The thought of working from home sounds brilliant to most. You get to work from the comfort of your home, not having a commute and no one selling your milk from the communal fridge. But working can lose it’s drawbacks after so long. Here’s how you set up your home office for success.
Understand Where Work Begins & Ends
A common thing that happens when working from home the lines between home and work get blurred. Even though it is your home, do you really think you should be binge-watching Netflix on your sofa, you might be doing work at the same time but do you really need the distraction of your favourite TV show?
Control the number of distractions in your home so you can actually work. Most smartphones have a do-not-disturb function built in, stop procrastination by checking your group chats and playing games on your phone. You can set barriers that block out the distractions. As daft as it may sound, in your home office try closing the door so you’re not bombarded by the kids when they get from after school and other flatmates can’t just wonder in.
Feed Your Brain
Your brain needs fuel to perform to at it’s best and keeping a well-stocked snacks cupboard is a must. Even if it’s just for you that little burst of sugar will keep you fired up. Also, you can drink as many cups of tea and coffee, however, nothing beats drinking water. Keep fresh bottles of water in your fridge to keep yourself hydrated after these effects of being dehydrated can have these effects on your at work.
Have A Break-Out Space That’s Not The Living Room
Another drawback to working from home is you are confined to working your home office and you only meet yourself and who else lives in your house which can be lonely and limit your creativity. Your brain needs new experiences to generate new ideas and find inspiration. Try working from a local cafe for an hour or two. However, you need to think about does the cafe have good wifi? Also when is best to use the cafe? Will you be there at it’s the busiest time like lunchtime? Even if your brain is tired, taking a short walk out or drive to someone with a pleasant view can be enough to refresh and recharge your brain for the rest of the day.
