Basic tips for working from home and keep your sanity

You might suddenly find yourself working from home for the foreseeable future. But being productive in your home environment isn’t always easy, thanks to limited space, less-than-ideal work areas and everyday household distractions.

Fortunately, with the right routine (and the right gear), you can make working from home as efficient as being in the office. Naturally, everyone has their own method, and there’s not a one-size-fits-all solution for turning your house or apartment into a place of productivity. But with countless hours of experience with working remotely, a few experts have pooled together their favourite tips for WFH like a pro.

Set up a dedicated workspace 

Having a dedicated work area is critical -- you’re very unlikely to get much done if you’re just lounging on the couch with your laptop. Pick up a cheap if you don’t already have one and set up your laptop or desktop somewhere that’s ideally outside of your living room or where you do most of your relaxing. If you live with family or roommates, try to work in a room where you can be alone.

Give yourself time before your workday starts

Working from home doesn’t mean skipping breakfast and working in your pajamas. In fact, one of the worst things you can do is log onto work the minute you wake up. Try to keep a normal routine in the morning. Enjoy a cup of coffee, catch up on news/personal email, and then log onto work when your day begins. You want to create a healthy routine and not one that has you waking up and immediately beginning working.

Eat a nutritious breakfast

One of the great things about working from home is that your entire kitchen is just a few rooms away. If you don't have to settle for granola bars, microwaved oatmeal or cold cereal. Take some time to make yourself eggs, toast, sausage. While you won't want to make yourself something decadent every day, taking some time to cook, eat and relax each morning can help you get into a productive mindset.

Have a dedicated monitor

It’s extremely hard to get most office work with a single screen -- especially if it’s just your tiny laptop display. Aim to have at least one external monitor so that you can easily bounce between spreadsheets, Slack chats and emails

Take your work computer home

You might think that just using your personal computer is an acceptable alternative to bringing your work laptop home, but let’s talk about boundaries. Taking your company-issued laptop home should be to keep work tasks separate from the personal projects and entertainment you enjoy on your main laptop. If you let work and play blend too much, you're possibly headed to burnout and sloppy work caused by being less focused

Dress like you’re going to work

. This is one of the more personal suggestions, but when I cut out the part of my routine where you actually get dressed, it begins to blur the line between your work life and your actual life. Before you know it, you've got your laptop in bed or doing work emails while you're cooking, and your focus is completely split. Hey, this tip isn't for everyone —some people love life without pants — but trust me, your day will benefit from acting like you are at work

Invest in a good pair of headphones with a mic

Meetings are easy when everyone's in the same room; they're a lot more difficult when everyone has to dial into a video chat. One thing you can do to make things a little easier is to get a great pair of headphones with a built-in mic. All of the best gaming and music headsets get in on the act these days. When you can hear what your colleagues are saying — and they can hear you, without feedback or static — meetings can be short and sweet, and you can get right back to work.

Give yourself a set time to log off 

You leave work at or around the same time, right? Well, do the same with your sign-off time, because without rules in place, you might find your personal time slipping away. I'm all for working as a way to expend nervous energy, but to paraphrase The Shining, all work and no play makes self-distancing even harder to endure. A routine, if applied properly, will help maximize efficiency and keep you from getting burnt out.

Keep healthy snacks in your kitchen

Working from home means you’re just steps away from your kitchen. To avoid gaining weight during your work from home period, it’s a good idea to stock up on healthy snacks. This is especially true if you like to snack throughout the day. So rather than stock up on Coke and Doritos, you might want to trade them for slightly healthier snacks like granola, nuts, and healthy drinks

Don’t spend your entire day in your home office

If you live in an apartment, chances are your home office will be a corner of your living room or bedroom. As a result, you’ll want to make sure you’re not in that room all day. If your computer is in your bedroom, have lunch in your kitchen. If you have a laptop and you’re in a lot of meetings, take your laptop to a different room when on different conference calls. The idea is to switch things up so you’re not sedentary all day.

BONUS: Get out of the house if you can

You'll have to play this one by ear, but if you feel comfortable getting out of the house, it's not a bad idea to do so. Venture outside now and then for food & groceries.

Think smart, not hard, and keep yourself and those around you safe & sane amidst this pandemic.