They used to say that home is where you hang your hat, but now many of us are finding ourselves wearing that hat at home and moving that ugly hat hanger out of view from our Zoom meetings. 

While working from home has its challenges, at least we don’t have to be constantly interrupted to sing happy birthday to co-workers or mediate arguments over who left the “fish dinner left-overs” in the employee refrigerator over-night.  I also love that my computer monitor has no complaints of my morning coffee breath or the fact that I am wearing a nice blouse on top, while my bottom half includes pajama pants and bunny slippers – if only we could dress like this at the office! 

While my home office is comfortable and convenient, it is definitely full of distractions and creative ways to keep me off track.  Nowadays, my biggest challenge starts with my husband saying, “Oh you’re working from home today?  Good you can watch the kid so I can get some things done”.  To combat this, I set up my home office in my guest bedroom. I normally haven’t spent much time in this particular room.  It’s easy to get off track if I try and work in my kitchen or bedroom.  One minute I’m working, and the next thing I know I’m doing the dishes or browsing the refrigerator for a snack. I found that working in my bedroom makes it harder to sleep at night since this is where I’ve been working all day. My guest bedroom not only has a door, but also a lock, which keeps me focused on my work and less distracted by home life going on around me.        

If you are struggling like I was, don’t worry! We can make this work! Make a plan and let everyone know that you are not to be disturbed while working in your sanctuary.  Find that room in your house where you spend the least amount of time – deem that room your sanctuary. Set up your office and lock yourself away.  Try your best to keep engaged and maintain focus on your work.  Try to deal with distractions accordingly and most importantly, keep your morale up!  Success comes from effectively managing your time and projects while ignoring your house clutter and other home-life distractions until you are finished.  After a successful workday, be done with it and get back to your home life.  Just like that old 90's song says, "You've gotta keep it separated".      

 You’ve got this!