As a problogger, I work from home. I have a home office and that’s where I spend my time working. This, of course, means I am subject to the many distractions of home: kids, wife, phone, doorbell, refrigerator. Yep, all of it! What to do?
The biggest single problem with working from home is the amount of potential distraction. When you are in an outside office, it is usually quieter. Plus, the mindset is different because you’re there to work. When you go back home, then the simple transition from office to home means you change into another mental “mode”. Work is over. Time to chill out.
A home office means that you almost live IN your office. Even when you are having dinner or spending time with the kids, work is not far from your mind because, just down the hall, there your computer sits, beckoning you to check your email or check Twitter.
I deal with all this stuff. I have a permanent baby gate in my office door to keep my daughter from meandering into my office. It keeps her out, but I can still hear everything she does. My wife, when she needs something, will just come interrupt me in the office to ask questions. When the home phone rings, I hear it. When the doorbell rings, the dog starts barking and it interrupts my thought process. In the evening, I have to try really hard not to think about work. After all, the office is right down the hall.
How do you deal with it?
Here are my ideas, but I would love for my readers to share their own ideas, too.
- Close the office door and play music. It helps to drown out the noise of kids and family.
- Put the baby into daycare. My wife and I just started Elyana in a daycare center part-time. It is nice to have some peace and quiet and my wife appreciates the time to herself. Ely is also getting some time with other kids, which we think is important.
- Ask family to stay out. I have asked my wife to err on the side of not coming into my office and to try to act as if I am gone between work hours. Doesn’t always happen, but we try.
That’s about it. If you deal with the same issue, how do you deal with it? I’d love to know.
Eventually, we will move into a larger house which has a separated workspace for my office. For now, I have a back bedroom set up as my office. It works, however it isn’t set aside. Ideally, I’d have a second floor office or a separate structure.
Until then, I have to make do. It is nice working from home. I like being able to see the family in the middle of the day. I like not having to pay rent for an office. I like being able to sit there in my underwear and not care about what I look like. But, with these things come trade-offs.
Copyright © 2008-2012 PC Media, Inc. All rights reserved.
