I think theoatmeal.com’s Why working from home is both awesome and HORRIBLE sum’s up a lot of the social considerations to keep in mind. I’ll breakdown my opinion of these things and how to combat them and add a few below.
Degradation of social skills
- Work from co-working spaces.
- Be an extrovert on evenings and weekends (e.g. go to Meetups or other social gatherings.)
Distractions
- Close Reddit/Facebook/Twitch/etc.
- Don’t play games.
Stress on relationships
- Have a honest conversation about this with your significant other to clear this up. If they don’t get it, go to a co-working space on days they’ll be home, or send them away.
- Working from home can sometimes give the impression you have time to
do things you shouldn’t do;
- fold laundry
- rotate laundry
- do dishes
- clean the floors
Loss of regimen
- It’s crucial to have a set of hours you’re working and then stick to it.
- This tells you when you need to get up and when you need to get out.
Lack of employee banter
- The only thing I can suggest here is physical interactions with people.
- They don’t have to be co-workers, but anyone.
- Go to a co-working space.
- Your cat/dog cannot provide this.
Stay active
- Go for a walk on break, get away from your office when you do.
Don’t skimp on equipment
- Here’s the things I’d suggest having;
- Computer Chair (you’ll be logging hundreds, if not thousands of hours in this thing, get one that’s comfortable)
- Active Noise Cancelling headset
- Webcam (sometimes you just need to see someone’s face, sometimes someone needs to see yours)
- Mouse and Keyboard (again you’ll be spending a lot of time with these devices, make sure they are great for yourself to use)
Other things I can’t fit in
- Change into a “work” outfit.
- Always be ready/able to mute yourself.
- Live by the phrase, “Two is one, one is none.”