Making Working from Home Work for You

Working from home has become a much more common reality for lots of people. After working from an office for many years, working from home can seem daunting. People wonder (and worry) about how to avoid distractions, limit family interruptions or set a defined work schedule.

Proper routines and habits can come to the rescue when trying to keep work from taking over and remain productive from home. Here are seven suggestions:

1. Get dressed, just as you would to go to the office. Ok, you don’t need to necessarily wear business (casual) attire, but making the transition from pajamas to something else will help establish a working mindset

2. Establish “office hours” and stick to them, just like you would in the office. Let your colleagues and family know what these hours are. You may need a device to remind them (and yourself!) when you are at work. Try a paper sign that says “At work” on your door or workspace, or a partition that you can use to close off your workspace when you are using it.

3. Likewise, dedicate an area to do work and nothing else. Your work area doesn’t need to be a walnut-panelled office. If you can create a space that you can use only (almost) for work, it will help you mentally distinguish work time from non-work time. And, it absolutely cannot be your bed!

4. Set guidelines with whomever you live. Make it abundantly obvious to them when you are working, and when they can reasonably interrupt you. For example:

After all, you wouldn’t ask the two items on the right if I had gone to the office, would you?

Ignore calls unrelated to work, as you would do if you were in the office.

5. Schedule breaks, preferably with human interaction. I will sometimes have lunch with my wife, after which I’ll tell her “I’m going back to work. See you tonight.” This reminds both of us when I am and am not in work mode.

6. At the end of your scheduled day, Shut. The. Laptop. Off. Be assured, your work will be there in the morning. Sticking to a quitting time allows you to transition back to your personal life.

7. Commuting home from the office can be a great time to decompress and allow the stress of the day to melt away. Plan for an alternative activity when you work from home. You could take a short walk or run, try mindful meditation, put on headphones and listen to music or a podcast or even just take a shower.

There are many advantages to working from home, such as saving commuting time, having a more flexible schedule or avoiding office distractions. But, it takes some discipline to ensure that you not only work efficiently, but also don’t let your work become your whole life. Establishing some routines, boundaries and habits will give you the structure you need to maintain a good work/life balance during this time.