9 Tips on How to Work From Home From Someone Who Does It Every Day

As COVID-19 slowly begins to affect all of us, many people around the world are finding themselves transitioning from office life to working from home. While doing conferences in your sweatpants can be fun, it’s easy to procrastinate when you’re at home – especially when we’re all anxious and stressed about the state of the world around us. Additionally, it can be hard to set work life and personal life boundaries to achieve that perfect balance. Here are some tips from the pros that have been doing it every day for a while.

1. Keep the 9-5 schedule

Work the same hours you would in an office. If that means a 9-5, do your morning ritual and make a coffee at 9 am, and make sure to shut your computer off and not answer any work emails after 5 pm. If you’re working with someone in another time zone, this can be flexible, but make sure to practice self-care and relax the next day for a bit.

2. Take breaks

Most companies have a policy that allows you to take lunch breaks or a 15-minute pause. Our eyes can easily get tired from the screens on our devices, so make sure to take an hour off for lunch, and some other walks in between to give yourself and your eyes a break.

3. Create rules

If you’re working from home with other people, whether that’s kids who come home or your partner, you need to set boundaries so that you’re not interrupted. Explain to the other people who live in your space that just because you’re working from home doesn’t mean you can pick up slack on pet walks, dishes, or other errands. This will help you stop feeling taken advantage of, and will allow you productivity to thrive.