Working from Home (How to Create a Home Office Oasis)

If you’re like a lot of the population, your job has suddenly gone virtual. While some people dream of the opportunity to ditch rush-hour traffic and answer email while in their pajamas, working from home isn’t always easy (or fun, for that matter). 

It takes discipline and hard work to stay on task in a space that used to be your safe haven from the office. Plus, now your co-workers could be your partner, your kids and/or your pets — and they all want your attention too. 

But never fear! I have a few tips to help you work from home, set yourself up for telecommuting success, and be the #1 boss babe of your living room office. 

Get ready to work It, Girl! (From Your Home Office Oasis). 

First of all, get dressed every day for work. You don’t need to dress up (or you can if that’s your jam!), but you should at least change out of your pj’s. It will make you feel so much better — and lend your day toward more productivity, I promise. 

Space Saver

Just like we’ve discussed before, creating a sacred space for peaceful meditation or efficient sleep is vital — and the same goes for creating a sacred space for work. Create a devoted corner of your house or apartment for your productivity. 

If you don’t have a desk at home, pick a well-lit spot to work from that is away from distractions and NOT inside your bedroom if at all possible. The last thing you want to associate bedtime with is tomorrow’s to-do list. You want to have enough room to spread out your office necessities, like your laptop, your notebook, important paperwork, your coffee, etc. — and ideally a comfy chair with good back support. 

If you live with other people, set clear guidelines around when you’ll be working and how you need them to honor your space while you’re “in the office”. But don’t forget to do your part too, by creating a way to let them know you’re busy, like a sign on the door or a “working hat” you wear when you cannot be disturbed. This will save everyone from embarrassment the next time you’re on a video conference with your boss and/or colleagues. 

Make your space cozy too! Use a white noise machine to block out any sounds from your neighbors. Sit by a window with a nice view and natural lighting. Turn on some working music.  Spotify has lots of playlist options, but I recommend picking easy listening or cool lounge music (think of the music that plays in Starbucks – which also has playlists on Spotify), or forgo lyrics altogether and listen to classical music or movie scores. But if you can still stay on task belting out Madonna — have at it! 😉 

At the end of the day, you want to be able to close up shop and turn your attention toward winding down.

A big complaint from regular telecommuters is not having a distinct enough separation between work and home life. To help you maintain a good balance, if your space is in another room, close the door when you’re not working. If your desk is out in the open, put your laptop in a drawer when you’re not using it, or block off your desktop monitor behind a picture or even a scarf or sheet.  If you’re working on a surface that doubles as something else, like a dining room table, use a box, basket or even a backpack to pack up all your materials at the end of the day and keep them together. The goal here is out of sight, outta mind. 

Daily Roadmap

You probably already know how much I love having a morning and evening ritual. They help you gently prepare for big transitions in your day. Routine is also super important when you’re working from home because, again, you want to maintain a good work-life balance. 

Since you’re not spending hours in the car commuting to work, use that time instead to start your day with intention.

Cook a healthy breakfast for yourself or with your partner/family. Walk your dog. Journal. Practice a short yoga sequence. Meditate. Choose whatever activities bring you joy. The only rules are 1) no work, 2) no phone scrolling and 3) no news. 

Schedule your day as well. If you normally work 9 to 5, stick to that schedule. Communicate with your boss or employees (you badass CEO, you!) to make sure everyone is on the same page as far as when you’re expected to be available and how people can reach you. 

New Kids On The Block

There are lots of methods to manage your time wisely and be more efficient. I am a big fan of batching similar tasks together and allotting blocks of time in my calendar to get them checked off. For example, if you have to make 3 short phone calls, do them in succession. You already have your phone out and ready to go, so the process will go faster and smoother. Estimate how long it will take you to complete the calls – let’s say 15 minutes total – and block that time off in your calendar. 

Or if you need to answer emails from clients promptly, but your inbox is always interrupting you while you’re on another task, block time specifically for checking email. And (here’s the hard but important part), only check your inbox during these blocks! 

If you use an online calendar or a paper planner, you are already familiar with using “blocks” to schedule your time. But with Block Scheduling, you’re planning for tasks as well as appointments. After all, there are only so many hours in the day, and this method helps you prioritize your to-do list and maximize your time. If something takes longer than you have time available, you know you either have to reorganize your day, delegate, or turn it down (if you can). 

P.S. You may want to tackle your hardest or most important project first thing. However, studies have found that doing a few short, easy tasks beforehand helps create the momentum you need to tackle a larger, more time-consuming task. 

Sanity Breaks

One of the biggest misconceptions about working from home is that you now have lots of free time since you make your own schedule, but many people find they work even longer hours when they telecommute. Why? Because working in an office with co-workers comes with built-in breaks — like conversations about how everyone’s weekend was, why they haven’t watched Tiger King yet and how the heck TikTok works. 

So, be sure to take regular breaks throughout the day. Get out of your chair and move around. Make a snack. Have a 5-minute dance party in your living room. Plan a virtual lunch date with a pal. Give yourself some space to goof off (a little). And make sure you put those breaks in your calendar!

It’s important to remember that this is a tough time for the whole world. Your energy and spirit may be diminished, so it’s important to cut yourself some major slack!  You can be grateful to still have a job and also overwhelmed. 

So make sure to also block out time for yourself, even if it’s just to sit down and finally watch Tiger King. ????

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Are you already a pro at working from home? Please share your favorite tips in the comments below! 

LOVE + countless coffee breaks!