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I’ll be honest- when I first started working from home full-time earlier this year, I didn’t have any concern about it being difficult in any way to manage. I certainly didn’t consider any of the tips I’m about to share here, at least not back in April.It turns out I didn’t foresee the personal challenges of working from home because I had quite simply never really done it before in a long-term capacity. The routine I’d relied on for so long of simply going to the office ceased to exist and I found myself in a weird void. All at once, I realized I had been given the gift of more “time” to be more productive, but had no idea why it was difficult to feel like I was using that time to my advantage. I had to change gears.
After implementing some of the following tips, it was easy to see just how much I needed more structure if I was going to keep working successfully from home. Since building some new habits, working from home now feels just as (if not more) productive as being at the office:

  • Add an Extra Monitor

    According to some studies, adding an extra monitor can increase productivity by as much as 30%. Stop switching between tabs and give yourself more “desktop space” to do the tasks you need to do.

  • Take Frequent Breaks

    When you’re working from home, it’s easy to get caught up in tasks and to stay seated for long periods of time. Remember to get up and stretch, drink water, and spend some time away from your phone or computer. If needed, you can even set a timer to remind yourself to take breaks.

  • Don’t Work From Bed

    While wearing pajamas are a perfectly acceptable work-from-home practice (provided you’re not on video camera), working from your bed shouldn’t be. Working surrounded by fluffy pillows isn’t conducive to productivity.

  • Make Lists. Keep Logs.

    While employers have visibility into what you’re doing when you’re in the office; they lose that visibility when you work from home. Make sure to keep track of your tasks and assignments when you’re working from home.

  • Make Sure Your Setup is Ergonomic

    Whether you’re working in the office or at home, it’s important to make sure your setup is ergonomic so you’re not hunching your back to type or craning your neck to look at the screen. Make sure you can comfortably type with a straight back and see the screen without leaning forward.

  • Don’t Overwork

    When you’re working from home, it’s easy to feel like you’re on call 24/7. When you’re done with work and it’s time to clock out, make sure to disconnect and spend time with your loved ones.

  • Get Noise-Cancelling Headphones

    If your kids are home from school and you need to concentrate, consider investing in some noise-cancelling headphones (Not a parent myself, but have been told by people that are that this is very important)

  • Create a Dedicated Space

    Your brain is good at creating patterns. Create a dedicated space for your home office so your brain will recognize it as a place for work and work only.

  • Over-Communicate

    It might sound counter-productive, but when teams are separated, communication tends to break down. Make sure to over-communicate so that everyone is on the same page.

  • Plan Against Distractions

    Distractions will happen. Plan against them by blocking out time for concentrating where you can’t be disturbed. Let your loved ones know that “working from home” means you need to be at work and not doing laundry or picking up the kids from school.

Have you had any challenges with working from home?

What tips do you have for staying productive while working remote?

24 Spice ups
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I would skip the noise cancelling headphones. They may reduce the sound. But, they double the sound pressure on your eardrums. You’ll find yourself with nasty headaches.

I say go with either white noise, music, or something you can easily tune out of your mind.

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  • Add an Extra Monitor

Get a third monitor? Okay!

11 Spice ups
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The acceptable amount of monitors is always one more than however many monitors I have.

4 Spice ups
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Get Noise-Cancelling Headphones

Oh, yes. I just got some myself, and now, my upstairs neighbors are a faint whisper. :slight_smile:

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My biggest challenge.

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16 Spice ups
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Ummm, no, they use out of phase sound to cancel environmental noise. That eliminates the sound. ANC for intercom headsets makes flying in light aircraft FAR less fatiguing, my brother in law is now subject to the bladder capacity limit! I’ve used ANC headsets at home and work for at least four years, might be longer than that.

1 Spice up
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Third monitor is for spooling Kodi? Would likely reduce my productivity.

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5th? I mean, if you’re really twisting my arm, I guess I have to

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The best way to work from home is to have a permanent, separate space available to you.

The parts of my setup and day that work well are as follows. They are not in any particular order except the first item:

  • A proper desk chair with support for the back. Mine is a Steelcase which I got from eBay for £150. Best purchase ever!

  • A multi-monitor setup for work, on arms to reduce clutter and allow almost everything to be in reach (better ergonomically)

  • Sit/Stand desk and taking regular breaks. Get some exercise as doing something physical will help you mentally.

  • Noise cancelling headphones and a decent mic (for meetings)

  • Spend the first 10 minutes or reminding yourself of tasks/deadlines for the day. Tracking this helps you to maintain focus.

  • I am most productive in the mornings so I wake, get ready and then start work. No distractions.

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an odd amount of monitors is usually the best. You need to have a centre monitor or you will always be slightly twisted to whichever screen is your primary. I go with 1 or 3, but have toyed the idea of 6, in two rows of three…

Of course there are times when two is perfectly necessary, like a dual setup for you main machine to allow a third monitor/laptop space for bench work, but three is usually ideal.

Any excuse! :stuck_out_tongue:

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When lockdown started I made a makeshift desk from some spare bits of wood in the garage and an old headboard, and one of the chairs form the dining table, with my laptop and a USB additional laptop screen (both 15.4")

First upgrade was to get a proper monitor (27") as my main screen (still use the other 2 though()

Second was to get a proper desk (as the big screen was causing the headboard to sag in the middle!)

Last was to get a proper office chair.

I’d agree with all the things in the list, but most important is to get the ergonomics of your workstation sorted. Dining chairs and laptops do not do your backs any favours - much better off with firniture designed to do what you’re doing!

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“Working surrounded by fluffy pillows isn’t conducive to productivity.”

Says who?!?!?! :blush:

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at one time, when working from home, I had 5… on 3 machines, running Synergy… so I only had one keyboard and mouse.

2 Spice ups
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I do need another monitor to be productive, will have to get that.

Dedicated work space, will have that when I move next week.

Noise cancelling headphones can’t do that have the kids at home doing remote schooling. Having to much silence would just freak me out being a dad. I instead have bone conductive headphones so I can hear my surrounding.

Frequent breaks check.

Don’t over work…Depending on that week I am definitely in danger of doing that.

Over communicate…well I am not good on that will have to work on it.

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I’ll excerpt from a blog I wrote in April. I have worked remotely for over ten years. Two monitors is a minimum for a decent workflow, home or in the old office. Lots of folks disagree with bullet #3, though. :slight_smile:

  1. Keep defined work hours and communicate them to your work team, as well as your household. For instance, I keep hours of 6 a.m. – 3 p.m. to sync with my team in Texas, who are two hours ahead. I am at my desk and ready to go by 6:00, so I can maintain alignment with their work schedule. But don’t forget to consider that the stress of long hours can weaken your immune system – something you really don’t want to happen right now, so be mindful of how long you are working.

  2. Give your children defined “education hours” if they’re at home right now. Provide a place for them to do their learning, as best you can. Let them learn to be somewhat self-sufficient during your work hours, as their maturity levels allow.

  3. Dress for success. Don’t come to virtual work in your pajamas. Dress as if you were heading in to the office. This is a mental preparation, and your mindset paves the way to a successful day.

  4. Define a work area separate from your other living spaces, if possible. Make sure everyone in the household understands that it’s a different zone and respects it as such.

  5. Protect your eyesight. If you have a monitor, keyboard, and mouse at home, connect those to your laptop or docking station. Laptop screens are too small for most of us, as are their keyboards and track-pads. If you can afford to do so, connect two monitors side by side. I frequently have one for open projects and another for tracking email and video conferencing, which greatly aids productivity.

  6. Let your colleagues know where you are. If you’re away from your desk for an errand or the like, let your manager and reports know. For instance, if someone is looking for you and reaches out to your manager when they can’t reach you, your manager will likely feel a lot more comfortable if he or she knows that you’re away and can communicate when they can expect you to return. Plus, it gives your colleagues the feeling that you’re engaged and working efficiently. Trust me here.

  7. Stand up, stretch and move around every now and then.

  8. Be ready to ditch a poorly performing Internet Service Provider. Your network needs to be able to support your remote work needs reliably and with sufficient upstream and downstream bandwidth. Don’t get stuck with poor service.

  9. Use only company-approved instant messaging and virtual conferencing applications with co-workers. If unsure, ask your IT support.

  10. Eat. Don’t forget to feed yourself. Your brain (and your stomach) will thank you.

2 Spice ups
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When I started working from home in April, I would go to the fridge about 50 times a day. Oh, a spoonful of yogurt won’t be a problem. Look! Hickory smoked almonds. Yea, my favorite cashew butter - well, we’ll just keep that close to the monitor. Then the weight gain - whaa, I can’t even fit into my fat pants? How did that happen?

So it was back to cooking all my lunches on Sunday and only eating what was planned for the work day.

2 Spice ups
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Last year, I decided to buy a laptop as my desktop was going out. I went with a similar model as my work laptop so I could share the docking station. I had 2 monitors, a 27" and a 24", replaced the 24" with a 27". Also bought a similar wireless keyboard and mouse so I wouldn’t have to adjust my typing. For once I was ready for what was to come, working from home since March 20th.

I’m one of those dress for work people. I’ve never been comfortable working from home in my skivvies or PJs. Some people can, but not me. Until recently, I couldn’t create a separate work area/office, my desk was in my bedroom, but I kept my usual hours, and would mentally think I’m going to work, I’m heading home, etc. Getting dressed for work helped re-enforce that separation. My daughter moved to CA in August, and I moved to a new place in August, so the 2nd bedroom is now an office, so it’s even easier to keep work and home separate.

The one I struggle with is getting up and stretching, moving around. I get so focused on resolving an issue, or whatever task is at hand, I don’t think of it many times. That one I continue to work on.

It hasn’t been easy, but I was on a weight loss program before all this hit. And while I’ve had a few more trips to the fridge, I’ve stuck with it and continue to lose weight. Not as much the last couple of months as before, but still a loss. I consider that a win. :slight_smile:

The weird thing that I didn’t expect was that I miss going into work. Well, not so much going to work as being there, talking with friends, going to lunch with friends. I’m an INTP type, and have always been able to deal with being by myself, sometimes it’s been preferable. So it was a bit of a shocker to find myself missing group activities and people. Whaat?

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Over communicating would get my goat (although I do see the point)
talk all day and get nothing done?

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Create a Dedicated Space

I’d love to but we have such tiny houses in the UK there’s no room to do this

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