Are you a part of the growing community of digital nomads? Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you know that remote jobs and a full time career are no longer sovereign. From marketing to sales to project management, you can accomplish your daily job tasks from the comfort of your couch.
However, if you aren’t careful, you may find yourself blurring the lines between home and work which can ultimately lead to lack of success in both categories. There are a couple rules you must abide by if you are new to the game, and as someone who has worked from home since her first job, I have written down some of my golden rules:
Keep a Schedule
Just as you would if you had a commute. You wake up at a certain time. You might plan out your outfit the night before to have extra time for breakfast. You might even kick your workout in the butt if you like run in the mornings. Whatever your schedule looks like, make sure you define what your day would roughly look like and block out hour of your day dedicated to your job.
Personal Tip: Set an hour aside for yourself in the morning whether you workout or not. Eat your breakfast, read a book and stretch a little. But let your body find some comfort before jumping into a stressful or task-ful day.
Keep A Planner
Aside from having a general schedule to structure your day, make daily goals that will help you stay on track for what needs to get done at work. With no immediate repercussions, you may find yourself wanting to slip away from your work space and finish that laundry from the night before. With daily goals, you know how much you want to get done before putting away the laptop and taking out the television remote.
Get Up. Get Dressed.
The easiest thing to do in the morning is roll over and open up that laptop. Trust me, I’ve done that. But change out of your pj’s and head over to your work space before checking your first email. This eliminates the chances of associating your comfiest place with the “need to get this done” mindset.
Set Up A Workplace
Speaking of a workplace. Set. One. Up. The first thing I did when I secured my first remote job was make a trip to IKEA and get everything I would need for an at-home office. Greatest investment I have done for my professional self. It allows me to have a place to get into the professional mindset and spill all the brain dumps I have throughout the day. Plus, it’s also nice to have a desk where you can type and write and store all those important documents.
Personal Tip: Decorate your desk and get the best chair you can. Just because you have the flexibility to move around doesn’t mean you can’t take care of your posture while you’re working at home.
Get Out Of Your House
Being a digital nomad is exactly what it sounds like – a nomad. Staying home is all fun and games until you go to your first personal function and realize you’ve forgotten how to interact with other humans. I’ve heard of moms experience this with newborns, and unless you have young ones to care for (or even if you do!) make an effort to get out of the house.
Personal Tip: Sign up for a class, (fitness, art, meetups) to feel a sense of commitment and derail from canceling last minute. It helps for accountability to push you out the door on days you want to stay home the most.
Remote work translates to flexibility, autonomy, and often less time on the clock. However, not all work from home jobs are created equal. If you’re just getting started, it can be challenging to find a high paying one. Here is a comprehensive overview of high paying remote jobs that offer the standard benefits of working remotely as well as high pay.
