Given that road accidents, slips, trips and falls make up a massive amount of the injuries sustained by any workforce, you might think by not leaving the house you mitigate any risk to your health. However, working from home jobs come with their own set of fairly unique risks – and it’s important you keep them in your awareness for the good of your health, other people’s well-being and associated organisation’s business interests.

Although the two are undoubtedly linked, we’ve broken the things to consider down into two categories – firstly your physical health, secondly, your mental well-being.

Physical health

There are some fairly obvious elements to your physical well-being when working at home, for most people being based at home means long periods in front of your computer and the associated risks to health that come with posture – but there’s a lot more to be considered.

Eyes

If you spend a lot of time in front of a screen your eye-sight can suffer – referred to simply as ‘eye strain’ – the toll that your screen takes on your eyes can lead to headaches, brow-ache, migraines, twitches and pulling sensations from deep in your eye.

There’s no substitute for professional help if you’re getting problems that you feel might be associated with your eyes, but even if you’re not, it’s good to stay aware – try some eye-exercises or resting from your screen every 30-45 minutes to reduce the strain.

Vitamin D deficiency

It might sound quite severe to think your job means you’re lacking in vital vitamins, but for home workers it really can be the case – especially considering the lack of commuting that would normally get you outside. This is because vitamin D is produced by your body after exposure to sunlight.

A lack of vitamin D can cause aches and pains, low mood, weakened bones, excess sweating and feelings of general weakness. The good news is, you can bolster your vitamin D levels with some fatty fish, egg yolk, supplements and some other enriched foods. If you’re feeling any of these symptoms and would like to make sure you’re not deficient, talk to your doctor about your concerns.

Inviting clients to your home

While we’re sure you’re an excellent judge of who you work with, it pays to be careful when you’re inviting people to your home. If you’re ever uncertain or meeting with new clients – it might be prudent to meet people in a public location, you can always make an excuse about family or a boiler repair meaning home isn’t feasible.

It’s always worth letting a colleague or friend know you’re meeting with a new client. While we’re sure the overwhelming majority of meetings pass without any issue, it’s always better to be safe.

Health and safety in your home

Ah, ‘health and safety’ – Even though it’s what you’ve been reading about it up to this point, the term still strikes boredom into many people! Don’t worry, we’ll keep the formality quick.

Generally speaking, health and safety responsibility falls to you if you’re working from your own residence. If you do have colleagues or clients visiting it can get a little more complicated – especially if they were to injure themselves. Talk to your company HR team if the situation arises – if you’re self-employed, think about putting some public liability insurance into place.

Mental health

As Briton’s our mental well-being is something we don’t traditionally bring up – especially not in the workplace. As a result, our lack of awareness and intervention lead to some of the highest levels of stress and diminished mental health in all of Europe. We’re not here to diagnose – but we can offer you some things to keep an eye on…

Watching your mood

It can be difficult to gauge your own mood, for many of us it takes a loved one or colleague to tell us we seem ‘a bit off’ on any given day. Taking some time out of your day to consider your mood can be the key to catching stress, depression and anxiety as early as possible.

Mindfulness

If you’ve heard about mindfulness it might sound a bit ‘kooky’ – it’s essentially taking a moment to work on quietening your thoughts and focusing on how you physically feel. Some people refer to it as ‘meditation’ – which can have religious or hippie type connotations. The reality is very different though, modern takes on meditation (aka mindfulness) are deeply researched and medically recognised and recommended – they’re often the first stop for people experiencing low level mental health issues.

You won’t become a mindfulness master overnight – nor should you aim to be, but learning a little about the practice means you stand a very good chance of becoming more objective and aware of your moods – which is the first step toward taking control of them, rather than moods controlling you.

Journaling

Many people find it useful to start their day by ‘journaling’ their thoughts, ideas, worries – or anything else that spring to mind. If you can imagine your mind as being a huge and messy desk with no order – journaling can help to rationalise some of your quick-moving thoughts. For some people, giving their mood a mark out of 10 can be useful in tracking your feelings on a particular job, task or project. For others, it might be useful to think about positive things in life as a focus to begin the day with.

There are some great guides and apps to help with journaling – and there are no hard and fast rules, keep looking until you find something you like, your brain is likely to thank you for it.

Isolation

Working from home can be lonely – it actually doesn’t matter whether or not you’ve got a house full of family, being cut off from your company and colleagues can feel deeply unpleasant. If you’re a remote worker and you’re not feeling great, you might want to start scheduling calls with colleagues or managers to feel like you’re part of the bigger picture.

If you’re self-employed, stay in touch with employees or your business partners. Don’t be afraid to invite yourself to the offices of companies you work with. Call friends and family – even better, video call them so you can see their faces.

Awareness is everything

This is not an exhaustive list of the things you might come up against when it comes to your health and working from home. If you’re feeling the strain in any way, let your doctor know, all your conversations are confidential and they’re not going to kick up a big fuss – it’s more likely that they’ll help you find the right resources to keep you on the right track when home is your office.

There are many reasons you might need to get your hands on some money as soon as possible – whatever they are, if time is in short supply, you’re going to want to make sure you’ve done everything possible to make the process quick and easy.

You can get an instant decision from Oink Money – but there could be other factors you haven’t considered. Check over this list and make sure you’ve removed as many barriers as possible!

Are you looking at the right type of loan?

Depending on the amount you’re looking at borrowing you’re going to need to choose between a secured or unsecured loan. Unsecured loans are normally aimed at people who are looking to borrow a small amount, generally between £1,000 and £25,000. If you’re hoping to borrow more, you might need to look at securing the borrowing against your property.

Will you pass a credit check?

Almost all lenders will want to use your credit score to check that you’re likely to pay the money back. There are lots of reasons your credit score can be lower than expected – and many of them are quickly fixed – for example: Are you registered on the electoral register at your current address? If not, you can fix that by registering online.

Not everyone’s credit history is totally accurate, so if you can, checking it over before you apply can be helpful. If there’s something on there you don’t recognise or thought was paid off, you can contact the company it relates to and ask them to check their details. Human errors do occur, so it’s worth making sure your credit score is 100% right to stand you in the best position possible.

Do you have the appropriate ID and information?

A lot of companies will accept your application for a loan ‘in principle’ – meaning you’re required to prove that the information you’ve submitted in the application process is accurate. You’ll usually be required to provide the following information:

• Your residential address for the past 3 years
• Your annual income before any deductions
• Details of your monthly incomings and outgoings
• Your employers name and contact details

Sometimes, lenders will want to see bank statements, proof of your current address, proof of ID and recent payslips – every lender is different so having these things saved in one place means you don’t have to search or request copies.

Can I find a guarantor if I need one?

A guarantor is someone who will pay your repayments should you be unable. Often this is a family member or friend who’s willing to help you out. A guarantor needs to know that you’re going to put their name forward for the position before you do – especially as most lenders will do a credit check on this person to make sure they’re suitable.

Your guarantor is normally required to be someone who’s a homeowner. Sometimes, that guarantor is required to sign paperwork at the same time and location as you. On that basis, it helps if your guarantor is someone close by, if not, it could mean a big journey for them!

Checking that someone would be happy to help you out in this way before applying means you don’t have delays after the application if it is required.

Shop around

Even though time is important you could fall into the trap of choosing the first lender who accepts your application. This can often mean paying a lot more in interest when a quick search would have saved you a significant amount over the full term of the loan.

Using a comparison site like Oink Money means you get the speed that you require – while still being able to compare similar products. Lots of comparison sites work as a ‘credit broker’ – meaning you don’t borrow the money from them directly, instead, they look for the best products for you with numerous lenders.

This can be really helpful if time is of the essence – if you’ve ever filled out loan application forms you know that they can be time consuming, so comparing 40+ lenders would take untold amounts of time! And most comparison sites won’t cost you a penny as their revenue is created by finding borrowers for the loan companies.

Got all that?

If you’ve thought about all of those points then you’re in a good position when a lender says yes!

The cost of running a household is out of control with many of the population now having increased debt and many having to put debt solutions in place such as a Trust Deed to help them manager their personal finances. There’s no doubt about it. Even heating oil – which was relatively inexpensive for a couple of years – has resumed its inexorable upward climb. With wages stagnant or barely keeping pace with inflation and the cost of nearly everything increasing on a monthly basis you need to find relief wherever you can get it.

To most people that means cutting back on both the basics and the finer things. But is that always necessary? Or are there ways you can reduce your monthly bills without the quality of your life suffering and while staying financially independent? In this post we’re going to look at ways you can trim your monthly expenses without having to give up the things that enhance the quality of your daily life.

Think Like a Corporation

One thing about large corporations that average folks hate but shareholders love is that they are experts at identifying what they consider waste and cutting it from their books without a second thought. But although corporate execs are experts at slashing jobs and services they’re also experts at holding onto the perks that make being a corporate exec so desirable. If you want to reduce your monthly bills while maintaining your standard of living use corporate execs as your role models and target waste. Aggressively. Here are a number of ways to do that.

• Eliminate the superfluous – That means take a cold-light-of-day look at the things that are costing you money and ditch those things that don’t add value to your life such as extended warranties and various types of product insurance.
• For example: did you purchase insurance on your mobile phone? Why? Cancel it and just be careful with your phone. You could save £100 annually. Credit monitoring services are another complete waste of money. If you think your credit information has been compromised there are plenty of services that will provide you a free credit report so you can check for yourself thereby saving £100 to £200 per year.

Ditch the loyalty – Product loyalty had its place back in the day when companies cared about their customers and employees. Today though it’s dog-eat-dog and the customer be damned. This is one area where you can definitely learn something from those downsizing-obsessed corporate execs. They’re no more loyal to you than they are to the long-time employees they sack. So take a page from their book and if you can get a better deal somewhere else, drop them like a hot potato.

Use Skype – Do you make a lot of long distance calls? Do you currently pay for broadband? Then download and install Skype and start talking to your long distance friends for free. It won’t affect your broadband costs and it will save you a bundle on long distance calling charges. Why everyone doesn’t use Skype for long distance calls is one of life’s most enduring mysteries.

Switch energy tariffs – The average UK homeowner can save hundreds of pounds off their yearly energy bill by switching out their energy tariff. The fact is there’s a small army of energy suppliers out there tripping over one another to get your business. In all likelihood you’re paying substantially more than you need to. So shop around. You’ll be glad you did.

Always pay on time – Every year UK consumers waste billions of pounds on late fees because they forgot what day it was. Late fees represent a huge transfer of wealth from working people to staggeringly rich companies but it doesn’t have to happen. Whenever possible arrange for direct debit payment of your monthly bills. If you are currently going through a difficult financial period talk to your creditors and negotiate payments you can afford. You might think this will hurt your credit score but if you’re late paying your bills your credit score will take a hit anyway.

Reduce your broadband and cable charges – Most people have broadband contracts that are out of tune with their usage. They pay for a 20MB service when they spend 90% of their time on Facebook. Take a few minutes and do an honest assessment of how you use the Internet and then adjust your broadband subscription accordingly. You could wind up saving hundreds of pounds a year and not notice any difference in your online experience.

Also, a lot of homeowners/renters use one company for their mobile phone, another for their broadband and yet another for their digital TV. This is a classic waste of money. Ditch the individual providers and bundle up with a single company. It’s not only significantly cheaper but if you have any problems there’s only 1 company to deal with.

In addition chances are if you take a close look at your TV bill you’ll find you’re paying for subscription channels you never watch. Be realistic about your viewing habits and if you’re not watching this subscription channel or that, cancel them.

Mow your own lawn – Everyone loves the aura of affluence that comes with having the landscaper pull up to their home every couple of weeks to mow the lawn and trim the hedge. But by mowing your own lawn you’ll save hundreds, maybe thousands of pounds a year and get what is probably much needed fresh air and exercise in the process.

Review your council tax – There are literally hundreds of thousands of UK homes currently in the wrong council tax band. As such, it’s worth the effort to find out if you are one of those being charged excessive council tax.

Cutting your monthly bills is not always the same as cutting back on necessities. Most of the time it’s just a matter of eliminating waste. Take a page out of the modern CEO book, throw out the sentimentality and take a no-nonsense look at your monthly expenses with the express goal of trimming the fat wherever you find it. You’ll take a substantial bite out of your monthly bills and still keep all those things that make your life a little easier and more enjoyable.

When you’re in debt you can become very good at spotting the kind of letters that are sent by creditors. You’re not alone if you’ve hidden that letter away in a drawer and carried on with your day like it had never existed – millions of people admit to having ignored bills, reminders, collection agency letter and even court summons and not seeking debt help or advice.

Wishing the problem away

It’s nice to be able to continue with your day as if there were no problems – owing money is not a pleasant feeling, so pretending that the letter had not arrived, even just for one more day, might seem to remove that stress. If you’re realistic though, the following day is unlikely to be the day you decide to spring out of bed and start opening envelopes demanding money – so that day turns into a week – and the week turns into a month…

Unfortunately, no matter how much you wish it might, that drawer doesn’t make the issue disappear and soon, ignoring letters can turn into ignoring phone calls – and pretending you’re not in when a debt collector knocks at the door.

Must Read: 3 Practical Ways To Get Out Of Debt

The collection process doesn’t sleep

All creditors have a collection process they work through if they don’t hear from you – pretending the debt doesn’t exist will never stop this process. In fact, in most cases it will actually increase to the amount of money that is owed – with surcharges added by collection agencies, the cost of letters from solicitors and bailiffs often adding very large amounts for visiting your home. It is not uncommon for the charges added to an account to be greater than the amount of money that was owed in the first place.

So what about moving to a new house? Surely that will stop the letters? Again, no. If you haven’t given a company your forwarding details they will try to track you down in a different way. It’s not uncommon for customer details to be shared by credit reference agencies across industries for exactly that reason. In this modern world it is virtually impossible to become ‘invisible’ – the act of paying car insurance, taking out a mobile phone contract or paying a utility bill can all lead directly to companies locating you, even if you have changed you name – the debt does not just disappear.

The collection process continues regardless of your location or situation – not updating your contact details means the only person who is in the dark about the owed money is you. What’s more, if you miss a notification that court action is being taken, that court action will almost always proceed without you, meaning that important decisions relating to you and your money will be made without your input.

Delaying action is damaging

It is completely understandable why a person would want to pretend debt does not exist. Money worries are proven to contribute to mental health issues, physical illness, relationship and family troubles and many more areas of distress. However, professionals in any of those areas will always tell you that dealing with the problem is key to your wellbeing.

What’s more, professionals often link the denial of money problems with unhealthy coping strategies. When people can’t ignore the problem any longer it’s not uncommon for a person to seek other ways of coping, often with dangerous lifestyle choices – such as excessive drinking, gambling and even drug use.

The message here is clear – burying your head in the sand and not dealing with companies promptly is highly likely to make your situation worse.

“What can I do?”

The good news is, you have the key to stopping that process at any time – by picking up the phone. It’s completely understandable that the prospect of that might fill you with dread, but people are often pleasantly surprised at the reaction they get when they talk to the companies they owe money to. Remember, you are not in a unique position; there will be thousands, if not tens of thousands of people at any one time who owe that company money.

Often the worry is that picking up the phone will lead to a telling off, conflict, a demand for an unrealistic amount of money – or worse. The important thing to remember is that these companies want you to pay the money, so the chances are you’re going to be talking to someone very reasonable who will be looking to help you come to agreeable solution.

Talking can buy you time

In most cases making that call will stop whichever part of the process is next – if your debt was about to be passed to a collection agency then it’s likely that will be postponed in favour of the agreement you come to on the telephone. If the full amount owed is too high perhaps you could talk about paying smaller amounts over a period of time, or maybe you just need a little more time to reach payday. The person you’re talking to might have some other suggestions.

Debt can have huge implications for your life – the prospect of facing up to the problem can lead to many kinds of emotion – people often talk about feeling upset, angry or embarrassed when it comes to talking to someone. Try to keep your cool, the person you talk to won’t mind if you’re emotional, but being aggressive just won’t help. It is also vitally important that you’re realistic at this stage – telling the person on the other end of the phone that you’ll pay next week is just the same as hiding a reminder in the drawer if you can’t or don’t stick to the plan.

Acting now is important

The long-term consequences of ignoring debt can go much further than just damaging your credit score, so it’s important that you take action. If you don’t feel you’re able to make that call, perhaps talk to a supportive friend or family member who can be with you when you do. If you’re nervous you could ask the representative of the company to confirm your agreements in writing, so nothing slips your mind.

No one likes facing up to debt, especially if there’s a drawer full of letters – but the short term discomfort is a much better option than the consequences of pretending it’s not happening.