Working at Home? Structure your day well

Technology workforces all across the world are doing remote work opportunities for employees, which can help boost employees morale, and create better products. However, if not done right, working at home can become a major problem for some companies. For some companies, Yahoo! for example, have chosen not to do remote work for its potential risks on payroll, marketing, and company morale.

Now, let me stop right there. There's a difference between company morale and employee morale. Some companies want the morale of the business to be better than the morale of employees. Other companies have it the other way around. Many speak that if you treat your employees well, they'll create better products. However, others speak that if you successfully lead a company, then employee morale won't matter very much.

Back on topic...remote work is something almost every employee would love, however, it does have ways to make a person lazy, repeat project problems, and cause other issues. But, we want to focus on how to structure your day well, when working from home.

Being more flexible is the biggest benefit of working from home. So, rule #1, always be flexible!




Rule #2: be careful of distractions. Always make sure your family and friends know that you have a set work schedule. So, if your employer tells you to work from 8 AM - 6 PM, then you must make sure your family/friends know that. You must be strict. Some ways to be strict would  be to not accept personal phone calls, unless emergency. Another way would be to disallow people from being in the same room as you while working (if possible), but if there has to be somebody around you, make sure they let you concentrate (and keep quiet). There's not much more annoying when trying to code, than having someone distract you.

Many people are unsuccessful at coding a good project, if someone is distracting them, because their project manager doesn't like the jumbled/misplaced code. Always have a daily schedule and stick to it.

If there are ever times when you need to make up work, or work overtime, and people call or bother you, let them know about the extra work.

Many people like time management or project management programs, such as BaseCamp.

Know your to-do list as well. If you need to, write out your next day's to-do list at the end of your workday. This will keep your focus on work, only when you're working, instead of having to think about it during your time off. When you're not working, focus on family, friends, and other life activities. Don't make it a habit to talk about, think about, or do work when you're not supposed to. People will not only love you more, but you won't be labeled a workaholic.

Rule #3: deal with your distractions in an effective manner. In your home office, you don't need a TV, pets, or other distracting devices/things. It's hard sometimes to switch off the TV, but your boss will thank you for it. Having a privacy sign hanging on a shut door to your home office is one way of managing people from bothering you.

Kids are most often the source of distraction...however, you cannot neglect them. So, schedule them into your workday. If you know you have to get lunch for them, then make sure you have already set time aside daily to make and serve lunch. However, if you personally set time aside during the evening, for example, just for family/personal time/life, make sure your family knows that.

Rule #4: take breaks. Let's say, every two-three hours, you take a 5-10 minute break. This will help you keep focus.

If you have personal tasks to get done, get them done early in the day, so you can stay focused for the remainder of the day! If you're an early bird, it is assuredly good to wake earlier in the day to get personal tasks done.

Rule #5: when the workday ends, stop working! Most often, telecommuters/remote works, etc. work for eight or more hours a day. Some people estimate, due to distractions, a ten hours workday is best. Once you're done, stop working.


Overall, these rules are best to understand, so you can structure your day well. If you have any ideas on how to do it, please also comment or make suggestions below.