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Point 1 is very important, I can confirm with also a decade of doing this. One note I'd like to add is pay attention to your lighting, have a special "work-mod

Point 1 is very important, I can confirm with also a decade of doing this. One note I'd like to add is pay attention to your lighting, have a special "work-mode" set of lights that you turn on when you work and then turn off when you are no longer working. I use the same work desk for non work stuff, but I turn off my "office lights" and it's a completely different vibe. Everyone's tastes will be different but as for me, these are my preferences: - Office lighting: at least 20k lumens of 5000K light with high CRI. For me I like to approximate the brightness of daylight. It's especially useful during the cloudy days of winter. My office is in a basement so the cheapest way to do that is string lights (like for outdoor patios), but with high quality LED bulbs. - Personal lighting mode: regular house lighting, 3000K (so skewing towards a more yellowish, incandescent-like light). I still enjoy high CRI because I can't stand things looking bland but that's less important. More spot lights, less ambient light.

spacemadness 3y ago
Anecdotally, I don’t find point 1 to be necessary at all. Points 2 and 3 are vital, however. As long as I cut work off at the end of the day, I’m fine.
- stavros 3y ago
  I agree with you. I continue sitting in my home office after I stop work, and I don't feel tempted to check in at all. #2 and #3 are paramount to me, though.
  - jader201 3y ago
    I believe there's still a mental separation you get from having separate physical spaces for work life and personal life. E.g. there are times that I do break the rule (very rarely) and get on my work computer (e.g. download work documents for tax prep), and part of me feels like I'm back at work. If you've not tried it before, it may be hard to relate or recognize the difference.
    - thrashh 3y ago
      I don't know about everyone else, but once I close all my work apps, I completely forget about work. I just got other things I wanna do on my mind so I don't see why I would think about work. Work to me is like going to the bathroom. I go, do my business, then leave and it's back to my normal day. With WFH, that's even more the case.
- Falcorian 3y ago
  Yeah, working from home for four years now and I only have one office and desk. It's used for work, of course, but also when I'm writing for my self, or playing video games with my friends. I don't have any problem disconnecting from work, but it probably helps that I have a different computer for work that goes in a drawer at the end of the day. I do follow points 2 and 3 though and I think those are essential.
- Cthulhu_ 3y ago
  Sure, the important part is you do a clean break from work and work mode, there's many ways to do so. Me, my work-desk and pc-gaming-desk are one and the same, but I have different keyboards (PC vs Mac) for the one or the other. It's not ideal though, I'd love to have a dedicated office space and time with e.g. an own kitchenette so I don't have to dart in and out of the shared space of the kitchen multiple times a day. I'd say that's my main issue; my workspace is separate, but everything else isn't. And it disrupts my family members' days as well. I should go to the office more often.
dotnwat 3y ago
Would be interested to know which lighting products you are specifically using. I've started dipping my toe into the pool of improved lighting, but the number of products out there is quite overwhelming.
- athenot 3y ago
  10 years ago the specialty bulbs were all metal halide and CFLs but nowadays, they are LED and much better; some are even dimmable. Sites like 1000bulbs let you search by type, brightness (in lumens), color rendering index (CRI; over 90 is best), temperature (in K), angles (for spotlights). Many people spend a small fortune on light fixtures and then use the cheapest bulbs in them. I prefer the opposite.

spacemadness 3y ago

Anecdotally, I don’t find point 1 to be necessary at all. Points 2 and 3 are vital, however. As long as I cut work off at the end of the day, I’m fine.

stavros 3y ago
I agree with you. I continue sitting in my home office after I stop work, and I don't feel tempted to check in at all. #2 and #3 are paramount to me, though.
- jader201 3y ago
  I believe there's still a mental separation you get from having separate physical spaces for work life and personal life. E.g. there are times that I do break the rule (very rarely) and get on my work computer (e.g. download work documents for tax prep), and part of me feels like I'm back at work. If you've not tried it before, it may be hard to relate or recognize the difference.
  - thrashh 3y ago
    I don't know about everyone else, but once I close all my work apps, I completely forget about work. I just got other things I wanna do on my mind so I don't see why I would think about work. Work to me is like going to the bathroom. I go, do my business, then leave and it's back to my normal day. With WFH, that's even more the case.
Falcorian 3y ago
Yeah, working from home for four years now and I only have one office and desk. It's used for work, of course, but also when I'm writing for my self, or playing video games with my friends. I don't have any problem disconnecting from work, but it probably helps that I have a different computer for work that goes in a drawer at the end of the day. I do follow points 2 and 3 though and I think those are essential.
Cthulhu_ 3y ago
Sure, the important part is you do a clean break from work and work mode, there's many ways to do so. Me, my work-desk and pc-gaming-desk are one and the same, but I have different keyboards (PC vs Mac) for the one or the other. It's not ideal though, I'd love to have a dedicated office space and time with e.g. an own kitchenette so I don't have to dart in and out of the shared space of the kitchen multiple times a day. I'd say that's my main issue; my workspace is separate, but everything else isn't. And it disrupts my family members' days as well. I should go to the office more often.

dotnwat 3y ago

Would be interested to know which lighting products you are specifically using. I've started dipping my toe into the pool of improved lighting, but the number of products out there is quite overwhelming.

athenot 3y ago
10 years ago the specialty bulbs were all metal halide and CFLs but nowadays, they are LED and much better; some are even dimmable. Sites like 1000bulbs let you search by type, brightness (in lumens), color rendering index (CRI; over 90 is best), temperature (in K), angles (for spotlights). Many people spend a small fortune on light fixtures and then use the cheapest bulbs in them. I prefer the opposite.