Work From Home Tips – Tips for Working From Home

working from home! This concept, which until recently, was a little distant from everyone, suddenly entered our lives thanks to the corona virus. Many people were caught unprepared. work from home I've been experiencing the situation for a while. my experiences, tricks and tips for working from home I wanted to share with you. I am writing this article in honor of completing my 2nd year of leaving corporate life, I hope it will be of use to you!

For those who don't know, I've been working from home for 2 years. Here is my story of quitting corporate life I wrote.

Working from home, in English home office While working is a way of working that sounds very good from the outside and everyone says "life is good for you", I started to listen to the complaints of my friends who have started working from home for the last 1 month. The sound of the drum is always pleasant from afar, of course. When you switch from your job, where you work 9-6, with a limited schedule, limited hours and space, to working from home, your perception of space and time suddenly changes, and there are some generally accepted subtleties in adapting to this.

Subtleties of Working from Home

First of all, let's start with; Everyone who starts working from home falters at first until they establish an order. It's a good idea to accept this and give yourself time. If I was able to switch to this order after working in corporate life for 19 years, you can easily pass.

When I am not traveling, I earn my living by producing and consulting content such as blog posts and magazine articles at my home in Istanbul. I have listed my work from home routine and everything positive and negative I have experienced below.

Determine Your Working Hours

I think this is the most important part of working from home. Just as you get up every morning to go to the office and go to work, you also need to establish a certain routine when working from home. In my own order, it's 09:00 in the morning to start work. No matter what time I get up, I aim to be at the desk at 09:00. Just like when working in the office, I always take tea-coffee breaks and lunch breaks.

When I first started working from home, I used to sit in front of the computer in the morning and forget to drink water and eat, I would get up from the table in the evening with my whole body stiff. I found a very simple way to avoid this. My computer has a setting, it reminds me audibly at the beginning of every hour. Thus, without losing my sense of time, I remember that I need to take a break when necessary.

Also, working from home should not mean working day and night mixed together. In order to keep your working hours with the people you work with and to keep your working efficiency at a high level, make sure to set a deadline for your work. My finish time is 17:00. Of course, there are times when I go beyond this, but in general, I make my schedule according to 17:00. Thus, I can create a clear order of my daily working time and what I can do during that time.

Experts say "don't start working in your pajamas, change your clothes and start working like that", but I'm not doing anything special about it.

Create Yourself a Workspace at Home

When it comes to working at home, a person sitting in front of the television with his laptop in his lap comes to life before everyone's eyes. The facts are not like that, if that is the case, you cannot work from home anyway.

It will be easier to establish your work routine if you create a workspace at home and go to that area every morning as if you were going to your desk in the office and start working. My favorite places in my house; The dining table in the living room in winter and our balcony in summer. Although there is a study room in the house, I prefer to work at the dining table in the living room, since the light and crampedness of the place does not surround me very much.

Make sure you have a tidy, tidy desk where you will feel good and have a comfortable sitting position. It's very difficult to switch to working mode on the couch on your knees. When one sits in a systematic way, one can work anywhere, but it is important to establish a routine especially at the beginning.

I'm telling all this, but now I work easily in the common area of ​​a hostel, in bed at a hotel, by the stream, in a camp chair while traveling. But there is no condition that this will be the case for everyone. If you have just started working from home, it is best to establish a routine.

Don't Forget to Take Meal and Coffee Breaks

Think about the breaks you take consciously or unintentionally while working in the office. Do you remember your co-workers who said, "Sevil, shall we take a coffee break?" Taking breaks while working increases your productivity. Giving yourself “reasonable” breaks while working from home will enable you to work more efficiently for the rest of the day.

My daily routine is to start the day with morning coffee and go to the desk at 09:00, take a breakfast break between 10:30 and 11:00, take a coffee break again around 14:00 – 15:00 in the afternoon and at 17:00. in the form of dinner around 18:00 when you stop working. Thanks to working from home, I switched to two meals a day with a late breakfast and early dinner.

With this setup, I have quite a long time in the evening if I have to keep working.

Get Extra Moves

The worst part about working from home is the minimal mobility. From the bedroom to the study, to the bathroom, the activity that does not exceed 200 steps during the day at home returns to you as toned cheeks, even if you reduce the number of meals after a while.

Try to add sports to your daily routine in the morning, evening or afternoon. It is best to walk for an hour, preferably outdoors, but if you can't, there are many options you can do at home. I use sports channels on youtube. “Walk at home by Leslie Sansone” is one of the most popular. If you can find an option such as cardio, yoga, zumba that interests you and will make you happy, you will be more willing to do it every day.

Never Engage in Housework During the Working Hours You Set

"I'm home anyway, I'll put the laundry in the washing machine and wash it", "I'll clean up the bedroom and start working like that", "there were a few irons, I'll take care of them and then work"…. These and the like are the main enemies of working from home. The jobs we think of as "small jobs" at home are those that are usually included in the "housewife" job description and can take up almost your entire day. That's why I recommend that you never get involved in these jobs during the working hours you set. If you start somewhere, it gets harder to come to an end. If there is a housework that you absolutely have to do, set aside time for those chores during the break times you have determined or after your working hours are over.

Stay Away From Everything That May Confuse You At Home

What can tempt you at home? Of course, first of all, television, or Netflix. Another enemy of working from home is finding yourself in front of the television. Don't be fooled by "I'm going to watch the morning news and turn it off", once that device is turned on, it doesn't close easily.

I am one of those people who cannot work with music, when the music starts, I start to accompany. I could not work with any possible music. However, while working at home, there may be situations such as; the children downstairs who don't stop, the old uncle who watches the television at the last sound because his ears can't hear well in the next apartment, the old lady who prays loudly all day upstairs… My solution here is to turn on the television to drown out the neighbors' noise, and learn not to hear it. He mutters something on the side, but it doesn't distract me. It's especially effective if you open programs that don't interest you. I have never had a concentration problem while working, I can work in any noise and environment. But this is a very personal situation, there is no such thing as the same situation for everyone. That's why you have to come up with your own solution.

Create Job Lists

I mentioned that we can lose the sense of time and space while working at home. We can try to fix this situation by determining our working hours. The second method is; creating to-do lists just like in the office. Those who work with me know that I always had work lists prepared in excel, and now I have them. I use an excel where I can track and filter the subject, target date, status, or rather a spreadsheet on google drive. Thus, I can easily access it from both my phone and computer, wherever I want.

These plans should definitely include the meetings you need to hold together with the people you need to work with. Even if you hold your meetings online, it is also part of your business plan.

Set Daily – Weekly – Monthly – Yearly Goals

Wasn't "target" the word we heard the most in corporate life? Yes, corporate or not, if you want your business to progress in an orderly manner, you must set short and long-term goals for yourself and force yourself to comply with these goals, otherwise you will see that you are where you are.

When I left my first job, I set myself too aggressive goals and forced myself to work day and night. When I realized this situation, I started to draw my goals to more realistic figures, work in a more humane conditions and establish my order that I described above. This order did not settle down right away, it took months for me…

The most important reason for setting goals is motivation. It is difficult to keep your motivation high all the time when you are working alone at home. Here, goals come into play, a goal you reach, a number you reach motivates you to stay out of bed the next day.

It may take time to keep up with an order that you are not accustomed to, but it should be said that this working order has many advantages. The time you spend in traffic is completely up to you every day, your co-workers who constantly interrupt you at the office and hinder your concentration are not at home, being able to work in comfortable clothes, not torturing your feet with high heels all day… the list could be extended.

I wrote this article in honor of the 2nd year of my transition from corporate life to working from home. Here is my story of quitting corporate life, one year after quitting the job 1 Year Chasing Your Dreams I explained in my post. Is it possible to make money by writing a blog? My post will also be of interest to you. These articles will also give you ideas on many issues.

If you have formulas that you apply while working at home, do not forget to add them as a comment to this article.

Stay home for now!