News Working from Home: Tips and Tools to Keep You Productive

These are all good tips. The trick is to wake up and get dressed like you normally would if you were going into work. Maybee dress slightly more more casual but at least enough that if you had to say run to the grocery store you could wear what you have on. I have worked from home for a decade or more and my wife is a teacher so she is around for summers. I get my coffee and say i'm going to work and shut my office door. That is the hint unless the door opens im 'at' work. If you really act no different when you go to work at home vs physically going in its really easy to not be distracted.
 
I find that I am actually more productive at home. I have an issued work laptop, but the majority of my work isn't dependent on it. I find that I'm much more productive on my laptop as it is faster and a lot more powerful. It also has a larger screen and I have a monitor I connect it to so I effectively have dual monitors at home, which is something I don't have at work.

Keeping distractions away is usually not a problem. The kids are at school, I don't have pets, and the wife is usually baking something so she is occupied. I have the same smartphone at home and at work, so I just set it on the desk and only check notifications. I have a Pixel 3a XL and have the always on screen enabled. It only tells me what my notifications are and what time it is. If it is something important I'll check it, if not it sits there. I try not to unlock it unless it is absolutely necessary. As for what to wear, I'm usually in a t-shirt and basketball shorts for maximum comfort. I also prefer my desk chair at home.

What I don't like is not having a desk phone. I don't want to be using my personal smartphone for work stuff, although I often have to, and having a desk phone with a work number is preferable. I also find that my office at work is better lit than my desk at home. Eye strain is harder to avoid at home as I look from bright monitors to papers on my less than well lit desk, and back and forth.

Over all I tend to get my work done faster at home as well. I type faster and more comfortably as I have a niver keyboard at home, am less distracted by coworkers, and I tend to take fewer breaks as I am more comfortable as I work. Plus I can have music in the background without headphones, adding to my comfort level.

Except when I am in Antarctica, but there most of my work is away from the desk... but that is a WHOLE other ball game.
 
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