- Like most office workers in the world my last day of working in an office building was way back in March. I was living in Raleigh, NC at the time and have since moved to Jacksonville, FL and since then I have been made in to a full-time work from home remote employee. I love working from home even though I do miss certain things about working in a physical office. But now that I am working from home full time I have created a routine to ensure that my work from home days are not only productive, but enjoyable as well. I will do a blog post later on my work from home routine, but I thought I would start here because I know many people are working from home right now and may be able to get some inspiration for themselves.
Dress to Impress (yourself) – The first thing I do after waking up is get ready for the day. I know some people are tempted to stay in their pajamas/sweat pants/yoga pants, but for me how I look is my energy. While I may no longer be wearing cute dresses and heels each day to work, I do put on something that I feel comfortable and stylish in. I feel much better and productive when I know that I have put effort into how I look for the day. I feel more confident and ready to take on the day when I am well groomed and well dressed.
Morning Coffee and Music – Before I even sign on at 9:00 a.m. I make sure that I have a good breakfast and at least one hour to listen to music (or read) and enjoy a coffee. This is a quiet time to get ready to take on the work day and a time to ease into my morning without feeling rushed or marking off to-do lists. The pace of my morning always sets the pace of my day, so why not make it calm and indulgent?
Create a Cozy Work Space – I know these two things don’t seem to go together, but it is possible to set up a cozy area to work from. I don’t want to work at the dining room table or laying in bed as I like to keep these two areas for just eating and sleeping. I have set up a desk which I keep clean and clear of clutter and have added a few things that I do enjoy such as a scented candle and music. It’s my own quiet, zen space to work in and because it’s set up to my liking I enjoy going there every work day.
Take An Afternoon Walk – After I eat lunch each day I like to put on a podcast and take a walk around the neighborhood. Walking after eating is good for digestion anyways, but it’s also good to have a chance to stretch my legs and move around while listening to something fun and uplifting. It sets me up for a productive rest of the day!
Late Afternoon Treat – Come 3:00 or 4:00 o’clock I start to feel a little blah (sleepy). I like to take a little 10 or 15 minute break to enjoy a little treat. The treat can vary from day to day too. Sometimes it’s an iced coffee with a dark chocolate peanut butter cup, maybe a hot coffee with a shortbread cookie, maybe a peppermint tea with a piece of dark chocolate. Sometimes I will even walk to our local coffee shop to get a coffee and a treat…it’s just a little something to look forward to and to get me through the rest of the day.
Make A to-Do List For Tomorrow – I don’t know how many of you find this enjoyable, but I love taking a few minutes closer to the end of the day to make a to-do list for the next day. I am a list maker lover, and I love this quiet time of reflection to look back over my day to see what I got accomplished and to look ahead to the next day to see what needs to be done. I will look for things like meetings, appointments, chores that need to taken care of, meal planning, workouts, etc. It’s a way to structure my day so as to not get bogged down with decision fatigue over the little details throughout the day.
I love working from home, but one must be disciplined enough to be able to do this as the lines between our sanctuary and work area are combined, but also needs to be separate. Since I structure my day as I would if I were going into an office, I make sure to also create some enjoyable moments to look forward to throughout the work day to break up the monotony. If you too work from home then let me know in the comments some of the ways that you make your experience more enjoyable throughout the day.
Great post! I like hot tea in the afternoon, usually with some sugar added to sweeten it up and make it more of a treat. Cinnamon Stick or Darjeeling. It’s definitely cozy. I also still put on makeup even though I’m working at home 75% of the time. The routine has changed (more eyes less lips) but I do it for me. And I make multiple to-do lists every day, too 🙂 I would recommend standing up a little! I had a laptop stand before I started working at home and I love it. It adjusts so you can sit and it rolls around. I stand more than half the day most days. thanks!
I love that you try to keep your same routine as much as possible. I have found that to be very important too so as to not get into a “comfortable” mode which is so easy to do at home. I do like to take little breaks throughout my workday to stand up and walk a little and of course I go for a longer walk outside on my lunch break. But you are right, moving around throughout the day is very important! Thank you for stopping in and reading 🙂