Am I the only one who dislikes working from home? Don’t get me wrong, it sure is nice to stay in my pajamas all day, have endless access to my fridge and be able to take a mid-afternoon ride on the peloton, but working and living in the same space has proven to be a challenge in more ways than one. I miss meeting my clients face-to-face, getting inspired from cute workspaces around the city and knocking out my to-do list from my favorite coffee shop (until my laptop dies and have to resort to fighting for the one available outlet.)

 

Ugh, I miss those days.

 

All jokes aside, if you’re new to the WFH life — whether due to the coronavirus or because you’ve recently transitioned to a remote position — it’s important to establish a routine and work on developing successful habits that makes working from your kitchen table (or if you’re lucky a home office!) a success! 

 

Lucky for you, I have become quite the expert at working remotely, so I’m here to share a few ways to make the work from home life work for you and your lifestyle — and thrive while doing it! 

 

Develop a Morning Routine 

You’ve heard it a million times over, but developing a routine that gets you excited to start the day sets you up for success. My perfect morning starts with getting ready, lots of water, an aesthetic cup of coffee, my favorite vitamins from Ritual and Seed, taking my dog outside, gratitude journaling and checking my Things App. Rolling out of bed because you overslept and stumbling to your computer is not the best strategy and most likely will set you up for a more stressful day. Decide what works for you and do it consistently! 

 

Maintain Regular Hours 

While one of the best benefits of working from home is flexibility, creating a guideline on when it’s “work” time and when it’s “your” time is essential. One of the best ways to set your schedule is to figure out which hours of the days you are most productive. More of a morning person? Get up early and get to work. More of a night owl? That’s totally acceptable too — just be sure that you’re taking advantage of the times you’re hyper focused! 

 

Have a Designated Work Space

Not everyone has the luxury of having a home office or a standing desk (#goals)  but you can establish a spot in my home or apartment that makes you excited to sit down at your desk and get to work every day. I can’t tell you how much of a difference it made in my productivity and work ethic when I stopped working from bed and designated my kitchen table as my new home office. Groundbreaking, I know.

Productivity hack: Clear off your space, put on some nice jazz music (love this playlist!) and light a candle. It makes a world of difference! 

 

Schedule Breaks 

The sad reality of working remotely is that you no longer have co-workers stopping by your desk to catch up from the weekend or invite you to a company wide lunch. (Although my dog loves to interrupt me every now and then!) We’re all under so much stress right now so we encourage you to schedule a zoom call with your co-workers for non-work related catch ups or go for a walk with a friend during your lunch break. Naps are great too. You see, taking breaks improves your productivity! 

 

End Your Day With A Routine 

Just like your morning routine signals the start of the work day, creating a routine when signing off for the day is a great habit to get into. When you aren’t leaving the office, it can be difficult to set that boundary of work time vs. personal time. Whether it’s an evening jog or turning on your favorite podcast or whipping up a delicious cocktail, start developing a routine that marks the end of the work day.

 

Have a WFH hack you want to share with our community? Shoot us a DM @highmoonstudio