Controlling Time
Recently my wife related an interesting observation. She talked about making the transition from the school and work phase of life to the staying at home with our children phase of life. During the former phase, her schedule was dictated by the institutions to which she belonged. During the later phase, her schedule was totally within her control.
Perception of Time at Home
The observation is this: During the former phase of life, time at home was about maximizing relaxation and minimizing additional work. During the later phase of life, time at home now involves making plans and becoming thoughtful about how time is spent (or else the guilt of slothfulness is palpable).
Her perception of what it means to spend time at home changed and that viewpoint is not restricted to certain days of the week or time of the day, rather it’s more of a general overall change. Of course she still finds time to relax. But relaxation is purposeful and not directly associated with the home any more.
I thought this was a great observation. I think the same may apply to those that figure out how to become productive remote employees. It requires a switch in mindset.
Then again, many remote employees are able to allocate an area of their home for work and leave the rest for relaxation. So maybe it is not the same thing as a stay-at-home mom who uses the full house.
The Tangible Feeling of Controlling Your Time
Another observation from this is that the effect of having more control meant that my wife became more productive. I think that is true for many people: when granted greater control, they become more (not less) productive. When entrepreneurs first strike out on their own, they often feel that same deluge of time to control and need to optimize its use.
If you have ever stayed at home or worked from home, have you noticed a similar change in mindset about what it means to be home? Did you feel the effect of needing to control your time when you first struck out on your own startup?