Three things I've learned working from home in these last 2 years

Before working from home became a thing (because of Covid-19), I had already been working from home for a while.

Two years ago, I was fresh out of grad school and was going into my first real job. I decided to take on a position as an environmental consultant in a company where all employees work from home (literally, everyone works from home!). I mainly work with software to help companies implement and manage their environmental regulations and processes (so basically, everything is online!).

Knowing that there are now many people who have found themselves in this position, I thought I would share with you three lessons I've learned that you might also relate to or that you can use to help you adjust to the new-normal:

1. The first time you tell people you work from home, many assume you don't have a real job

You have no idea how many times this has happened to me.

It is very interesting to see how people's impression of you changes when they find out you work from home. I find it is only a selected few who can appreciate the position and understand the type of work that I do.

From this experience, I've learned the importance of not judging or degrading a person's career based on first impressions.

I do have a real job that I treat as a real job. And you do too now if you are working from home.

Working from home does not mean you get to slack off or give less of yourself. Actually, I find it to be quite the contrary - I've been able to become more empowered, gain greater responsibility and understand the importance of trust in a team.

Also, working from home does not mean I have more time to do things. I work regular hours and am just as tired (mentally) when I am done with work as if I had just arrived from the office.

Working from home definitely has great perks that allow you to have greater flexibility and autonomy, but it also comes with needing to be self-disciplined and good at working independently. Working from home is an awesome opportunity I've come to be very grateful for!

2. You need to become a person of habit if you want to maintain a sustainable work schedule and efficiency

This is a very important point that I want to stress.

Working from home means that you are going to need to create habits, boundaries, and have self-control.

Creating habits will help you transform your home into an "office" and provide the environment you need to succeed. This can include anything from changing into work clothes, intentionally creating lunch and break hours (that you follow), and making sure you follow a plan for your daily tasks just to name just a few.

Creating boundaries around your "office" space is also an important part of building habits. Having your own space for just work and knowing when to start and finish being online will help keep you sane and give you the opportunity to be efficient and log-off (mentally & physically) without pending worries.

And finally, you need to have self-control in order to accomplish any of this. If you struggle to maintain a schedule, keep focus, or follow a list of tasks (you can't procrastinate!), then working from home is going to be a learning curve (but one you can definitely overcome!).

In the end, your habits are going to affect the overall team performance. So putting in the effort to become better at them is an important part of your contribution to the team. If you set your mind to it, you can do it.

3. Don't stay in a silo!

This is something that I am guilty of doing, since it is very easy for me to just stay put because I don't get bored (I have a thousand and one things I can shift my focus to).

Working from home has made me realize the importance of people and the need to have conversations outside of work.

Now that all of my family is at home, I find it very comforting to have them around and see the benefit of being around people you trust.

I also find joy in doing outside activities (like Tae Kwon Do), walking around my neighborhood, going to church, and visiting hot spots around the city. These all get me outside of the house and help me be more socially active.

So, if you started working from home, don't forget to go out! Doing Zoom calls with friends is great, but that means you are still in front of a computer. Try to physically do things outside of the house to help you stay and feel more connected to the world.

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Have you worked or just recently started working from home and have feedback you want to share? Leave a comment down below. I would love to hear from you!

Trust the process. Live the commitment.