I moved to a home-office nearly 10 years ago. In general, I'm very happy with working from home, but there are a few things to consider: * Make sure you have an office reserved for work This isn't just to avoid distractions (i.e., your family knowing that when you're in the office you're working), but to train yourself to focus on work when you're in the office. * Only work when you're in your office The main problem when working from home: you're always at work! If you start working from wherever (kitchen table, couch, etc), then you'll have significant difficulty separating your work life from home life. * Embrace ways to stay connected to your colleagues More than anything else, I missed my daily interactions with my coworkers. And, trust me, you will miss out on a lot of "water-cooler" talk that is surprisingly valuable! Leverage video conferencing and social media to stay in touch, and get back to the office occasionally, as well.
Barking dogs -- meaning if you have little ones that bark at everything that walks by - it can be distracting and noisy on the phone. Close your door - train, train, and train them to stop - use a headset to cut out outside noise.
Home life.
Other family members or children who “forget” you still have to do work and constantly walk into your office or area where you’re working.
It's not really distractions per se. My biggest issue is it's so easy to roll out of bed at 730 and work in my PJs all day. Unless I make a conscious effort to keep a regular shower (wake up, shower, breakfast, run, etc), I can get into a rut where I don't put on normal clothes, eat properly, nor have actual f2f human contact for days.
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