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I’ve worked out of my home for over 20 years.
I’ve worked at home for about a year.
There is a difference. Working out of your home means you have an office where you do your administrative activities and phone calls. Working at home means you do everything at home; there is nowhere else you have to be.
Well, as I sit down at the neighborhood pool at 2:30 in the afternoon on a Friday, I have to say there is more of a difference than I thought there would be.
I had to leave my home office and head to the pool just to be able to clear my thoughts so I could think of something to write about today. I guess it is working because the words started flowing as soon as I got out of the pool from that initial jump in to cool off. It happens to be an above-average 98 degrees today.
When you’re working at home full-time, you have to make sure you change the scenery a few times a day. If you work from the same area all day, I believe you get a little tired or stale.
Now I must tell you that it could be just me due to my past occupation. I worked out of my home, and when I wasn’t at home, I was traveling the Midwest in my car. My scenery was changing every second.
Sorry about that, I had to go take another quick dip in the pool. Well, I guess you couldn’t tell I left, but I just had to mention it due to my topic.
Ok, where was I. Besides heading down to the pool, I have a few other places I do my home business from. In the morning, I get out on my front porch in my favorite rocking chair.
Oh, I forgot to mention, you must have a laptop to work at home; a desktop just won’t cut it. You have to be able to get out from behind the desk.
Ok, back to the front porch. Working on my rocking chair on the front porch does a couple of things for me. One, I get to wave to all my neighbors as they drive by on their way to their daily grind of a job. It really gets me pumped up and ready to go. Two, well, maybe there isn’t a two, I just like to wave to everybody heading off to their daily grind of a job.
Around 9:30 am, I usually head back into my very nice home office. I always wanted a really nice den. I went out and bought some very nice home office furniture. It creates an instant feel of success.
I feel like I can accomplish anything from behind my desk.
Well, that is until about 2:30 in the afternoon. It’s time to head back outside. If it’s above 85 degrees, I head to the pool. If it’s below 85, I go out my back door and head to the picnic table in the woods. It’s very nice in the shade; it refreshes my mind just like jumping in the pool. The only problem is my laptop battery only lasts about two hours. Around 4:30 I’m rolling out the orange extension cord to continue my work.
Ok, In closing, if you work from home, make sure you take advantage of it. Don’t feel like you have to be inside at your desk or kitchen table. It did take me a while not to feel guilty about working from non-traditional places. My wife still gives me weird looks when I say I’m heading down to the pool or out to the picnic table. Just remember you have to have a clear mind so you can concentrate on the prize.
Leading you to Success,
Scott Grogan
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Comments
Mark Conan September 3, 2011, 14:30
Great post! I love the idea of changing scenery to keep productivity high. I often find myself getting stale working in the same spot all day.
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Verna Minx, September 4, 2011, 09:45
Thanks for the tips, Scott! I’ve been struggling with working from home and these ideas are really helpful. I’ll definitely try working from different spots around the house.
Alicia Martinez, September 5, 2011, 10:15
Scott, your post is a breath of fresh air! I’ve been feeling the monotony of working from home and your tips are exactly what I needed to read today.
Kevin Lee, September 5, 2011, 11:30
Great advice! I never thought about working from different places around the house. I’ll definitely give it a try. Thanks for sharing!
Nina Patel, September 5, 2011, 13:00
I love the idea of working from the porch. It sounds so relaxing and productive. Do you have any tips on how to manage distractions while working outside?
Marcus Johnson, September 5, 2011, 14:45
Interesting read! Changing up the scenery can really make a difference. I’ve been stuck in my home office for too long. Time to move to the backyard!
Elena Gonzalez, September 5, 2011, 16:15
This post really resonates with me. I’ve been working from my kitchen table and it’s getting old. I’ll try moving to the porch tomorrow. Thanks for the inspiration!
Paul Robinson, September 5, 2011, 18:00
Your post is spot on! I’ve been working from my home office for years and changing the environment occasionally really helps with productivity. Great tips!
Sara Kim, September 5, 2011, 19:30
Working by the pool sounds amazing! I’ll definitely try it out. How do you handle the heat though? Any tips for staying cool?
David Thompson, September 5, 2011, 21:00
Thanks for sharing, Scott. I needed this reminder to take advantage of the flexibility of working from home. I’ll be moving my workspace around more often.
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Sorry if this is a silly question but does anybody actually get real work done at a pool, or is that more of a once-in-a-while treat kind of thing? I ask because I have been feeling guilty about needing total quiet to concentrate, and this makes it sound like everybody else is out having a wonderful time in the sun while I am stuck at my kitchen table.
Gus, I confess I share your instinct rather than the author’s, though I mean no disrespect to him for finding what works for his own mind. At sixty-one, starting again after my pension underperformed, I have found that the discipline of a fixed place and a fixed hour is what steadies me, far more than the freedom to wander between a porch and a picnic table whenever the mood strikes. Perhaps at his stage of life, with the confidence of years already built, such wandering is simply play rather than risk. At my stage, I cannot yet afford to mistake the two, and I suspect a great many readers his age and mine are in exactly that position without anyone quite saying so.
Every location change in this post is an interruption, and every interruption has a resume cost, even a small one.
Attention restoration theory: the evidence for a porch is decent. For a pool specifically, thinner than the anecdote suggests.
Gus, that guilt is worth naming directly. Different brains genuinely need different environments to focus, and quiet-with-no-stimulation is a completely legitimate one, not a lesser one. Try this: notice which specific tasks you do well at the kitchen table versus which ones drag, and match the environment to the task instead of to what looked fun in someone’s blog post. What does your best hour of the week actually look like?