Modern Technology: Avoiding the pitfalls of working from home

By Zatni Arbi

JAKARTA (JP): One of the most prevalent challenges faced by people who work from home is loneliness. After the rest of the family has left for their respective office or school, you find yourself all alone. No one to chat with, no one to share your thoughts and feelings.

So, Rule No. 1 for teleworkers, telecommuters or home workers is to set aside some time in your schedule to get out and mix with other people. Include lunch with your friends in your weekly schedule. It does not have to be at expensive cafes or coffee shops, it can be in the basement canteen of their office building. The point is, do not get isolated for too long at a time.

If your work includes interviewing people, make it also an opportunity to go out and meet other people. If you actually work for a company, it is more than just a good idea to go to the office at least twice a week, it is a must. That way, you will be able to avoid the feeling that you are disconnected from the people you work with, that you are getting "out of the loop".

By being at the office just two days a week, you will also be able to update yourself with the latest office gossip and maintain your visibility. You can leave for your office after the morning rush hour and return home earlier than the crowd, so you will not have to waste too much time in traffic both ways.

One of the strongest attractions of working from home is the unmatched flexibility that it offers. You can work virtually at any time you like, and take a rest any time you need. However, if your home-office area is too close to the living room, where the center of the family's activities are, you might be tempted to take more frequent rests than you should, and it can hurt your productivity.

Therefore, if it is possible, you need to have a rather isolated place for your home office. It should be a bit separated from the rest of the house. For sure, you cannot simply put your notebook on your dining table and call it your home office. A converted garage would be a good choice -- rather than a converted bedroom with a door that opens directly into the living room where your family members usually watch TV.

Another important thing about your work area at home is that it should not be very close to the kitchen or the dining table. Here in Indonesia, it is not uncommon to leave food on the table between meals, and just the sight and smell of it will tempt you to walk over and have a nibble. Remember that working at home means you walk less, and walking less combined with eating more is a very effective prescription for gaining more weight.

A small refrigerator in the home office is a good idea as long as you fill it with plain water and some healthy snacks. You will have some problems if you fill it with chocolates. Moreover, no matter where you work, you need to take short breaks and stretch. A 10-minute break will refresh the mind, especially if you combine it with some stretching and pacing around.

If you have children in the house, you may need to tell them and make them really understand that you work in your home office. You may insist that they knock on the door before entering your office, and that they can do it only if they have some truly urgent reason to disturb you. Try to maintain the same work hours as your own office hours, which also means that your children should not bother you between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m.

When working at home, it is also very easy to include weekends into your schedule. You may start by saying to yourself: "I will spend this weekend working on this project so I can submit it first thing Monday morning, but this will be the only time I'll sacrifice my weekend." Before you know it, you will also spend the following weekend working, and then the weekend after that. If you did not normally work on weekends at the office in the past, why should you do it now? While it is easy to be lazy when working at home, it is equally easy to overwork if you do not watch the clock.

Finally, the biggest challenge of working at home is to keep working despite all the distractions. You do need strong self- discipline when you work from home, whether you are an employee or self-employed. Remember that, even though no one is watching over your shoulder, you still carry the responsibility of delivering your work on schedule. With practice, you may be able to overcome the tendency to goof off.