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a1cdJan 8, 2011
The biggest problem I had with working from home was drawing the line of working hours. When i was at the office it would hit ~5PM, I would put that laptop away, head home and not open it again till the next day.
Working from home was completely different, I would end up working till late night just because I didn't have that separation between an office and home.
Closed AccountJan 8, 2011
I've worked from home for the past 7-8 years and I have never had that problem. When the clock rolls around, I disconnect from work.
Your problem is YOURS and not a result of working from home as it is an unknown issue for me. Of course, if you give away your product for free to your company, that can only be ones fault - yours. Try to go into a store and demand to get more for the same price. I've never understood Americans who agree to sell 40 hours of their time each week to a company for X amount of dollars and then give the company 50% extra for free. Try that in a store! "Hey! I'll pay full price for that iPad but I want that iPhone for free!" That is what you do to your employer when you work longer hours for no extra pay.
musicnut07Jan 8, 2011
I think you got it backwards. You do that to yourself NOT your employer. The employer gets the free hours for no compensation, you are like the store selling the iPad and giving up the iPhone for free...
Anyway, just because you don't share a particular problem doesn't mean no one else has it. It just means you are able to avoid that particular pitfall. Not everyone operates as you do and many people actually do share that particular problem.
universalstormJan 8, 2011
I find staying on Task love working from Home
dauntless1Jan 8, 2011
It's not too bad with proper willpower and self-motivation. I like the couple of months per year I get to work from home. Feels like my time is spent more productively.
jjluJan 8, 2011
cool
utamarickyJan 8, 2011
thanks 4 sharing
chadellJan 8, 2011
I have been working from home for 10yrs now.
toorijigsJan 8, 2011
Thanks u wrote this post .. The pages like " Omg, this girl died when his dad came to know about this " ..
musicnut07Jan 8, 2011
Thank you for this article. I hope to be able to work from home myself within the next 3-5 years and I'd like to avoid these problems myself. I figure though that if I am spending half of my day doing things besides work that making up that time in the evenings and on weekends is ok. I just need to be aware of how much time I am actually committing to work and making sure it is time I am being compensated for and that I work the hours I am being paid for.
inajeepJan 8, 2011
I work from home 3 days a week. It saves gas, time and allowed me to bank more personal days than ever before.
My own recommendations
1. Wear clothes.
2. Have a 2nd computer not on work's VPN so you can surf where ever you want to.
3. If you can not isolate yourself, make sure you have a back up location to take phone calls and learn how to use mute on your phone.
4. Communicate more than necessary so your coworkers do not forget you.
bdbrJan 8, 2011
If you don't want your internet traffic going through the VPN, you can usually also set up a proxy on a home system. Then use a second browser for that. Lots of businesses want you to use IE, so you can use Firefox set to your home proxy. You'll want to be careful to avoid sites with viruses, of course. But at least they won't be logging you checking Digg several times a day!
cyclops69Jan 9, 2011
I only use IE for work and only because the programs they subscribe to insist on it. I only use Firefox for personal stuff. So the line is easily drawn.
cyclops69Jan 9, 2011
I sleep naked so #1 is easy.
universalstormJan 8, 2011
Being at Home is easy for me to stay on task and since I love to enjoy my home more and check out the Music I have to share keeps me busy Enjoy http://www.djcast.net/stream/?radio=UniversalStorm
couriersJan 8, 2011
Its a tough gig however need a good lock on your door from both sides give your partner the other key to lock you out of the office
friendlimusicJan 8, 2011
Great analysis and fantastic advice.
bdbrJan 8, 2011
The thing I like the most about working from home (other than the commute being just a set of stairs) is being able to play quiet music. Stuff without lyrics keeps me from getting distracted.
I really like chatting with co-workers at lunch & breaks, and miss that when working from home. It's probably more fun to meet up somewhere else, but hard to get people to commit to it.
fledderJan 8, 2011
My tips for effectively working from home:
1) Break your day into blocks and plan small non-work tasks in between. Otherwise you will not allow yourself enough breaks.
2) Dress casual or even as formal as you would normally go to work. This is purely psychological but it helped me come into a productive state. A similar tip is to allow for a lot of daylight or bright artificial light. You should not get the impression that you're in a bedroom. You're in the office. Your home office.
3) Initiate contact and make yourself heard. Use your communication channels to inform others that you are working, not to cover your ass, but to reinstate the social connection and to trigger yourself into making progress. Do the same thing when you're not working, for example going to the shop. This will initiate trust.
4) It is OK to take mini breaks as long as you do not push it. It is fine to watch some news, surf around for a few mins. The human mind needs it. You would do it at work too, albeit in a different way. Do shutdown the biggest time consumers when you're done.
5) Have quality material. At least one large screen, preferably an extra one. A full size desk, an ergonomic chair, etc. Make sure you are alone and not disturbed.
iDanielClarkJan 10, 2011
Working from home does require a lot of discipline.
xufosJan 10, 2011
A lot of temptation and distraction when working at home. Also when friends of family visited, they think I'm unemployed.
xufosJan 10, 2011
Nice article. I'm working alone at home as computer programmer in Indonesia. My fellow programmers are in Netherlands 10,000 kilometers apart. The challenge is not only working at home, but also time zone is different 6 hours. So, communication skills is very important.
fryermcmillanJan 10, 2011
Putting down the Doritos is the hardest? What's your "working from home challenge?"
womentobeautyJan 12, 2011
I work at home, too and sometime, am really bored to stay at home all day all night. Every 2-3 days, I need to go out or have the social life otherwise, I'll feel crazy.
Meanwhile, TV often distracts my attention to work. I feel guilty that if I watch TV during the daytime less and spend more time to do my job. My work will become very better.
gilliscoaching26 days ago
My wife and I work from home and we have to keep telling ourselves "CLOSE THE LAPTOP AND STOP WORKING" :-)