How to Keep the World From Distracting You When You Work From Home
Several months ago I was interviewing someone for a story when I heard a knock on the door. It was the repair team of my apartment, which was a day late to fix something. Before I could pause the interview, the knock turned into a loud knock, and soon my interlocutor asked, “Are you okay?”
These are the dangers of working from home . It’s hard to complain about it, but telecommuting is not without its drawbacks. And one of them is the fuzzy line between your home and work. When I first started working remotely, no one seemed to understand that working from home meant that I, you know, work . So I decided it was time to really set some boundaries.
Make sure everyone knows your “opening hours”
Friends sometimes don’t understand why I don’t pick up the phone and chat during the day, why I take so long to answer a text, or why I cannot come up and chat. When you work in an office, it’s easy to see why you don’t. When you work from home, people often assume that you have the ability to do whatever you want, whenever you want.
To fix this, I set business hours and then let people know what they were. My hours are similar to normal business hours, but not yours. You just want to set time boundaries for when you are working and when you are free. Then tell people about those boundaries. For example, when a friend who called to chat during the day expressed some annoyance that I picked up the phone, I simply told her that I was working until 5:00 pm. It seems obvious, but sometimes people just need to know that that doesn’t mean you are ignoring them – you do have obligations. And when you have off hours and breaks, friends know that during these times you can chat, write text messages, or visit you.
And if you have a family or live with roommates, consider this proposal and add a “Don’t interrupt” sign on the door:
Pat Schuler, creator of KickButt SalesTraining, encouraged the client to use red, yellow and green cards. “The color posted on the door of her office carries a clear message,” Schuler explained. “Red — no interruptions except in the event of fire or bleeding. Yellow – knock first and do not enter until you get permission. Don’t knock or shout through the door. Green – it is ok to open the door and enter. “
There are several other ways to tell people your opening hours:
- Use the clock sign to show your family or roommates exactly when you will end your day or when you will have a break.
- Share your online calendar so people can see when you are working and when you are free.
- When I really can’t get distracted, I add a “please do not disturb” sign to the front door, which makes it clear to the apartment staff or friendly neighbors that I will not answer.
In addition to friends and family, there may be other people in your life who should know your time. If you volunteer, work part-time elsewhere, or part-time part-time, you may need to tell the person you work for that you also have a full-time job and then tell them what those hours are.
I also notified the manager of my apartment. I emailed her my schedule, telling her that I work from home and how my watch looks like. This may be overkill, but if your job involves many meetings or interviews, it may be helpful to inform your supervisor about your situation. Of course, she and everyone else working on our building has something to worry about. But since she let her know about it, she adjusted to my work schedule and was more and more willing to plan things around it, which was helpful.
Another thing to keep in mind: make sure you actually stick with these hours. Avoid working after hours, not only because it is counterproductive , but also because it makes people think you are working all the time, making your established boundaries meaningless.
Create a “work area” with actual physical boundaries
A sign on the door is great … if your office has a door. I do not have. In fact, it’s hard to tell where my office ends and where the rest of my apartment lives. It’s a small space and it can make working from home even more challenging . When I first started working remotely, my partner talked to me or asked me important questions as I sat at my desk. It was unpleasant for both of us. He distracted me, and I didn’t pay much attention to what he was saying (sometimes I didn’t even remember talking!)
To fix this, I created an actual border. It’s small because I have a small office, but it’s just a line from my desk to the couch. If I am on the other side of the line, I am not working and can chat and answer questions. If I’m in this line, then I’m at work, and I need to be distracted as little as possible.
This sounds ridiculously obvious, but it works. Drawing a tangible boundary between work and home is essential. He knows he needs to give me space when I’m at work ; and I feel comfortable knowing I won’t be distracted.
Start your day earlier (or later)
Another option for people to respect your boundaries? Work earlier. Start your day while the world is still asleep. Whether it’s the people who live with you, email you, or call you, they find it difficult to distract you when they sleep.
This is a simple concept that we’ve talked about quite a lot already. But since I myself have accepted this, I can testify that it is of great importance. Besides the biological factor , it’s just nice to spend a couple of hours in the morning, not distracted and focused. If you’re not an early riser but want to give it a try, we have some tips on where to start .
But maybe you are a devout owl and prefer to work late. The same rules may apply. If possible, set aside a couple of hours of work time after your spouse, family, or roommates give up for the night. You can compensate for the extra work time by taking a longer break in the middle of the day.
Get out of the house
Especially if you live in an apartment like me, it can be difficult to block out distractions completely. Your work schedule is not anyone’s priority, so if your landlord or apartment maintenance staff need to come in during the day, they will, and you can’t blame them.
It seems counterintuitive, but sometimes the only thing you can do is move into an office. Head to a coffee shop, library, or work space until your home office has nothing to distract you. Since these places are often overcrowded with other homeworkers, there is a little more understanding when it comes to leaving people alone. Of course, it also helps to be flexible and avoid scheduling things when you know people will be in your apartment. Warn your colleagues too.
Don’t Overwork: Make Time for Friends and Family
When you work from home, working all the time is so easy. It’s important to set boundaries so you can focus more on your tasks, but it’s also important for your personal life. Schedule time for friends and loved ones. This way they won’t feel abandoned and your boundaries will be clearer.
Working from home certainly has its benefits. You have no commuting. Your schedule might be a little more flexible. You can go about business in your pajamas and no one should know about it (although this may not be the best idea ). But there are pitfalls, and one of them is that people often don’t take your time at work seriously. Borders can fix this, and for me these steps had a big impact on how they were created.