4 Simple Tips to Successfully Work from Home

For 20 years, I’ve had a home office so the new “stay at home” policies of 2020 haven’t changed my daily schedule too much. When Nancy Cowles at KID suggested I write about working from home efficiently so I could share some insight into how to do it successfully, I didn’t really think I had anything to share. I’ve been doing it so long that it’s just second nature. For some people though, working from home is completely new and even a bit scary. Since one of my core values is to keep it simple, I decided to share these very simple steps that I follow on a daily basis. Just as the CDC says to wash your hands to help stay healthy, here are 4 basic steps to work from home successfully:

1. Designate your office space
Whether it’s a section of your dining table with a laptop and a few sheets of paper or your own personal desk, make it the space where you get your work done. If you have your whole family at home, let them know that’s where you are working and when you’re sitting there, make sure you are getting your work done. Scrolling through your junk mail, looking at emails and links about store sales, and getting sucked down the rabbit hole of clicking until you forget where you started, doesn’t qualify as getting work done in your designated office space. Save that for your down time!

2. Make a list
Seeing a list of the work you need to do for each day will help you to focus. For me, I’m a Mac user so I like to use the notes app. It can be edited from anywhere on my mobile phone and printed out from my computer. I tried to make a digital list to save on ink and paper, but personally, having a list that I can check off keeps it in front of me no matter what screen I’m on and it’s a satisfying sense of accomplishment to check things off.

3. Take breaks
Yes, it seems obvious, but how many times have you sat down with your phone or computer and suddenly realized that you were on it for two hours or more, you didn’t really feel like you did anything worthwhile, and you were stiff and uncomfortable? One way that I break up my screen time is to drink water. (Maybe that should be it’s own bullet point?)... if you drink a big glass of water, it’s good for you and it makes you need to get away from your computer to use the bathroom. After you use the bathroom, drink another glass of water and go back to your desk. Do you see a pattern starting? Alternatively, you could do laundry while you work. Every time you put a load in the washer, you will need to take a break to put it in the dryer. Then, you need to take another break to fold your clothes. Make sure you fold each load as it comes out. It forces you to take a break from work and it’s satisfying to have all of your laundry done and folded at the end of the day.

4. Finish and “go home”
Don’t let your work space consume your personal life. You need to keep the two separate in order to keep your sanity and sense if we’ll being. If you have on your list to take a walk at 5:00pm, wrap up your work, shut down your computer for the day and know that you are done working for that day. Don’t keep your computer on and keep hanging out at your designated office space until all hours because it will make you feel like you’re missing something and that would be your personal time. It’s important to separate your work time from your personal time in some way. Sure, some days you have work you need to get done in the evening but that shouldn’t be every day. Make time for your personal well being and your family and friends. FaceTime them if they are far away. Schedule your personal time so work doesn’t overwhelm you!

So go ahead and get started. Here’s your quick and easy assignment to work successfully from home today - find a space, make a list, take breaks and “go home” when your work is done!

These are 4 simple tips that work well for me. I hope you find them helpful too.