5 important rules for working from home for those who have been transferred to a remote location

I have been working from home for the last 10 years. Although my mode of employment is freelancing, it is not the same as remote work. Remote workers carry out the tasks assigned to them and report to their superiors for the result. Freelancers find work themselves and report only to the client according to the approved deadlines. Sometimes we carry out urgent orders - it's easy. It is much more difficult to organize long-term and multitasking work.

It is not so important whether they give you tasks or you find them yourself. Working from home for an office worker is at least unusual, and at the most inconvenient, inconvenient and ineffective. Several rules will help to organize the workflow, and they are addressed primarily to those who are forced out of the office and temporarily.

1. Agree with yourself and your household

Be prepared for the fact that there will be no working mood, and everyone at home will think that you have a day off. Yes, and it's difficult for yourself

keep motivated and get on with tasks rather than getting stuck on a TV show, reading a book, or ending up taking an afternoon nap after deciding to work on the couch. This is especially dangerous if your responsibilities do not require close attention.

Therefore, if you are determined to be productive, you need to make every effort to explain to everyone, including yourself, that you are at work. And no, you can't run to the store, make pizza, fix the tap, or play Lego.

2. Equip the workplace

The worst option is a laptop on your lap. Ideal - a separate desktop. But let's not be maximalists: even a spontaneously equipped bedside table is better than nothing.

If the only table in your apartment is a dining room, set up your work corner on it. It is better to remove the sauces, bread basket or tablecloth completely. Check chargers and outlet availability, install lamp. Add the necessary stationery.

3. Make a plan for the day

You may be able to do without it in the office, but if self-organization a plan is needed. It is he who keeps you on track and tells you what to do next.

However, the main value of the plan is this: it will give you an understanding that you have done a lot during the day. Maybe not everything that they wanted, for example, did not close a large task, but things were done: you called, discussed, wrote, sent, asked for. Soothingly deleting items from your to-do list at the end of the day is like stroking your head. Even if it seems to you that you are filonily (and this feeling can arise quite often), then planned and completed tasks will keep your self-esteem afloat.

According to my observations, it is most effective to make a plan in the morning, if possible, divide cases into urgent and those that can wait, into large and small tasks. And keep the list in front of your eyes at your new workplace.

4. Think ahead about food

I'm not talking about breakfast and dinner, but let's be honest: you can't do without snacks, coffee breaks, tea parties and, of course, lunch. Make sure you have tea, coffee and healthy snacks available. Food is a part of our life, and its absence can ruin the entire working mood.

And lunch is a cornerstone for remote workers. At home, a break can stretch for three hours: first they cooked or waited delivery, then they chewed to the TV series, and then, of course, poured tea - not to leave the episode overlooked. If there are no urgent tasks, the sofa beckons to lie down, read, downcast and generally relax. And the most unexpected thing: during lunch, household members again forget that you are now at work.

What will help here:

• Plan meals just for yourself, as you would in the office, and in no case get involved in family meals or joint pizza making.
• At the beginning of the break, schedule a specific end date, for example, "I'll be back at 14:30." My advice is to lay for 1.5-2 hours. You probably won't be able to finish your lunch in an hour, so it's best to set a realistic deadline right away.
• Before taking a break, start the next task. Then you will know exactly what to do in the afternoon, and you will gain efficiency faster.

5. Observe the regime

Since quarantine or self-isolating measures are temporary, it makes sense to stick to the usual schedule. Likewise, get up and get ready for work: have breakfast, change from your pajamas, read as if you were reading on the bus, or chat in chats, if that's what you do. Your working day doesn't change much from the fact that you are not in the office right now, so there is no reason to give up your usual rituals. They will help the working spirit.

Also, you cannot do without a fixed start to the working day and, of course, its end. Those who are constantly at a distance, from work in the same way "leave": they close the laptop and end the working day.

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It doesn't matter if you are in the office or at home, whether someone controls your activities or you have to master the basics of time management on your own. It is important to remember that when you are remote, you continue work. If you're not used to working outside the office, it can be difficult. First, it's okay. Secondly, it is difficult for many, even if they all deny it. And thirdly, it's temporary.