Rock the Home Office

Telecommuting is on the rise. Today, 3.7 million employees — 2.5 percent of the workforce — work from home at least half the time, according to globalworkplaceanalytics.com.

“No matter how large or small your work space is, with proper organization and good habits, working from home can be an incredibly successful experience,” said Dawn Cannon, an organizational expert and owner of Finely Organized in California.

Fifty percent of the U.S. workforce holds a job that is compatible with at least partial telework, and approximately 20-25 percent of the workforce teleworks with some frequency.

Related: Going Back to Work After Baby

To make a home office work, master three important factors: personal work-at-home habits, an organizational system that complements how you process information, and a dedicated space that fosters productivity.

Fifty percent of the U.S. workforce holds a job that is compatible with at least partial telework, and approximately 20-25 percent of the workforce teleworks with some frequency.

Daily habits that mirror those you would have in a regular office are critical. The perks of the at-home office are many. There are times you can take a call in your bunny slippers — or draft the team email in your nightgown. But these should be exceptions. Try these best practices.

Dress for work. So what if your commute is down the hall and into the den? You are still reporting to a job that pays you for your performance. Maybe a suit and tie or a dress isn’t necessary, but certainly brushing your hair and teeth, putting on casual slacks and a nice shirt, and even accessorizing a bit will not only make you feel more professional — it will ramp up your personal productivity.

Prepare for emergencies. “Funny things can happen at the home office that you need to prepare for in advance,” said one New York-based journalist and mom of two who works from home. “When the dog barks or the neighbor’s lawn mower starts blaring just as you’ve started a conference call, have a backup plan. I’ve dashed down to the basement when I had to. Figure out your own ’emergency preparedness’ solution.”

Manage distractions. Need to do laundry? Schedule it into your day; don’t throw it in with the conference call on mute. Is your house a certified disaster (especially if you have kids)? Ignore until after 5 o’clock, or identify one discreet task you can do that takes 10 to 15 minutes (the amount of time it would take you to get coffee at the office). Does a TV in the background make your mind wander? Turn it off.

[lz_ndn video=28946955]

Avoid overworking. Use your work-at-home status to your professional advantage, but don’t be owned by work just because it’s always there at your fingertips. Schedule the end of your day, too, and be completely available to your family and your other life responsibilities after the workday ends.

“My issue is not unplugging at the end of the day,” said one high-level sales rep in Boston, Massachusetts. “With my home office, I can work on weekends and at night to ‘get ahead,’ which, of course, never happens anyway,” he said. “My boss would disagree, but I need to stop working so much.”

Don’t be owned by work just because it’s always there at your fingertips.

Leave the home office once during the workday. Even if it’s just to grab a cup of coffee or walk the dog, get out and clear your mind for a few minutes.

“Also, make sure you take breaks now and then, drink water, and actually eat lunch,” advised the New York-based journalist. “When I first started working at home, I didn’t pace myself — then wondered why I was starving at 3 p.m.”

Now, let’s turn to the all-important workspace. In theory it’s simple — create a space, no matter how big or small that doesn’t fight you, but facilitates your productivity and the daily management of your workflow.

“Every single piece of paper should have a home,” said Cannon, the organizational expert. “In your home office, there should be a dedicated tray or bin for action items, and ‘like’ items — insurance papers, tax documents, and archived work — should all be filed together.”

Every single piece of paper should have a home.

“Keep those items you use every day right at your fingertips, and not away from you on a shelf,” Cannon said. “Also, decide how you are going to handle everything that comes into your home — even the daily mail. Have a dedicated space for it.”

Some of Cannon’s clients use a section of a room for an office, and she makes those spaces work, too.

“Hanging files and portable files are key,” she told LifeZette.

Related: The Home Cleaning Wars

It will benefit you monetarily if you can use a separate room in your home for an office.

“You can write this off on your taxes, with the returns varying according to square footage,” Cannon said.

Another important factor in work-at-home success? Pick a personal organizational system that complements your mental processing style.

“I see lots of folks who have multiple systems — paper lists, a day planner, a Google schedule — all at once. Pick one system that works, and stay with it.”

Pick a personal, organizational system that complements your mental processing style.

Interestingly, how your brain processes information is key to picking your system.

“Creative thinkers like to see everything laid out, so some type of desk calendar works well for them, as well as scads of Post-It notes,” Cannon said. “More tactile people like to lay their hands on their work but don’t need to see them, so those are people who have stacks of paper files on their desks, and can use an app or pocket organizer to plan.”

Also important is backing up your work.

“I suggest using cloud-based back-up to avoid data loss,” Cannon said.