7 ms·

Do you have a home office or rent office space? If home office, how is it being around family 24/7? What's the optimal remote working setup in your opinion?

sigfubar 8y ago
There isn't a generally optimal remote working setup because every remote worker and their situation is different. My "remote office" is in a corner of my living room that also doubles as a kitchen. It's in the middle of everything, which some people might find distracting, but is just right for me. You see, I've done my time in high-pressure, low-focus, fast-paced financial environments, so being in the middle of my family while I work is stimulating and rewarding. I normally go to the office (a few miles away) when I have more than one meeting to attend. This allows me to keep my work chatter away from home, where others might be distracted by it. All this to say that the onus is on you to make sure that our setup fits your personality. Look within yourself for clues on how and where to work, then make it happen, and be mindful of changes over time.
andrew_ 8y ago
I have a small family, and a "home office". My wife works and I take care of the infant. My home has an open floor plan where the kitchen and living room are one in the same, and that's my primary workspace. I'm not a fan of a dedicated room, and I work solely on a laptop - long ago rid myself of elaborate stationary setups, I enjoy taking my laptop into multiple rooms, even outside. When the wife gets home, work typically stops. I'm a night owl and she's an early riser, so I'm not working when she's around in the morning, and I like work at night after she falls asleep. We also have two dogs, which are a JOY to have around during the day. Having the kid and dogs around, combined with occasional errands and household tasks, provides the exact right amount of distraction and interruption I like to have. I typically only work in 2 hour increments, and then tend to another responsibility, or purposefully head out to do something for an hour. Breaks in the day keeps my mind fresh and oddly enough, allows me to focus more when I sit down to work. As for what the optimal setup is - that's incredibly personal and subjective, and everyone needs to figure that out for themselves over time. Some generic advice would be: - set at-work time limits - set off-limits hours where you do not work under any circumstances - find a comfortable space (that can be anything from a coworking space, to the living room) - find your perfect "white noise." it can get really quiet at home. having something in the background can help. I personally like to keep netflix running, or a movie streaming.
- mattbeckman 8y ago
  I've been remote for ~6 years now. Started working remotely when I had my first. I have a dedicated office, but now there are 3 of them. Oh, the noise noise noise noise.
- triangleman 8y ago
  I'm sorry but I don't understand, are you saying that you are able to do your work at the same time as taking care of a baby?
  - andromedavision 8y ago
    Lol. I find that to be quite something. I couldn't fathom attempting something like this. Every time someone distracts me I spend another 15 minutes or so getting back into the 'zone'.
  - madcaptenor 8y ago
    I've tried to do this with my six-month-old. (I don't plan to work if I'm the only adult in the house, but occasionally my wife needs a break...) It really only works if the "work" I'm doing is being on a call that I don't really need to be invited to.
  - justjash 8y ago
    Yeah, this is weird. I would be very surprised if the company doesn't have some sort rule against this. I started working from home a few months ago and as part of the agreement there is a clause about not being the primary caregiver of a dependent child while working. I'm not sure how you could get much of anything done attempting to do that.
  - spullara 8y ago
    It is completely impossible to have a real full time job and take care of a child at the same time unless yours happens to sleep the entire time. If this was possible all those moms could just work from home! I can barely work at home without locking the door if children under 5 are in the house and there is another adult taking care of them.
apohn 8y ago
There are situations where being around family 24/7 is much better than working in an office. I've been the following type of jobs 1). Office job in a distributed team where I got along well with the people who were in the same office. Worked from home 1 day/week. 2). Office job where there were team members who were a drain on my sanity 3). Crammed Open Office 4). Work from home, first with a corner in the dining nook with my desk hidden behind a small divider. Later with a dedicated room. Always with a sit/stand desk and a keyboard/mouse/monitor connected to a laptop. I'd prefer 1 if I only had to go to work 2-3 days/week. I don't miss 2 or 3 at all and I'd much rather have my family interrupt me with something unrelated to work than colleagues who completely disrupt my work. Working from home can be lonely and sometimes demotivating, but it's a lot better than feeling completely drained from 2 or 3.
asdkhadsj 8y ago
Context: Not OP, but I've been remote for ~7 years, with varying different types of home working environments. My latest position offers me the ability to come into the office, and work from home, depending on what I'm wanting. I've found working from home without a dedicated, private space to be more harmful than helpful. I've worked everywhere from couches to shared office desks. My wife and I used to have an office together, though we don't work together. At times she'd be browsing reddit, gaming, eating, whatever. I found that to be very distracting. People coming and going was an interruption. With that said, we've recently moved and bought a house. Much larger than I wanted in the past, but it has two dedicated offices for us. I've found that to be massively beneficial. I now prefer working at home. I can close the door to isolate myself from distractions. A small note to all this. I do play computer games on my off time, in my office. For some this can be a distraction, as this office space isn't strictly for working. For myself I've not found it to be a problem at all. I switch between my work machine and my gaming machine, so perhaps that's related - I don't have entertainment staring at me. Coupled with my work location, is my work hours and how that affects my mindset. I can choose my hours with my employer, so I choose very very early. This means the first thing I do when I wake is grab coffee, and work. Clean, focused, not distracted. No entertainment before work. I've found that once I do something entertaining, it seems to pester at me. Productivity after entertainment seems more difficult for me, especially for mental tasks. Work seems less interesting, I wander more, etc. Anyway, these are just some of my thoughts on the matter. Your milage may vary.
- SlowRobotAhead 8y ago
  >I've found working from home without a dedicated, private space to be more harmful than helpful. Absolutely! Requires a who different level of discipline. Not just for working, but also not working. At home I have trouble turning it off, at dinner I’d be inclined to go check on this or that.
- lscotte 8y ago
  I just started working remote - I have a separate office, but it's not 100% for work (I have a 3D printer and other fun distractions in the room). I was a bit concerned at first with having a clear separation and that it being a "work" space would ruin it's appeal during off hours, or I'd be tempted to play when I should be working. I found that not to be a concern by only doing work on my work computer and only doing everything else (except personal email and light browsing) on my personal computer. I have a docking station and plug in one or the other to set my context. This seems to work well, but only time will tell if it's sustainable for me.
TrueGeek 8y ago
Not OP but my remote setup is a home office on a separate floor from the family. The kids are in Jr High / High School but they know they aren't allowed to bother me during work hours once they get home. The separation from family is important. I get the benefits of working from home: complete control over my environment, no pointless small talk, no time wasted driving 90 minutes into the city, etc. But I also get the full benefit of having an office to myself without interruptions. I imagine this would not work if I didn't live in an area with cheap housing. I'm in suburban Atlanta.
- 0xcafecafe 8y ago
  As a fellow Atlantian, can't agree more about the traffic benefits. I don't have a remote job but live close enough to my work place (~2mi) to avoid the grind with the bad traffic we have in our city.
HankB99 8y ago
I worked from a home office and our children were grown and out of the house. My wife came in a few times to ask for this or that while I was "at work." I explained to her that when I was in the office I was "at work" and should not be disturbed unless it was something important. She understood and the interruptions stopped. She'd wait until I "came home." I never had a problem with an employer that didn't respect my privacy.

sigfubar 8y ago

There isn't a generally optimal remote working setup because every remote worker and their situation is different. My "remote office" is in a corner of my living room that also doubles as a kitchen. It's in the middle of everything, which some people might find distracting, but is just right for me. You see, I've done my time in high-pressure, low-focus, fast-paced financial environments, so being in the middle of my family while I work is stimulating and rewarding. I normally go to the office (a few miles away) when I have more than one meeting to attend. This allows me to keep my work chatter away from home, where others might be distracted by it. All this to say that the onus is on you to make sure that our setup fits your personality. Look within yourself for clues on how and where to work, then make it happen, and be mindful of changes over time.

andrew_ 8y ago

I have a small family, and a "home office". My wife works and I take care of the infant. My home has an open floor plan where the kitchen and living room are one in the same, and that's my primary workspace. I'm not a fan of a dedicated room, and I work solely on a laptop - long ago rid myself of elaborate stationary setups, I enjoy taking my laptop into multiple rooms, even outside. When the wife gets home, work typically stops. I'm a night owl and she's an early riser, so I'm not working when she's around in the morning, and I like work at night after she falls asleep. We also have two dogs, which are a JOY to have around during the day. Having the kid and dogs around, combined with occasional errands and household tasks, provides the exact right amount of distraction and interruption I like to have. I typically only work in 2 hour increments, and then tend to another responsibility, or purposefully head out to do something for an hour. Breaks in the day keeps my mind fresh and oddly enough, allows me to focus more when I sit down to work. As for what the optimal setup is - that's incredibly personal and subjective, and everyone needs to figure that out for themselves over time. Some generic advice would be: - set at-work time limits - set off-limits hours where you do not work under any circumstances - find a comfortable space (that can be anything from a coworking space, to the living room) - find your perfect "white noise." it can get really quiet at home. having something in the background can help. I personally like to keep netflix running, or a movie streaming.

mattbeckman 8y ago
I've been remote for ~6 years now. Started working remotely when I had my first. I have a dedicated office, but now there are 3 of them. Oh, the noise noise noise noise.
triangleman 8y ago
I'm sorry but I don't understand, are you saying that you are able to do your work at the same time as taking care of a baby?
- andromedavision 8y ago
  Lol. I find that to be quite something. I couldn't fathom attempting something like this. Every time someone distracts me I spend another 15 minutes or so getting back into the 'zone'.
- madcaptenor 8y ago
  I've tried to do this with my six-month-old. (I don't plan to work if I'm the only adult in the house, but occasionally my wife needs a break...) It really only works if the "work" I'm doing is being on a call that I don't really need to be invited to.
- justjash 8y ago
  Yeah, this is weird. I would be very surprised if the company doesn't have some sort rule against this. I started working from home a few months ago and as part of the agreement there is a clause about not being the primary caregiver of a dependent child while working. I'm not sure how you could get much of anything done attempting to do that.
- spullara 8y ago
  It is completely impossible to have a real full time job and take care of a child at the same time unless yours happens to sleep the entire time. If this was possible all those moms could just work from home! I can barely work at home without locking the door if children under 5 are in the house and there is another adult taking care of them.

apohn 8y ago

There are situations where being around family 24/7 is much better than working in an office. I've been the following type of jobs 1). Office job in a distributed team where I got along well with the people who were in the same office. Worked from home 1 day/week. 2). Office job where there were team members who were a drain on my sanity 3). Crammed Open Office 4). Work from home, first with a corner in the dining nook with my desk hidden behind a small divider. Later with a dedicated room. Always with a sit/stand desk and a keyboard/mouse/monitor connected to a laptop. I'd prefer 1 if I only had to go to work 2-3 days/week. I don't miss 2 or 3 at all and I'd much rather have my family interrupt me with something unrelated to work than colleagues who completely disrupt my work. Working from home can be lonely and sometimes demotivating, but it's a lot better than feeling completely drained from 2 or 3.

asdkhadsj 8y ago

Context: Not OP, but I've been remote for ~7 years, with varying different types of home working environments. My latest position offers me the ability to come into the office, and work from home, depending on what I'm wanting. I've found working from home without a dedicated, private space to be more harmful than helpful. I've worked everywhere from couches to shared office desks. My wife and I used to have an office together, though we don't work together. At times she'd be browsing reddit, gaming, eating, whatever. I found that to be very distracting. People coming and going was an interruption. With that said, we've recently moved and bought a house. Much larger than I wanted in the past, but it has two dedicated offices for us. I've found that to be massively beneficial. I now prefer working at home. I can close the door to isolate myself from distractions. A small note to all this. I do play computer games on my off time, in my office. For some this can be a distraction, as this office space isn't strictly for working. For myself I've not found it to be a problem at all. I switch between my work machine and my gaming machine, so perhaps that's related - I don't have entertainment staring at me. Coupled with my work location, is my work hours and how that affects my mindset. I can choose my hours with my employer, so I choose very very early. This means the first thing I do when I wake is grab coffee, and work. Clean, focused, not distracted. No entertainment before work. I've found that once I do something entertaining, it seems to pester at me. Productivity after entertainment seems more difficult for me, especially for mental tasks. Work seems less interesting, I wander more, etc. Anyway, these are just some of my thoughts on the matter. Your milage may vary.

SlowRobotAhead 8y ago
>I've found working from home without a dedicated, private space to be more harmful than helpful. Absolutely! Requires a who different level of discipline. Not just for working, but also not working. At home I have trouble turning it off, at dinner I’d be inclined to go check on this or that.
lscotte 8y ago
I just started working remote - I have a separate office, but it's not 100% for work (I have a 3D printer and other fun distractions in the room). I was a bit concerned at first with having a clear separation and that it being a "work" space would ruin it's appeal during off hours, or I'd be tempted to play when I should be working. I found that not to be a concern by only doing work on my work computer and only doing everything else (except personal email and light browsing) on my personal computer. I have a docking station and plug in one or the other to set my context. This seems to work well, but only time will tell if it's sustainable for me.

TrueGeek 8y ago

Not OP but my remote setup is a home office on a separate floor from the family. The kids are in Jr High / High School but they know they aren't allowed to bother me during work hours once they get home. The separation from family is important. I get the benefits of working from home: complete control over my environment, no pointless small talk, no time wasted driving 90 minutes into the city, etc. But I also get the full benefit of having an office to myself without interruptions. I imagine this would not work if I didn't live in an area with cheap housing. I'm in suburban Atlanta.

0xcafecafe 8y ago
As a fellow Atlantian, can't agree more about the traffic benefits. I don't have a remote job but live close enough to my work place (~2mi) to avoid the grind with the bad traffic we have in our city.

HankB99 8y ago

I worked from a home office and our children were grown and out of the house. My wife came in a few times to ask for this or that while I was "at work." I explained to her that when I was in the office I was "at work" and should not be disturbed unless it was something important. She understood and the interruptions stopped. She'd wait until I "came home." I never had a problem with an employer that didn't respect my privacy.