Working From Home…
I’ve always pictured working from home as a stay-cation from work. Like when you used to have a sick day or maybe a snow day where your office closed (yay!!). You would sit in your pjs all day, catch up on your DVR, & maybe meet your friends for a long extended lunch where there was wine. Well after talking to many people that work from home, this is simply not the case.
Most people feel like they have to work harder when they work from home. Why is that? There is no one standing over your shoulder, no one walking over to see how things are going, or if you look at it this way – no one managing you. While these things technically may be true, I don’t think that is the reason why people have to work harder when they are in a home office. A more accurate picture may involve distraction & motivation.
There are so many distractions at home which can lead to lack of motivation for actual work getting done to completion, with greater motivation to clean that floor or re-organize your closet. And wow, that laundry is really piling up, isn’t it? So what are some things you can do to avoid the common pitfalls of working from home?
- Have a defined work-space. Make sure you have an area dedicated to work and nothing else. Sure, working from your couch which catching up on The Bachelor is fun, but are you getting quality work done? Having an office or designated work-space will help keep you on track and your mind from wandering.
- Wake up like you are going into an office. Set your alarm like you have to be at your office at 8am. Don’t snooze because you know you are just walking into another room. Treat it like you are leaving to go sit in traffic and need to be out the door by a certain time.
- Dress to impress (your computer). Sounds silly but this is a helpful mindset. If you are dressed to be up and out on a workday, you will feel more professional, which is likely to lead to greater success. Again, it’s a helpful way to get you to that mindset of having a full workday and working hard to get stuff done!
- Get out for lunch! It may not be the extended lunch with your friends (and wine!) that you wish it could be, but getting out is a great idea. This will give you a little mind break. If you have this break, you are less likely to get distracted later. It’s all too easy to eat in front of your computer & then go crazy because you need to get up and away from your desk. This is when the Closet Re-do starts calling your name!
Sure. there will be days where you do stay in your pjs or maybe you do run an errand or two. But if you want to be successful working from home, follow these steps, modify them to work for you, and prepare to kick butt!
