Working Remotely

For a lot of people the new normal is working from home.  I decided to put together a few tips on making the most out of working remotely.

Keep a schedule.
    This is probably one of the hardest things to do when working from home, especially if you get to work on your own schedule.  People are creatures of habit and building good habits is essential to being productive from home.  Figure out when it is that you need to be in front of your computer and treat it the same way you would as if you where going into the office.  Be on time. Set an alarm and commit to starting work on time every day.  Decide on a time to take lunch and how long you can take for lunch and stick to it.  Decide what time you need to stop working and stick to that too.  Having a consistent quitting time is just as important as having a consistent starting time.  Post the schedule somewhere and maybe even enlist a friend or family member to help hold you accountable.

Take time to schedule things like checking your email.  Set up a specific time, even if it's more than once in a day that you will stop working and check email and messages.  That way you aren't tempted to stop every few minutes to check your email.  Science says it takes 23 minuted to adjust to a change in pace and that multi-tasking is also detrimental to productivity so try to stay dedicated to one task as long as you can.  

Work space should be for work.
    Not everyone is going to have the same resources when it comes to having your own work space so let's start with the ideal situation and work backwards from there.

    In the ideal workspace you'd have a dedicated office to work from at home.  A room with a door that is used exclusively for work. In your home office you would have everything you need to work such as your computer, printer, phone and so on. I'd even suggest having a mini fridge in there with drinks to avoid being tempted to head to the kitchen as often.

    Now, of course not everyone will have the space or money to have a dedicated office at home like this.  In fact I'm willing to bet this isn't plausible for most people. Let's go over some ways to make the best out of the space you do have.

    A dedicated workspace is still important.  Even if this is a computer desk in the corner of your bedroom.  Keep that space, no matter how minimal, for work only.  This is important not only for staying organized but also for separating your work time from your personal time. More on that in a bit.  Don't work from your bed or couch for this same reason.  If you use your computer for both work and personal stuff try having two different user accounts so you can "sign out" of work before making that switch to your personal time.  This will also help with keeping you from being distracted by personal things while working.

    Make sure, as much as possible, that everything you need to do your job is within reach.  Pens, paper, reference material, etc should all be easily accessible.

Work/Life balance.
    This one is especially difficult when working from home.  Try to have a routine that has a very distinct "Work is now" and "Life is now" moments.  Maybe it's when you log into your work profile.  Maybe it's walking around the block once after work is done to create a moment you "come home" from work. It could be something as simple as turning off your monitor and taking 5 minutes to just sit there with your eyes closed.

    This is also why I mentioned not working from your bed our couch.  Not only is this terrible for your posture but it makes mentally separating work and life nearly impossible. Keep things like that for your "Life" moments and your office chair for "Work" moments.

    Special tip form PC gamers: If possible try to have a complete separate computer for work and for gaming. Often times that kind of computer you need for work isn't going to need to be as powerful as your gaming PC. If this isn't possible make sure to separate "work" and "gaming".  Have different user profiles you can sign in and out of.  Take a break between work and gaming.  Go for a walk, go sit on your couch for 10 minutes, anything that makes a distinct separation like that.  Another tip: if you have a gaming PC with adjustable LED colors come up with a color theme that is for work (or have the LEDs off completely for work). Then switch lighting profiles when you come back from your break.

These are just a few ideas to help you out.

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