With coronavirus running rampant throughout the world, many countries have taken proactive measures to quarantine its citizens. As a result of these quarantines, you may have found yourself working from home instead of partaking in your usual office routine. While it might be nice to avoid your daily commute, working remotely can really throw you off of your groove. Here are tips that will help you maintain your productivity and adjust your work life during this crazy pandemic. 

Start the day the same way

“First thing I learned was that I needed to start the day the same way I would if I was going into the office: shower, get dressed, eat breakfast, and act like I was going to work. That put me in the mindset of ‘work’ versus the mindset of ‘oh man, I’m at home on a computer!’”— usernamesarethebane

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“Waking up and starting your morning routine. Wake up, shower, eat breakfast, drink coffee, and change out of your pajamas! I find that the longer I stay in my pajamas the less likely any work will get done.” —hiimem

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Get out of your pajamas and sweatpants 

“Get dressed every day, and by that I mean dress for work. Even go so far as to put on slacks and a dress shirt, if that’s your game. It was hard to do, and requires discipline, but that worked for me for the time I was self employed.” — Ferritt

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“Wear clothes. Big misconception is that we sit around in PJ’s. We don’t and its better for your mental health not to.”– r/ireland 

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“Getting dressed is a HUGE thing. I get into my work yoga pants, washed face.. sometimes make up, hair done brushed. I treat it like I have someone coming over or somewhere to go and want to look presentable… my neighbor started working from home, I tried to give her tips.. I rarely see her outside anymore and I will guess this summer she is going to ask again about keto! GET OUT OF THEM PJ’S!!!! You don’t want to feel frumpy and lazy.” —caffeine_iv_stat 

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Communicate with your employer

“The more you communicate, even about mundane things that you think aren’t important, the more you convey your value to your employer. I email, Lync, and call all throughout the day.”— usernamesarethebane

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“What I do find that is absolutely imperative is communication. So much information disseminated over the cubicle walls that you have to really work at it to remain in the loop on your remote.”– fnordcircle

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“If you don’t already, set up an end of week report for your supervisor. You can detail the high level stuff that you worked on, and get credit for the work you’ve done.” — usernamesarethebane

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Learn when you are most productive 

“Once you are tracking your time figure out when you are most effective. For me personally it is in the mornings. So I try to do all the heavy mental lifting in the mornings and leave the more “admin” type work to the afternoons.” — seabass

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Minimize distractions 

“It’s easy to see how cool it is to play with your dogs while you’re working, but they’ll distract you and keep you from doing your job. It’s tough, but it’s the only way you’ll keep on task (in my experience).”– usernamesarethebane

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Set the same work hours

“Set your working hours to match what your hours would be if you were in an office setting.”— Ferritt

“At work when other people start going home it’s a cue for us to leave as well. Working remotely means that there are no cues to tell us that “work is done for the day”. So pay very careful attention to this.”  —seabass

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Keep a to-do list

“Keep a list of things to do. You probably already do this, but having a physical list on my desk keeps me on track and focused.”– usernamesarethebane

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Know when to take breaks 

“Make sure you know when to step away from the (work) computer.. it’s all too easy for working hours to take over personal time when working from home and before you know it the day is over which eventually leads to the wife/kids/dogs all leaving you for someone who has more time for them. It is the fast track to burnout city.”–sysopsbkms

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“Take your breaks. Don’t be a martyr. You’re still working, you need time away from work. Take the break.”– r/ireland 

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Separate your work space from your personal space 

“You’re going to be spending a LOT of time at home on the computer. You can compartmentalize that time spent at work when you head into an office by realizing that work is work and home is home. You don’t have that anymore. So you have to create that impression.”— usernamesarethebane

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“Do you have a set, enclosed space in your home for your workspace? Make it feel distinctly different than the rest of your home. Don’t spend any your off-work time there. It’s purely the mind associating your surroundings with work – so if your entire home feels like your workspace, you’ll feel like you’re sitting at work whenever you’re lounging at home. If you’re in a studio apartment or something like that, try designating a corner of the apartment to be your workspace, get a divider or something to put up around you (not necessarily those cubicle walls, but anything to split the rest of your home from your workspace).”–ricepanda 

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“Set up a dedicated work space that you only use for work. Don’t try and do work on your couch or on your bed because you’ll get distracted easier. If you set up, say, the end of your dinner table, to be your work space, while your there you’ll be more focused on work”–Bonkersthemonkey

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Collaborate when you can

“Talk to people. Either message them or organise an informal video chat at the end of the day, bouncing ideas of others helps and moaning about something also helps. Do it.”–r/ireland 

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“One bonus sanity-preserving thing to mention: if your work or school utilizes videoconferencing technology, try and use it for some social time too! Check in with folks, chat, play a game, etc. I did a virtual happy hour with some co-workers on Friday night. It was great, we’re gonna make it a weekly thing.”– luckysnorkel

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Take time to focus on personal development

“I do personal development. For example, I love learning new software, or reading/watching YouTube videos on how to improve my skills. It depends on what I’m in the mood to do. Are there any skills you could learn to be better at for your job?”–TrixieKixx

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Drink a lot of water

“I found it easy to start snacking throughout the day on breaks. Water helps control hunger and if you drink enough, the bathroom breaks will work as natural work pauses during the day.” — seabass

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Get out of the house as a quick break (but be safe about where you go)

“Even if it’s just to go grab lunch or go eat in a park or go for a run — get out of the house. You’ll go crazy otherwise. I leave every day on my lunch for an hour, even if I just go drive aimlessly. It gets me out, and away from my desk, which is really needed.” — usernamesarethebane

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Treat yourself 

“Treat yourself. Really explore the benefits of telecommuting and make sure you try to enjoy it.”– seabass

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“Take advantage of the benefits that working from home offer.

• Being able to get up frequently to walk and stretch (sitting for a long time can be re killer on your butt and legs).
• Enjoy a fresh lunch while you watch a show you like.
• If you work well with background noise, put on some nice music.
• You don’t have to rush to get ready in the morning. You could sleep in a bit.” — d0n7w0rry4b0u717

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Exercise, exercise, exercise  

“Try to get exercise in the morning. If you wait until the end of the day, you might be too knackered to do it.”–DassinJoe

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Find your office confidants 

“Figure out who your local eyes and ears will be and who will be honest and trust-worthy. Keep in contact with them as they are already probably your closest work friends. By being far away you lose contact with the ebbs and flows of office personal/politics.” — seabass

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Prioritize your mental health 

“Speaking of mental health – get one of those meditation apps and do a 2-5 min session before or after work. It helps.” —r/ireland 

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Don’t let working from home dictate household work

“I don’t let WFH dictate my household work. Meaning that yes, I could have loads of laundry going but I don’t need to. It’s not a requirement. I can still do those on the weekend. I do make more slow cooker meals when I work from home since I can prep them on a break and get them done within a couple hours. I don’t use recipes that cook longer than 3-4 hours so this is nice.”–eperdu

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Try not to work in your bedroom

“If you have to work in your bedroom, shut down as much as possible at the end of your day. Get the computer out of sight and do something else.” —DassinJoe

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Put thoughtful time in designing your workspace  

“Have a proper workstation with your desk at the right height, monitor(s) at eye level, and sufficient lighting for your tasks. The ergonomic effects of sitting for long periods are bad enough that you don’t need to make it worse.” — _tinyhands_

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Work where you wouldn’t normally watch tv/read 

“Try to work where you wouldn’t normally sit to watch TV, read reddit or eat.” — MonsieurLeGimp

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Don’t forget about hygiene 

“Don’t forget to brush your teeth! I personally do not get dressed up with makeup and such. I don’t wear my pajamas, though I did when I first started working at home. I wear sweat pants and t-shirts/sweatshirts during the winter time and cropped yoga pants/t-shirts during the summer. A shower in the morning definitely helps wake you up!” —TrixieKixx

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“Make sure you still do all your hygiene stuff first thing am: wash your face, brush your teeth, and shower like you are going to work. Get into the “working” mindset.” —theniceone198

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Limit your snacking 

“A designated space is key. I go through periods of time where food is not allowed in that space, to keep me from snacking. It means I have to leave my space to snack which makes it more apparent that I’m snacking and I can stop myself.”–eperdu

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“Keeping yourself busy will help keep you from snacking.” —theoriginalNO

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Know when to move around in your house

“Make a list of things you personally would like to get done. Tote laptop around the house with you as you do chores if you need to be available. Get dressed and make the bed as soon as you get up. Change work locations in your house if you’re having trouble focusing.”–Paddingtons_Mom

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Limit external distractions 

“Don’t work with distractions. If you don’t work or study with tv, music, podcasts then don’t do it while working from home. Take your breaks. If you normally take an hr lunch to stretch you legs then go do it. Take a quick walk around the block to decompress and reset your mind. Don’t try to squish all the things you may see around in your environment and try to multi task it all.” —earthgoddess92

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“If things like stuff not tidied away, laundry not folded, food not cooked etc. distract you, you can use opportunities to stretch yourself and do them on your breaks from classes or work. Also use them as opportunities to think over new material, ideas, courses of action etc.” —hilariousmuffins

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Use technology to your advantage 

“Utilize google docs, it’s free in google drive.Create a zoom.us account and utilize their screen sharing feature so you can explain and help others better.” —itsmethepro

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Actually work

“Actually work, don’t become a lazy ass just because you think you can get away with it. When I worked from home I developed some bad habits that were hard to stop when I went back to the office.” —torments6

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Invest in noise cancelling headphones

“Noise-canceling headphones, comfortable seat.” — kangbabi 

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“I put my headphones on and get my head down to work. I find I’m way more productive at home hah at work as there are no distractions. Sure I talk to co workers on the messaging apps on the work computer, but it’s just work.” —doihavetousethis

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Figure out boundaries with the people you live with

“If you live with other people, be sure to let them know your working hours and ask for their cooperation. It’s very challenging for family and friends to see you in front of them and accept you are not currently available for talk, chores, etc.” —lizzymule

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Play around with what works best for you 

“If structure helps you, write out a flexible schedule and follow it as much as possible. 8am breakfast, 9am study for class X, 11am take a shower, 12pm go for a little walk, etc. And when you’re finished for the day, close your computer and take half an hour to do another activity (make dinner, work on your knitting, whatever) in order to reset your brain off of work.”–plumpillow88

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Break up your day 

“I love to break my day up into chunks. It makes me feel more productive and keeps me motivated when I know I’m doing this task for an hour, then I get to do something I want for 5 minutes, then study for an hour, then prep lunch while I listen to a podcast, then do another task, etc. definitely agree with everyone here saying to shut off your computer and reset after work as well.” — sweetpotatoes12345

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Preferably, work in a room with a door 

“Keep a to-do list on your desk if you must, have a work area and work equipment, close a door if you need to for family disturbances, and if you rely on video conferencing now, consider bumping up your bandwidth to have better performance.” —dexmeister017

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Set good habits from the start 

“Don’t peak, don’t google, don’t be curious, do not look for it. Clean social networks twitter, and instagram are specially dangerous with nsfw models” — r/NoFap

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