So, company is moving office locations this week. New digs are more modern, more collaborative (open), etc. etc., but we all know it’s really about reducing rent. There are intentionally not a 1:1 between seats and people in the new location, and not enough closed offices for folks that currently have offices (I currently have a corner office / brag).
I opted out of having an office in the new location since most of my work is at a client or over phone, video, with people elsewhere and it was silly to commute to an office to make phone calls and emails. Gotten the ok to be remote / work from home.
The occasional day of working from home has admittedly been pleasant, but also less productive. Felt more like being on vacation, with the periodic check-in to the office. Starting next week I’ll officially only have a home office.
My wife is worried about me working full time from home. Warranted? Will I turn into an unshowered sloth? From folks that do it, any suggestion/advice on how to work from home on a regular basis and still do well?
You need a dedicated home office space with a closed door, a family policy that when in your home office your are effectively “in office” (like you’d be at an office), and when the door is closed you are not to be disturbed. It might sound weird, but if the family wants you it may be best for them to text you rather than knock or just walk in.
What will assist your own well-being is to effectively unitask on projects. By that, have a singular focus on one customer, one project, one task at a time. Having a small meditation practice will help focus and tune out the distractions. But, don’t be afraid to get some productivity walks into your day, or “schedule” break times into your day. I find that with new projects I start with the background information or a customer call and let the information marinate inside me for a bit before moving forward. It keeps me able to pre-think about contracts or customer situations I’ll need to handle or author. Not done right at home, it may take me a full day to laboriously pound out a contract. Pre-planning the project allows the ideas to ruminate and then when I have focused time I can pound it out in an hour (versus 8 hours).
It can be nice also having dual-screen monitors and a docking station at home to spread work out across multiple screens. However, it is also a challenge not to sit on a conference call and be “note-taking” (read: half listening) while surfing on the other. That won’t fly for productive work, and it shortchanges yourself in the long-run.
So: dedicated space, close-able door, think-time, family rules on contact and minimize the digital distractions. Also, set firm rules to yourself about when you work; set a work schedule at home too otherwise you may be “working” (read: futzing about on work tasks but not really focused) at all odd hours. You won’t really be productive but you’ll convince yourself you’re “working” while really just not be leaving work behind. This = productive home office.
It is also nice to go into the office occasionally and work out of a guest cube. It does keep you in touch, it does let your co-workers and bosses know you care, the office gossip actually is a benefit once in a while and it is a good reminder how much remote work can be a blessing.
For me, I had to leave the TV off. Even having something like Sportscenter on would distract me pretty easily. Radio was fine, but no video.
I would put some music on because it was odd not having any other humans around. After that, it was just completing my tasks for the day. Typically I could work faster at home without distractions so ultimately I put in less hours but it worked for everyone.
I would get up and shower every morning, just to stay in the routine. The nice thing was that I could go workout at “lunch” or run errands as needed.
It might be worth going in the office occasionally just to see some people and feel normal.
If you’re a “corner office” guy, I probably won’t be able to help much.
I call myself something different every time I post, and these days its “database programmer.” My job is a little less organizational and task oriented, and more “figuring out a puzzle.” I more or less work as the mood strikes me. This means my work day is really 10am - 1am, but I work when it makes sense. Often times I’ll get frustrated with slow servers and just decide to get my bike ride in and then check back in after my shower.
Having said that, I generally give myself daily goals. I really want to have this piece of the program written by the end of the day. Or I want to have this dashboard finished by tomorrow afternoon. etc.
Fishgo hit the salient points. I would emphasize, set those family boundaries. I work from home every Friday and when necessary. During the school year it’s never a problem as the wife and kids are at school (wife is a teacher), and I’ve built into my Friday routine a few household chores that keeps me busy enough I am not thinking about any other housework or honey-do list stuff, and my wife knows not to expect me to be available to during the day.
My schedule is a little easier as we have a 12 hour business window, I just need to clock 8 hours during that window, so I have some flexibility.
I have office in my home for 20+ years. I don’t find it a problem.
My wife works for an international firm and has officed in the home for 4 years. No problem.
As stated above, you need a dedicated office space. Then simply do your work. We live on a large, beautiful lake. Lots of distractions. About 50% of the neighborhood works, many of them with home offices, and those that don’t know not to text us for a boat ride during working hours.
Get a hotspot on your phone for when your internet is down.
Forgot that one. Good point, I have a phone-plan hotspot and a separate MIFI. I have great upload/download speeds from my internet provider, so VOIP conference calls aren’t a problem. However, home internet providers cut out much more often than commercially-supplied pipes. Outages on conference calls need a backup.
Also, while most of my working environment is digital, I have a good old notepad beside the mouse. On it I’ll write out the daily to-do tasks (work and/or home). It feels so good crossing each task off the list on a daily basis.
You need a dedicated home office space with a closed door, a family policy that when in your home office your are effectively “in office” (like you’d be at an office), and when the door is closed you are not to be disturbed. It might sound weird, but if the family wants you it may be best for them to text you rather than knock or just walk in.
This, I have had the option of working from home for many years, and to some level is it a running joke about those “working” from home for a day. Cause yeah productivity is down.
If your going to do it full time, I would agree you need to have an office at home that you go to and the Fam needs to know when your in the office, your at work. Oh and congratulate your employer they just took there overhead cost of office space and effectively took it from your salary cause now you get to pay for it.
I don’t work from home usually, except for the occasional day (usually weather-related). Good points have been brought up already, but I thought I’d add that a guy I know works from home all the time, apparently successfully. He gets showered and dressed for the office every morning, and actually commutes to “his office”. Literally gets in his car, goes to Tim Hortons for his coffee and whatever, then comes back and goes in the side entrance to his office.
. . . Oh and congratulate your employer they just took there overhead cost of office space and effectively took it from your salary cause now you get to pay for it.
Thanks everyone for all for points made so far.
I don’t think I have enough clout to negotiate a salary bump equivalent to my overhead costs. However, they are providing the tech - dual monitors, docking station, etc. I can ask for a varidesk thing too (I passed).
Anyone know of tax implications? Do you guys somehow deduct the cost of the home office setup and it’s use?
So, company is moving office locations this week. New digs are more modern, more collaborative (open), etc. etc., but we all know it’s really about reducing rent. There are intentionally not a 1:1 between seats and people in the new location, and not enough closed offices for folks that currently have offices (I currently have a corner office / brag).
I opted out of having an office in the new location since most of my work is at a client or over phone, video, with people elsewhere and it was silly to commute to an office to make phone calls and emails. Gotten the ok to be remote / work from home.
The occasional day of working from home has admittedly been pleasant, but also less productive. Felt more like being on vacation, with the periodic check-in to the office. Starting next week I’ll officially only have a home office.
My wife is worried about me working full time from home. Warranted? Will I turn into an unshowered sloth? From folks that do it, any suggestion/advice on how to work from home on a regular basis and still do well?
I spend a fair amount of time working for home. IMO the key is to have a routine. Act as though you’re going to the office: shower, shave, dress (for me I might have to meet a client at a moment’s notice), go into your office, and put any housework on the back burner. Keep the clear divide between work and home… even though you’re home. Make it clear to wife, kids, dogs, cats, hedgehogs, etc. that while you are at “work” it’s no different than if you were in the office. Enjoy not having to commute.
Congrats on your new home office! I LOVE working from home. My husband also works from home as well which is fun. For me it’s been over 2.5 years and I’ll never go back to an office environment or cube farm ever again. I’m an introvert and this works great for me. I hate small talk and having to deal with office mates. Other benefits: no noise, no stinky food, face-to-face meetings are a thing of the past, “how was your weekend” is not asked as much when most of your team telecommutes, no more packing a lunch and workout clothes, no more commuting in bad weather, etc). The other huge benefit is more time and flexibility for training. I can do a 90 minute run at lunch or do a fun cross bike ride and just work a little later at my desk. It’s pretty sweet.
Some advice:
Have your own private home office where you can shut the door and have privacy and peace and quiet from other family members. My husband talks loudly on his webex calls so I just shut my door.
Have a yoga mat handy where you can sneak in some core/strength work. I do some core work with my headset on certain webex calls. It’s hilarious but a good use of time. Even if you are not on a webex, just 10-15 minutes here and there adds up and gives you a nice mental break.
Swimming with an early morning masters group a couple times a week gives us an opportunity to socialize with like-minded people. Otherwise I see no one in the winter months (except for the odd beer here and there with a few friends once in a while. But I am a home-body and prefer to stay home)
My husband has run dates with a friend once a week in the afternoon. That gives him another opportunity to socialize while being active. He’s more social than me. I am happy to train alone except for the pool where I see other people.******
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I used to forget to brush my teeth sometimes on the days we didn’t get to the pool. Have a certain time to brush your teeth, like maybe after your second cup of coffee. I know it’s gross but surprisingly it can happen when you roll out of bed, make coffee and sign onto your work computer in your pajamas.
Take a shower even on your rest days from training. It’s also easy to forget but I feel so much better
It’s easy to spend too much time on social media and ST like I’m doing now with my personal laptop sitting right next to my work laptop and screens :-). It’s a slower time at work right now but I should put some limits on this use of my time.
Some remote workers get lonely and miss the social aspect of the office. I don’t. Not one bit. But it’s something to consider if you enjoy the social aspects and friendships from working in an office. Nothing wrong with that. We are all wired differently.
Enjoy it! I go to bed feeling grateful every night. No joke!
You’ve received some good advice, but I’m going to be a little bit contrarian. First, figure out what works for you. I’m self-employed, so I definitely have more flexibility than being an employee someplace.
Here is my approach (in no certain order):
The work that has to get done during “business hours” gets done then, otherwise, I schedule it how I feel like it. I have no routine, I loathe them, I like variation.My work is not routine, so sticking to one isn’t as crucialI’m accustomed to working late, I can be insanely productive between 10 pm and 2 am. If I sleep in until 9 and don’t start the next day until 9:30, so be it.I don’t always shower or shave, especially if I’m hitting the pool often. Yeah, it’s a risk that you might miss a shower. If you need to do video calls, then I wouldn’t skip it.Speaking of pool, I work out mid-day 3 times per week, it’s awesome. I usually make sure to talk to clients on my way to and from the workout, minimizes downtime, and I tell them I’m running into a meeting when it’s time to jump in. Running errands during the middle of the day is sometimes soooo much easierI have my own workspace, but the dogs are allowed to hang out and watch me work. It’s only annoying when they get stir crazy and start playing / barking when I’m on a call (clients know I’m at home, so it’s not a complete shock if it happens). Always be ready to hit the mute button.Phone calls can be a great time to do things around the house, depending on if you need to be in front of your computer.Since I work on many different clients, I like to just set blocks of time to just focus on a set of problems for a particular client, you still want to be in control of your schedule. The last thing you want is to let people control you by assuming that if they email or call you, that you can always immediately jump on it (if it isn’t urgent).I definitely take time during the day to enjoy life, within reason, but I’m also okay with doing the work outside of normal hours.
Good luck, enjoy the freedom, you don’t have to commute now, which will save you time and $.
I have recently started this also within the last 18 months and I could say:
separate room for office, with lock.
ground rules for family as to when you will and will not be available
ground rules for family as to when the kids can have friends over (they get loud and having screaming in the background on conf calls is a bit embarrassing)
i work substantially better when I stick to routine - gym, shower, DRESS not necessarily in work clothes, but at least not in PJ’s.
schedule in coffee breaks to get away from desk
enforce the work hours. If you are paid for 9-5, dont slip in to working 6am-8pm… its all too easy…
fortnightly calls with your direct manager or team to keep them in the loop and to ensure they dont get the impression you are slacking off.
Do NOT go out to the kitchen, take a look at the state of the counter and start to clean.
Do NOT go out if you can hear children screaming and wife talking to children.
Do either of the above or something like and the wife will say “This is my job and role, dont you get involved, just go work.”
Especially dont say something like “well if I come out to get coffee and the place is a mess Im going to clean, wtf do you do all day anyways?”
Fishgo hit the salient points. I would emphasize, set those family boundaries. I work from home every Friday and when necessary. During the school year it’s never a problem as the wife and kids are at school (wife is a teacher), and I’ve built into my Friday routine a few household chores that keeps me busy enough I am not thinking about any other housework or honey-do list stuff, and my wife knows not to expect me to be available to during the day.
My schedule is a little easier as we have a 12 hour business window, I just need to clock 8 hours during that window, so I have some flexibility.
agreed w MCK and Fishgo here. Setting boundaries–office door is closed then don’t ‘drop in’ unless it’s an emergency. I worked for about four years from home supporting FEMA Regions 4 and 6 on HX preparedness. About two weeks a month i was on the road and the other two weeks i was working from home. Really liked it. I played TV in background unless i was on conference call. My main problem–being out in BumFk Ga countryside–was internet connectivity. In the afternoons all summer long I’d be forced offline as the thunderstorms rolled in. Sometimes i had to take a laptop up to the big city of LaGrange and fire up the VPN at the StarBucks there for critical meetings/email exchanges.
So, company is moving office locations this week. New digs are more modern, more collaborative (open), etc. etc., but we all know it’s really about reducing rent. There are intentionally not a 1:1 between seats and people in the new location, and not enough closed offices for folks that currently have offices (I currently have a corner office / brag).
I opted out of having an office in the new location since most of my work is at a client or over phone, video, with people elsewhere and it was silly to commute to an office to make phone calls and emails. Gotten the ok to be remote / work from home.
The occasional day of working from home has admittedly been pleasant, but also less productive. Felt more like being on vacation, with the periodic check-in to the office. Starting next week I’ll officially only have a home office.
My wife is worried about me working full time from home. Warranted? Will I turn into an unshowered sloth? From folks that do it, any suggestion/advice on how to work from home on a regular basis and still do well?
Worked from home for 4 years. The bold portion above goes away after a while.
Also agreed on ensuring you have a dedicated space. The trick for me was signing off for the day. Not that I do that well in my current office based role once home but with your entire office at the house it was much more tempting/easy to jump back in the office and take unnecessary time away from the family (ie shit that could have waited until the next morning).
I don’t know how many video appointments I’ve run with a dress shirt up top and shorts/flip flops below…but it’s a lot (I really liked that part).
Also walking the dog/going for a run/whatever you like to do that is easier to do at home is a really nice bonus to be able to pull off at lunch.
everything everyone else has written + the further your office is away from the fridge, the better. I currently have a backyard office that puts me a crucial 30 steps further away from a snack.
I have recently started this also within the last 18 months and I could say:
**- separate room for office, with lock. **
ground rules for family as to when you will and will not be available
ground rules for family as to when the kids can have friends over (they get loud and having screaming in the background on conf calls is a bit embarrassing)
i work substantially better when I stick to routine - gym, shower, DRESS not necessarily in work clothes, but at least not in PJ’s.
schedule in coffee breaks to get away from desk
**- enforce the work hours. If you are paid for 9-5, dont slip in to working 6am-8pm… its all too easy… **
fortnightly calls with your direct manager or team to keep them in the loop and to ensure they dont get the impression you are slacking off.
Do NOT go out to the kitchen, take a look at the state of the counter and start to clean.
**- Do NOT go out if you can hear children screaming and wife talking to children. **
Do either of the above or something like and the wife will say “This is my job and role, dont you get involved, just go work.”
Especially dont say something like “well if I come out to get coffee and the place is a mess Im going to clean, wtf do you do all day anyways?”
Last part is tongue in cheek but also dont do it…
3 very important points here ^
Otherwise just enjoy it. Work is just what you have to do to pay for the fun stuff, now you save all that commuting time and get a better work-life balance. Celebrate by going for a bike ride in the sun in the middle of the morning
