Work from home

Lots of companies offer generous flexible and remote work policies–but maybe your company isn’t one of them. For the most part (and for better or worse), people work from their desks in the office, ducking out only for the occasional doctor’s appointment or to pick up a sick kid from school.

Full-time remote workers have their own habits to keep them on track, but you don’t. So what do you do when you’ve got an office-bound routine and find yourself faced with a day–or several–when you have to work from home? Perhaps your office is moving to another floor in your building, so your whole team suddenly has to go remote for a bit. Or maybe your cat just had surgery and you need to give him medication every three hours.

Whatever the case may be, a telecommuting day may feel like a cross between playing hooky and taking a vacation–and not especially productive.

Don’t freak out. Here’s a checklist to help you prepare for a seamless day (or week) of remote work when that isn’t something you normally do.

GET YOUR FILES HANDY (THE NIGHT BEFORE)

PREP YOUR WORKSPACE EARLY

STICK TO YOUR MORNING ROUTINE

SPEND SOME TIME AROUND PEOPLE

DON’T CONTAMINATE YOUR REST SPACES

And finally, after you’re done working for the day, make sure that whatever space you’ve used for work doesn’t affect your downtime. If you’ve spent the past workday set up in a room that’s just doubled as your office, then close the door when it’s time to unwind for the evening. If you’re using a more public space in your house, like the living room, then at a minimum, make sure you clean everything up and put away your laptop and office supplies. This way when it’s time to kick back and watch some TV, you aren’t still answering work emails in your head.

work from home