8 tips for working from home

Working from home (also known as remote work) seems like a great alternative to going to the office every morning, but it comes with its own set of challenges that you need to overcome in order to stay healthy and productive. Here are my tips for achieving just that:

Set up your work environment

Working from home has its perks, but nothing beats a well-designed office space where everything is set up with only one purpose in mind: working. Figure out your home office, experiment with different settings and understand what works best for you as soon as possible. An ideal working space is comfortable, quiet and has the right equipment for you.

Establish ground rules

Most likely you are not living alone, so you have to establish some ground rules with your roommate or significant other. It's up to you to drive the point home that during working hours you are, for the most part, not home. Sure, you can answer the door if you expect a delivery, but that's pretty much as far as you can go. People should not bother you during working hours, unless absolutely necessary, as small distractions pile up fast.

Inform others of your availability

It's important to let people know that you are online and working or that you are taking a short break for lunch. Remember that you are still part of a team that requires coordination and others probably depend on your work to some extent. Remember to update your status as necessary to make collaboration easier.

Socialize with coworkers

Working from home can lead to feelings of loneliness, disconnect, isolation which can quickly spin out of control and lead to depression. Communicate with people on your team as if you were in the same room. A healthy amount of communication will help you feel more like you are all working together rather than each one on their own.

5. Be your best professional self Nobody might be watching you at home, so you can theoretically slack off as much as you like in your pajamas, but that's not very professional. Try to dress appropriately in case you join a video call and behave professionally, so no inappropriate websites or hours upon hours of checking social media. Ask yourself if someone in a shared office space would do whatever it is you are doing and, if the answer is no, stop doing it.

Plan your daily and weekly tasks

Having a coherent working plan helps you organize your time and prioritize important tasks above trivial ones. It also helps to put things into perspective and have a general idea of what other people on the team are working on. Plan ahead of time together with your team and keep each other posted on the progress of each task. Short term plans help you get through the day, long term plans help everyone meet their deadlines.

Use the right collaboration tools

Working from home has its own challenges and issues, so try to find the right tools for the job. Slack, Skype, Zoom, Hangouts are great for communication. Design tools such as Figma or Sketch cloud help you communicate designs quickly and effectively. GitHub is the perfect tool for code collaboration and VS Code has an extension (Live Share) for sharing your code editors. Communicate with your team, figure out your needs and pick tools that work for you.

Maintain regular hours

It's as easy to forget about breaks as it is to start working late. Try to set a schedule that sits well with your team and stick to it. If you would work 9 to 5 in a regular office environment, do the same at home. Take regular breaks, do not forget to sign off when put in your daily hours and come back tomorrow. After all, it's business as usual.