How to Be Wise About Working From Home

I work from home every day as an SEO consultant, and I’ve got a few years of work-from-home experience that I think would be useful to share.

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At some point in your career you earned the flexibility and autonomy that comes with working from home. That’s huge, congrats.

But with great freedom comes great responsibility. It’s up to you to figure out how to make the most of your new flexible work environment.

To successfully work from home, you’ll need to do more than just get work done in your house.

You’ll need to make room for the fact that you’re a human being with needs other than work. Most people who work from home are still focused on earning a living. But you shouldn’t forget about your other needs, including:

• Structure
• Variety
• Social interaction
• Health
• Reputation
• Self-Confidence

You can follow this list of tips to make sure you get the most out of your work-from-home lifestyle. I developed this with the help of my stepdad Dave, a “one-man-army” who’s been working from home for years. I hope it’s a good template for you to develop your own rules of work.

Structure

Make A List: Start your day by making a list of what you want to accomplish. Be realistic with this. Start with a few bigger pieces and then fill in the gaps with smaller ones. Some days you might have just one big item on your list, but the idea is to hold yourself accountable and finish what you plan.

Prioritize: Cut out as many time-wasting activities as possible. Be ruthless about this. Say “no” to invitations for coffee or lunch if there’s no clear benefit. Ideally, everything on your list should be moving your business forward.

Schedule: I find it helpful to block out time on my calendar to accomplish the stuff on my list. I’m also fiercely protective of my time. If I’ve got time blocked off, I won’t schedule a meeting during that time unless I absolutely have to.

Variety

Change Up the Scenery: One of the best ways to stay fresh is to switch up your environment. Take a few breaks each day to clear out any cobwebs and get some fresh air. Stand up. Take a walk around the block or go to the grocery store. Take care of something that needs fixing in the house. Literally any task other than your work will give your brain the chance it needs to process background tasks and reset.

Switch up Your Seat: Simply moving from one seat to another is an easy hack when you don’t have the time to change your location. Some people like adjustable desks to sit or stand. You could probably take at least half your calls from a park bench. And remember good posture: sit up straight and keep those shoulders back when sitting.

Social Interaction

Work From Public: Head out to a coffee shop for a couple of hours. You don’t have to talk to anyone if you don’t want to. Just being around people can help prevent feelings of isolation that are common among people who work from home. It feels good to become a “regular” somewhere. Bonus points for talking to strangers!

Call Your Mom: Or any other friend or family member for that matter. I bet you’ve got someone who would love to hear from you, and even a quick 15-minute call can get you out of your own head and feeling that needed social connection.

Health

Exercise: Working from your desk all day can feel productive. But remember, “the only way you can hurt the body is not to use it.” – Fitness OG Jack LaLanne

I have a rule. If I didn’t exercise yesterday, I am going to exercise today (unless I absolutely cannot). I’ve kept that up for about 5 years now. My preference is a 3-5 mile run in the morning, but I’ll sneak in an evening session if I need to. Bottom line, do something. Even a brisk walk can count.

Rest: Give your brain a break by reading a blog post or a chapter of a book. Or shut your eyes for an hour. I told my friend’s boomer mom that I took a nap in the middle of the day recently. And while she was polite on the outside, I could see her visibly struggling in her head to not judge me for it. This reaction is a relic of the past. It’s 100% fine to sleep if you’re tired. You’ll wake up refreshed and work 5x better than if you tried to power through it.

Reputation

Communication: Respond to emails within a set time (I like 24 hours). DMs are 4 hours, and phone calls as soon as I can. One great tip I got from my stepdad is to send one of those auto “I will call you right back” texts if you can’t pick up the phone.

Integrity: If you said you’d call back in 15 minutes, do it. I define integrity as “doing what you say you will do.” This is probably the #1 thing people look for in business relationships, and I have gotten more work from simply doing a good job and delivering on my promises than any other source.

Authenticity: It’s hard to be someone you’re not. So if you’re someone who likes to have fun in your business relationships, make sure you’re doing business with people who feel the same way. If someone is too serious and doesn’t have a sense of humor, stay away. If you prefer a more professional relationship, stick with those types of people. You’ll vibe better and be less drained over the long-term.

Self-Confidence

Work When You Want: the 9-to-5 workday is a vestigial remnant of the Industrial Revolution. It’ll do wonders for your self-esteem if you realize this and start working when you want to. Spend all day Saturday working so you can go skiing on Monday and Tuesday. I’ve found there’s nothing better for my mental health than to affirm that I’m in control of doing what I want, when I want.

Celebrate: When you close a deal or complete a big project, give yourself space to enjoy it! Stop working for the day and buy yourself a treat. Remember, you left the office grind so you didn’t have to arbitrarily sit at your desk for 9 hours a day, so make the most of that.

Figure Out Your Own Rhythm

Most important of all is to experiment and figure out what works for you. Start with a list like this and modify it as you go along. Remember, you chose the work-from-home life, and it’s up to you to figure out how to live it best.