Working from home can be a fantastic way to make a living.
You are your own boss, you can set your own schedule, and the environment can be so much more peaceful and relaxing than a traditional office setting.
This freedom comes with its own drawbacks however, and that is...
well, FREEDOM! Effective time management can be a difficult task for a home based business owner, a freelancer, or, well, anyone who lacks serious discipline.
You might think you're safe sitting behind your computer, but therein lies a whole assortment of time sapping traps all eager to grab time away from you.
From Facebook messages, to emails hitting you in the face every 5 minutes, to endless forum discussions that lead NOWHERE, the internet can definitely put you on the path of non-productivity.
Here are 4 simple time management tips that you can use to ensure your workday is more productive starting NOW:

1. Plan your day, BEFORE your day begins - When you get to work, whether it is at an office, cubicle, or your kitchen table, you should know exactly what you have to do each day BEFORE the day begins.
   This means creating a daily TO DO list the night before (or at least in the hours before your work day begins.
   )By creating this list regularly and before your day begins, you can start off your workday by focusing on the tasks you need to complete...
   not spending time thinking about what those tasks are.
   
2. Schedule times to check and respond to emails - Email can be one of the biggest enemies of effective timemanagement.
   We have all got so used to this form of immediate communication that we often stop whatever we are doing to read and respond to an email as it comes into our inbox.
   Instead, schedule two times during the day to read and respond to emails.
   One in the morning and one in late afternoon.
   By letting others know this schedule, they will not be expecting an immediate reply but will respect your time.
   Besides, how many of those messages couldn't have waited a few hours for a response?Yeah, probably all of them...
   
3. Focus on completing one work goal at a time - With the power of the internet before you as well as a plethora of programs to help you get the job done, it can be easy for a business owner to skip around and work on many tasks at once.
   Add something to a word document here, jump over to a website to do some research there, you get the picture.
   Your best bet is to focus on each task individually.
   Complete one, and THEN go to the next one.
   This method of focusing will ensure you finish the task in record time and result in a more productive workday.
   
4. Schedule regular breaks for fun time - Listen, I know that for some of you, if you don't check your Facebook page or your Twitter account, your head will explode, but doing so constantly throughout the day WON'T pay your bills.
   Even if you use these sites for your business, it is still better to schedule specific times to check your accounts and interact on them.
   Just schedule in your TO DO list a few well needed breaks and go have some fun!Surf around, respond to some forum or blog posts and relax.
   Make these breaks about 10 minutes in duration.
   Once your allotted time is up, it is time to get back to work, no exceptions.
   You can always play online AFTER your daily work has been completed.
   

Now, going from mismanaged to effective time management can be a difficult jump, but if you follow the steps above, you will be well on your way to a more organized and productive workday.
It is all about scheduling and making the decision to commit to the schedules you set.
Doing so will result in more money, more organized and flowing work, and often, less stress as a result.