Tips to Properly Adjust to Working from Home

Who would have thought that one day we would all be working from home? In theory, this sort of scenario was next to ideal. But now that we’re actually working from home, things aren’t all that perfect, are they?

Many people imagined that working from home means having all the time in the world – to sleep in, to work, to have time to do housework, and to have time for ourselves as well. Now, that we’re working remotely we’re slowly realizing that a day at home has 24 hours just like the one spent in the office. 

If you’ve never worked remotely you’re faced with all kinds of challenges you’ve never even considered. All of these challenges are making it difficult for you to actually work.

So, to help you out, we decided to make a list of all the tips that can help you properly adjust to working from home. Take a look and maybe some of these tips are exactly what you were looking for to make your transition to remote working easier.

1. Set up a workspace

You thought that at home you can practically work from anywhere – even your kitchen counter. But now that you are sitting at the said counter and trying to concentrate on the work at hand you’re realizing that it’s not as you thought it will be. 

Too many distractions, high traffic, and lack of a working station are merely some of the things that are preventing you from your work. This is why the best thing that you can do when working from home is to create a workplace that is only for work.

An actual office-like room would be ideal, but we don’t all have enough space in our homes to dedicate one whole room to our workplace. Because of this, we have to work with what we have. Choose one corner of your home and transform it into a workspace. Add a desk, a chair, your laptop, and all the necessary work equipment and accessories. 

Make a nook in your home where you’ll be able to focus on work and be productive. This is one of the greatest tips when it comes to working from home.

2. Morning routines

If sleeping in was one of the top things you thought you’d be doing when working from home, you’re probably only now realizing that that’s not how things work. 

Sleeping in means losing productive hours, means having to work until late, and means less time for everything else. Sticking to your old routines is highly important now that you’re working remotely. 

Start your mornings as you did before – get up, have breakfast, do exercise, have coffee – whatever you did when you were working from an office. Keeping old morning routines will make this transition seamless. 

3. Try to keep regular hours

Just like sticking to your old morning routine will make your life easier so will keeping regular working hours. 

For many people who have never worked remotely, it’s very difficult to create schedules and working hours while being at home. Life and work often become tangled and your personal life starts bleeding into your work and vice versa. You start working and all of a sudden it’s night time – and you’ve spent the whole day working. Or you started way too late and now you have to work until the wee hours of the night.

This is why maintaining regular working hours is the best solution possible. Work nine to five, and not a minute over it. Do your best to stick to the schedule and you won’t have problems adjusting to working from home.

4. Don’t forget to take breaks

Working your regular hours is ideal but don’t forget to make space for breaks in your schedule. Just like at an actual office, you need breaks from work even at home. 

If you’re working regular office hours, then you can take breaks at the same time you did at work. Take 15 minutes to stretch your legs – take a walk around your neighborhood or maybe meditate. You can go a step further and invest in a coffee machine just like the one you have at the office or at least a similar one. So taking a coffee break will have the same flavor!

Do whatever feels right but never skip a break, they are highly important and useful in our working day.

5. Create a schedule or a to-do list

If you’re having trouble sticking to your old schedule, you can create a new one that will be more appropriate to your current working conditions. 

Create a new schedule that will suit you better and try to stick to it. Having this schedule or a to-do list will keep you focused and productive. Don’t forget to pencil in all the breaks as well!

6. When working from home you need some rules

Working at home when you have kids is especially difficult, but not impossible. All you need are some rules. Make sure your children and your family members know that just because your home doesn’t mean that you’re available. 

Everyone should know what your working hours are and that in that period you’re not available. Make sure your kids know what to do while your working and other family members help you out if they can. 

Having these rules is very important because without them your working day will be complete chaos.

7. Maintain a healthy lifestyle

Another challenge when working from home is maintaining a healthy lifestyle. Working from home means having the fridge and kitchen at hands reach. Without realizing, trips to the fridge can become way too frequent and your diet can suffer a lot. 

So, the question is how do you maintain a healthy life while working from home?

Just like with everything up until now, it takes some adjusting and getting used to. 

Having a fridge so close is tempting, but you can fight off the temptation. Throw out all the unhealthy foods and snacks and stock up your fridge with healthy and nutritious food. If you need to munch on something while working let it at least be something healthy like granola bars, or fruit, or similar healthy foods.

Additionally, you can try to prepare your meals in advance. Take some time to prepare lunch for the next day, that way you won’t have to order unhealthy foods or skip lunches because you don’t know what to eat.

8. Don’t skip exercise

Similarly, just like irregular eating, spending too much time sitting in a chair behind a desk can also hurt your overall health. 

To avoid back and neck pain, and to keep fit you will have to make time for workouts and exercises. Decide which time of the day is the best for exercising and add exercise to your schedule. Never skip an exercise because some sort of physical activity is good especially when you’re spending your days stuck at home, sitting behind a desk. 

You don’t need to go to a gym to be able to workout. Nowadays, there are so many great at-home workout programs. You can do yoga, or you can go jogging or cycling – just don’t go into crowds!

Simply find time to do at least 30 minutes of some sort of exercise and you’ll feel so much better. And your back and neck be thankful, and you’ll be improving your overall health! 

9. Enjoy working at home

At first, working from home will seem complicated and not at all what you imagined. But as you go adjusting and getting used to, you’ll see that there are, in fact, many benefits to working at home. 

There’s much more flexibility, more freedom, and independence – almost like you’re your own boss. So, make sure you take advantage of all the benefits that working from home offers. 

Enjoy it and even have fun while doing it. Organize and schedule your time how you best see fit. 

10. Make time for yourself

Working from home allows you to work on yourself and to make time for yourself. We’re living under very strange circumstances but at least now we can make time to indulge and dedicate time to ourselves.

After a long working day, make sure you do something you enjoy and that relaxes you. Drink a glass of wine, take a long bath, watch your favorite show, simply pamper yourself. This will help you relax and get ready for the next working day.  

Additionally, if you have time, start an online course that you always wanted, learn new skills that will help you professionally, and so on. You can even find more about remote working, what helpful tools people use, and how you can improve your remote work!

The transition from working in an office to working from home hasn’t been easy – especially for those who have never worked like this. Setting boundaries and organizing your whole workday have suddenly become something that you have to do yourself.

Apart from making your own schedules and setting your boundaries, you were confronted with having to motivate yourself and trying to set rules for family members. It must seem like you’ve been given an impossible task and that you’ll never be able to get used to it.

But it’s all in the proper adjustment and good organization. Yes, it will take time until everything falls into place and starts running like a well-oiled machine.

Try to follow at least some of these tips and you’ll see how much better your adjustment to working from home will go. Give it time, we’re all different, and what works for others, may not work for you but at least you’re giving it your best.

Don’t be hard on yourself, you’ll discover all the perks and benefits of working from home, and then going back to an office setting will be the difficult part!

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