Top Tips For Working From Home

I have worked from home since 2012 as I went from an office (brick and mortar) job to an office job from home working for a worldwide company. As people are now electing or being forced to work from home, I thought I would write about my top tips for working from home. Hoping this might help you go from an office setting to a home working setting.

Top Tips For Working From Home

Create your home office space

Whilst not everyone has the luxury of having their own home office, having a dedicated workspace is really important when you want the comfort of working from home.

Having a space away from your everyday life is going to help you concentrate and stay focused at work.

This is going to be a space that should not interfere with what is going on around the home. A bedroom, a dining room or a corner of the house where you can set up yourself ready for work.

Get a comfy chair, a desk or a table you are comfortable working on and ensure you are under optimal comfort.

You might need a computer, computer tools for your home office and a phone, plus other office accessories that you need.

Create a relaxing environment

Working from home sounds great, but it can be isolating and if there is a situation going on, you don’t have the usual support you have available in an office.

Many people struggle to be alone, so creating a relaxing environment will help you feel calm and give you the ability to think clearly.

Having things around you that bring you positive vibes are always a good thing to start off with. Pictures of the family, memories or mementos that are close to you. Even crystals, reed diffusers and things to bring you comfort. A calming office is the go-to option for someone who spends a lot of their time in the office.

Get some good coffee, you will never want to go back to the office coffee once you have got a good coffee at home.

Make sure you have a plant or 2, this will help keep the air cleaner and give you a little energy.

Learn how to decorate your office like a boss!

Avoid Feelings Of Isolation

Isolation is the make or break for working from home. This is one of the top reasons that people don’t last in remote or home working positions. There are many ways you can combat the isolation whether you do this with people in your office or people you know. Maybe even people you have never met.

Just lately I have seen posts being shared on LinkedIn and Facebook with groups for people to talk on platforms like Slack, Discord or Google Hangouts where people can get together online and chat. This is the perfect way to communicate with people, even people you have never met before.

Maybe ask people around or give them a call during breaks or when you are not working just so you have someone to talk to. Chat to people online through Facebook, Twitter or other platforms.

Just keep in mind for some people it can be isolating, so if you feel it is affecting you, start reaching out to people. If you know someone is being affected, then reach out to them.

You can click here for some remote working Slack groups!

Check out an experts guide to working from home!

Self Management and Motivation

I get that it can be hard to manage and motivate yourself, especially when you had someone almost doing it for you. But there are many ways to get yourself motivated and manage your time accordingly.

You might be used to being delegated work or having someone to notify you of the call queues. But now you need to be your own motivation and your own manager.

The easiest way I found was to get a to-do list book and write down everything I needed to do. You want to think of easy ways to motivate yourself and keep you active and focused.

Keep your routine the same, don’t start waking up later because you can. Maybe an additional 15 minutes, but get up, get washed, dressed and instead of rushing out for work, now you can sit back and enjoy a coffee.

Changing your routine can make it harder when going back to the office environment. Keep a similar routine as much as possible.

Have Your Breaks!

You might roll your eyes and think of course I am going to be having my breaks. But trust me, after a couple of weeks, you will be forgetting or just not bothering. Breaks are very important as it gives your eyes a rest from the screen. Gives your fingers some time to rest and recharge ready for another onslaught of typing.

Get yourself a coffee break, give yourself a few minutes to take a breather. Make sure you are eating regularly.

It’s easy to skip a meal because you want to get something finished. Trust me, I have done it many times.

So make sure you are taking regular breaks because not having the time off will cause you problems down the line and the stress will increase.

Hopefully, the above steps will help you with remote working and give you some tips for working from home.

Keep yourself moving!

Keeping yourself moving is really important and there are desk exercises and desk yoga which can play a large part in creating a calm atmosphere. But also keeping you motivated.

Stand yourself up now and again, have a little walk around your desk and keep your legs moving.

This is really important for keeping yourself happy and healthy.

Get those endorphins going so you feel happier as well as taking care of your body.

Are you working from home? How are you finding it?

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