how to actually work from home

Hello, hello. I hope your Sunday is treating you well! Did you do anything fun this weekend? Mine was busy in the best of ways: a romantic tapas dinner, hueveos rancheros brunch, a new book, warmer weather stroll, a gorgeous modern dance performance, and a fabulous new apartment party. And after sleeping in quite late this morning, I feel ready to take on another workweek. Although I realize my work situation is a bit different than most (read: I work from home on most days), I also know that many of my friends have to be productive outside of the office from time to time, so I thought I'd share a few tips and tricks I've learned so far:

Eat regular meals. When I used to commute to an office, I'd make myself breakfast in the morning, pack my lunch and a snack, and come home at night to prepare myself dinner or head out to meet friends for food and drinks. At home, I have full access to my fridge, stove, and all other cooking utensils and appliances all day, every day. Although I could graze all day, I don't; keeping myself satisfied with three full, balanced meals honestly makes it easier to concentrate in between meal time. I doubt anyone could get much of anything done with a hungry body or undernourished brain. It's even been proven we can't. 

Plan your day. Making lists and schedules may not be fun helpful for everyone, but it certainly is for me. I've found that I'm most productive in the morning hours, especially after exercise, so I start taking care of my work responsibilities by 8:30am on most days. I've also found that I tend to lose focus after lunch (1pm-ish) so that's the time I usually head out to a local café. It's impressive how much a change in environment can help! And in addition to organizing my day around work-related efficiency, I include blocks of time to not be productive as well. The break may be as quick as running downstairs to get the mail (and discovering a care package from this special lady) or as long as taking a midday yoga class, both are beneficial. Your hard working self deserves a rest every now and again.

Reap the benefits. For as challenging as it can be to work from home--and trust me, no matter how idyllic it sounds, it is--I think it's important to remind myself why I enjoy it so much. I love being able to leave a good soup simmering on the stove all day and take care of laundry at a time when my neighbors are out and about. On special occasions, I also love being able to meet friends for lunch or drop into a museum for a bit. I'm hoping to go to a matinee movie by myself one of these days, too. As for when the solidarity gets to me, I have a simple solution: crash a friend's office happy hour or invite my cousin over to make dinner :).