Having worked from home for the past 6 years (on two different continents), I’ve managed to learn how important routine is to keep both focussed and disciplined. My wife, on the other hand, worked in an office 25km from our house at one stage and she used her travelling time to shift her focus, let go of home matters and get her mind ready for work. When working from home, I found that I needed to do much the same exercise but without the distraction of a commute. This meant waking up at a similar time to my wife each morning, showering and getting dressed as if I was going into an office or visiting customers. This meant no sitting around in my PJs or gym wear. Next up was a nice cup of tea or coffee and a light breakfast while I settled myself in for the work day ahead.

Equally important for me is a separate work space which is my home office that is dedicated to work – a place where I can close the door and focus on work but equally shut off from the rest of my house. So when I ‘leave’ work for the day, it’s not still part of my home life. Work/life balance is such an important part of working from home as it’s very easy to get absorbed in what you’re doing and forget to take a break, stretch your legs and finish up when you should – working longer hours is so much easier when your ‘office’ is inside your house. One needs to remember to take time for lunch, stretch your legs and even take a walk around the block (or garden/complex during lockdowns such as the current pandemic one) to enjoy a change of scenery and refresh your mind. This is especially important if one is dealing with a complicated project or difficult problem to solve. Sometimes human interaction is one of the most important aspects that are lacking from your day when you work from home full-time. To sort this, one can call a colleague, set up a Teams meeting, go out for lunch and chat to the postie when he comes around.

At the end of the day, simply walk away from your ‘office’, turn off your computer and spend some quality time with your friends or family, not checking your emails, not tempted to finish that last presentation, or just file that last case. And remember to shut the door on your office space.

By Graeme Niss