photo credit: huzzahvintage

It’s the in thing in freelancing today. You have a home office. You work at home. You work from your bedroom. You telecommute.

If you have a day job, and you have to rush to the office before 8 a.m., and you need to run through the crowds downtown in a suit or high heels, chances are you envy those folks who can earn as much as you can (or even more) while in their shorts or nighties at the comfort of their living room.

But the moment you experience telecommuting, then you start shedding the formal workwear. You can now work in your pajamas, and you can still get things done. For all your client cares, you’re probably in your underwear, making those business calls, coding, designing or writing.

You try to tell yourself it’s a good thing you can run your business without having to think of your appearance. Or can you?

Do clothes make the man?

Sometimes, clothes do make the man (or woman). Even if you’re running a business from home, it doesn’t necessarily mean you don’t have to dress up. For some people, dressing up involves pysching oneself for doing work. Even better, dressing up can mean psyching oneself for success.

I mean, have you ever felt sleepy or lazy during your telecommute workday because you’re in your sleepwear? Have you felt shy talking to clients on the phone or via email because you haven’t showered yet?

Working in your pajamas doesn’t necessarily make you less professional. But in some cases, it might make you feel less professional. You’re doing real work, after all. Why not try looking and feeling nice for the job.

You don’t necessarily have to wear a coat and tie at home. But wouldn’t it be nice to start your workday by showering, dressing in smart casuals, and grabbing a quick breakfast (or lunch or dinner, depending on your work schedule) before starting your work routine? It might get you in a more productive mood. It might get you into a more aggressive selling mood. It might help you close deals.

That’s unless you’re Hugh Hefner, which I seriously doubt.

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When we are at the office, cleanliness and keeping our workstations are perhaps a good thing to do. For one thing, they say a messy workplace characterizes the type of work and output an employee can do. In a sense it is true. Just imagine not being able to fix up your stuff in an orderly fashion. It shows someone who is not focused and relies heavily on cramming and can be tagged as always looking for reports and files only when the boss needs them.

It doesn’t take much to maintain an organized working place. Add to the fact that a clean working station lessens the distractions of papers and folders scattered here and there. While some claim that leaving them like that makes it easier for them to find relevant data once asked for, it still remains that anyone can improve on them if and when they want to.

It is not likewise true that such a setup can make it easier for them to find the things needed once asked. People only say that because they are used to it. Observe people who do it and time it. Thought they will find the files and folders, it takes them quite some time to do so. In short, they are pretty much disorganized.

Nothing beats being organized and knowing how to properly file your documents for easy location. People feel that with an organized setup, they will have trouble in finding stuff. But if they get used to the idea of working in a more organized workstation, productivity may go up a notch since outside that of projecting a systematic and organized image, being aware of what to pull out and where they are is certainly something that can be an advantage to the people who are aiming high in their profession.

If you want good advice, look at the people in higher positions. Rarely would you see their stuff in disarray and they make sure that all papers, documents and office paraphernalia are in place. The neater you go, the more organized and motivated you can be in the office.

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