5 Tips for Working from Home

Rules of Thumb For Working From Home

Create a Work Space 

Creating a work space in your home helps you context switch been work and life. Try to create a space that is out of the main flow of traffic in your house. If you can't, make sure you have a comfortable headset so you can "tune out" the activity of your household. Use a background in your online meetings to keep the activity in your household from being a distraction for others during meetings

Have a Routine

Just like when going into the office, you should try to maintain a routine. Healthy routines provide us with structure. Often, people new to work from home will find their sleep and meal schedules thrown off. Build time into your day to get up and stretch, take a walk, eat, and socialize with co-workers.

Create a Daily Work Plan

When we work from home we are more self-guided. Start your day by identifying the highest priority work you have for the day, and use a simple tool to track your work. Make sure you account for the meetings you have and the parts of your routine that aren't "hands on keyboard"

"Get Ready" for Work

Make the first part of your daily routine getting ready for work. This will help you context switch from being at home to being at work. Plus, you'll feel better. I swear.

Set Good Boundaries

People who are new to working from home tend to work far more than they do when going to the office. When you did go to the office, how many times each evening did you think or talk about a work problem? It's much harder to not act on that when your work space is in your home. You may have to more rigorous to create that separation by turning off notifications on your phone at a certain time every day.