Are you your own boss? Do you work from home? That includes you, stay-at-home moms and dads! You may love your kids, but let’s not kid ourselves: what you do every day is hard work!

For anyone who has ever had the opportunity to work from home, whether for yourself or for an organization (or for your kids, for that matter), then you know that it can be both a blessing and a curse. The distractions are all around you, and it can be hard to separate your work life from your home life when you are sitting in the midst of your cozy, distraction filled house!

Never has this conundrum been more clear to me than in the last 6+ months. I shifted from working at an office to working for myself, in my very own, very cozy, very distraction filled house.

What I thought would be delightful has interestingly turned out to be quite a challenge! Of course, it has its benefits, to be sure. I get to workout whenever I feel like it, and the hazards of my 30 second morning commute consist only of my ability to make it down the stairs and to my computer without tripping, something I can accomplish 98% of the time. And bras? Who needs em?!

But since I’ve been working from home, I’ve noticed that I’m more critical of myself now than I’ve ever been before (could be the no-bra thing). And without someone telling me what time to come in and go home at the beginning and end of each day, I tend to start working as soon as I get up (around 6:30am or 7am), and continue working straight through to quite close to my bedtime (9 or 10pm). Sure, I get my workouts in (a must), but once the day starts, oftentimes I don’t stop for longer than the time it takes me to prepare my meals (hey – a girl’s gotta eat).

Without someone giving me goals, setting my hours, and even giving me permission to go on vacation, much less “go home” for the day, left to my own devices, I’m a straight up workaholic!

Obviously this approach to working from home isn’t sustainable. So I’ve done some reflecting, critiqued my old habits, and have come up with a list of things to implement in order to work from home in the healthiest possible way (finally)!

Here are 9 tips for mastering the art of working from home:

1. Set a schedule.

Yes, a real schedule. When you had a job in an office or working for someone else (if you ever did), you would have to arrive at a certain time, and most often, leave at a certain time too (they do eventually have to lock the doors, right?). So just because you’re working from home and can come and go as you please, it doesn’t mean you shouldn’t set and stick to a schedule. If you’re not into a traditional 8 hour day, no problem. You’re the boss – you make the rules! Maybe you work 6, or 10, or 12 hours instead! And maybe you don’t work straight through. Maybe you work 2 hours from 6am-8am, then take a workout and breakfast break, and then work again from 11am to 4pm.

Do whatever you want, but definitely make the schedule and stick to it. Setting these barriers is important for your mental health, and helps to create boundaries between work and play. Setting a schedule will also help to give you a sense of accomplishment at the end of the day, because without it, your work life bleeds into your personal life. And when that happens, rather than feeling satisfied for a job well done, you may feel like you still have 10 000 things to do and no brain power or time left in which to do it when the day is through.

2. Resist the urge to sleep in.

It can be quite tempting to sleep in when no one is expecting you to be somewhere. Resist the temptation! Get up early, ready to take on the day, just as you would if you had a job that actually required you to show up at a certain time. It helps to keep a regimen, which in turn helps to keep you productive, committed, and focused.

3. Set deadlines and stick to them.

It’s tempting for me not to set deadlines for myself. After all, I’m the creator of most of the work I do (I write a lot), so in a lot of cases, the only expectations for when my work is due are the ones I set for myself. For example, I post for this blog on Wednesdays. That is a self imposed deadline. But since I’m the boss, I could easily fall into the trap of asking:

Who cares if I don’t post on a Wednesday here and there? In fact, why should I post on a Wednesday at all? Can’t it just be sporadic?

Well no, it can’t. Setting deadlines not only “teaches” people when to look for my posts (thus creating expectation and hopefully, anticipation), but it also holds me accountable. Deadlines also make me reliable, because I commit to doing something by when I say I’m going to do it. And when that happens, I feel great!

Finally, deadlines also serve as great progress gauges. For example, if you’re working on a big project, it can feel overwhelming. But if you break it down into chunks and assign each chunk a corresponding deadline, when you check it off the list, you can puff out your chest and give yourself a pat on the back for a job well done. You’ll get to the next piece tomorrow.

4. Be your own boss.

Obviously when you work from home, you are your own boss. But what I really mean by this is to switch roles from boss to employee throughout the day. Pick 2-3 times throughout the day when you will switch out of employee mode and into boss mode. As a boss, ask: have I eaten yet? Do I need a break? Am I working on the right stuff? Am I being productive? Essentially, check in with yourself to make sure you are on track. Being at home can be very distracting, so it’s easy to get off track. Being conscious of the switch between boss and employee will help you get back on the right one.

5. Dress for success.

When I first started working from home, I thought it was great! It meant I didn’t have to get dressed! Heck – I didn’t even have to wear a bra – score! It got to the point where I would get annoyed if I had to run out to the store or post office because that meant I had to actually get dressed. Boohoo.

Avoid the temptation to dress like you’re going to a yoga class (or bed) if you’re working from home. Dress for success and show up for your day, just like you would if you were going into an office or to meet a client. Something about dressing for the day puts your mind into action mode, makes you sit taller, and creates necessary boundaries in your day. From 8am-5pm (or whatever times you decide on), dress in work clothes, which signals to your brain that it’s time for work. At 5pm, consider switching into your relaxing clothes to signal your brain that it’s time to wind down.

6. Work at a desk.

I worked from the couch for the first few weeks of working from home, and though it was a fun option, it quickly grew tiresome. I had to constantly lean over to grab my tea cup because I couldn’t put it next to me on the couch without spilling it. My papers and other documents were messily strewn on the couch. And all around, it made me feel like I was at home sick for the day rather than really working. Working either at a desk or some kind of table, just like dressing for success, sends a signal to your brain that you are at work. Additionally, you have better posture while sitting at a desk or table than you do slouched over your computer on the couch. Sitting up straight can actually help you think more clearly, thus further helping you to be more productive in your day.

7. Do an energy check in multiple times a day.

This one can actually (and should) be applied to any line of work, home or not. According to Dr. Robert Cooper, of Cooper Strategic, every few hours, you should ask yourself where you are at in terms of Energy and Focus on a scale of 1 to 10 (1 being the worst, 10 being the best). This will awaken a voice in you that causes you to become aware, and to reset yourself if you need to.

It’s much easier to lose energy and focus when you’re at home, since there are so many more opportunities for you to become distracted: dishes in the sink, groceries to be done, laundry to be folded, bed to be made. Distractions are all around you, draining your energy and focus whether you know it or not. So check in with yourself and see where you’re at. Then re-focus, re-energize, and get back to work.

8. Get out of the house at least once a day.

It can be tough to work from home all day, and then switch over to being at “home” and doing “home” stuff, without ever actually leaving that space. You need to create some kind of boundary or break in your day. Get outside. Go for a walk. Or go do some groceries or run an errand. You can do this at any point throughout the day, but I highly recommend doing this at the end of your work day. It further helps to create the shift from work to play.

9. Keep your social calendar active.

When you work from home, you don’t get much interaction with anyone, unless, of course, your team works at home with you. If you’re Hans Solo, you end up talking to the walls, yelling at your computer, laughing to yourself and wishing there was someone around to bounce ideas off or even just to joke around with. Working at home can be very isolating, so make sure to schedule some human interaction as often as possible, and preferably every day. If possible, try to make this someone other than your spouse, kids, or roommate. Heck, you can even go to the grocery store and strike up a conversation with someone in line. I do it all the time! Anything helps.

 

So to all of you fearless leaders, working from home, being your boss, managing your kids’ lives and taking on the world from the comfort of your living room, I salute you! You’re doing great work! And with a little tweaking in the way you work from home, there is no stopping you.

Now if you’ll excuse me, it’s time for a yoga break.

I better grab my bra.

Love, love, love,
Lauren
xxx

Photo credit: Flickr/NeighborhoodNini