How to Work at Home and Stay Focused
Working at home is everyone’s dream: flexible hours, family time, the comfort of your living room, and you don’t even have to get dressed. The problem is that when faced with the choice between working and doing anything else, most of us will gravitate toward the distraction. Here is how to work from home and actually accomplish something.
1. Keep your morning routine. Get dressed. Have breakfast. Do everything you would do as if you were going to leave the house, and then skip the step of commuting.
2. Create a fixed workspace. Work in your home office, or if you live in a smaller residence, designate a table or a desk as your work desk.
3. Make sure that you choose a low-traffic location. Don’t set up your office next to the television, the kitchen, or any place where people will be entering and exiting frequently. If this is not possible, make your workspace off limits to family at certain times of the day to minimize distractions.
4. Create a daily schedule. You know when your family needs you and when the house is quiet, so plan accordingly. This will force you to be more productive during certain times of the day and make you less frustrated at other times when you get little accomplished.
5. Stay organized. Create short-term and long-term goals for yourself. The short-term goals can be as simple as daily “To Do Lists” that will lead to your long-term goal.
Comments
I've worked from home for 6 years. I have a set schedule (am not self-employed... I telecommute and must be working when main office is open). I find it pretty easy to concentrate, but I am very much a work-a-holic.
I think a lot of it depends on the person. I have worked from home for over 10 years now and I don't follow a set schedule at all. It may be the nature of my work, but I sometimes do the best work late at night and sometimes in the morning. More important to me than sticking to a schedule is recognizing and following my internal signals.
I choose to sleep from home.
Or, if you can, hang that "Do not Disturb" doorknob sign.