequently
I am so thankful to be my own boss but the downside is working alone is a constant. I don’t have a team or colleagues around me to connect with on a daily basis — the camaraderie is something I definitely miss from having an office job. If I’m happy, sad, disappointed, excited or confused there’s no one around to really share that with and the loneliness can get frustrating. And my mood definitely affects my productivity and motivation to work so as strange and awkward as it seems, I do kind of mentally check in with myself every day to evaluate how I’m feeling.

What are some of the surprises of freelancing / working from home that you experienced? Do you agree or disagree with any of the points above? Please share your comments and experiences below.