Darren Neimke points out that working from home may appear rosy to those who are forced to commute to a place of business most days of the week, though it can be a mixed blessing. He also points out that what works for some, will not work for others.

I have been working from home for a few days each week for the last few years and am in complete agreement. In order to stay fresh, I have had to develop strategies to combat homework wariness and I thought now was a good time to share. I feel it is a matter of setting the mood, staying motivated, focused & above all, connected with your team.

Setting the mood:

I like a well lit, dust free, cool room to work in. Airflow is good; fresh oxygen for the brain. I don't need a grand hall, but I find small crowded rooms to be harder to work in (might as well work in a cubicle!).

I have found it completely necessary to have office space at home. Its great to change it up and code in public, though I find it equally invigorating to come to work in a clean and organised home office environ. By having a place at home that is purely for work, I no longer have the problem of feeling like I'm always working. As a result I have a PC for work and a PC for play.

I do not like having the TV or radio on, I see it as nasty distraction that should be purged from existence. Though some calm, soothing metal & hard rock can really help me focus. YMMV of course ;)

Staying motivated:

I find that a lack of structure saps my motivation. I think the best way to ensure I stay on track is to develop a routine and stick to it, just like I would if I had to go to the office.

Sticking to a routine will ensure that the home hat is removed and the work hat is firmly in place. Getting out of bed 5 minutes before I am required to interface with others over MSN will only makes me grumpier. I highly recommend having a decent lunch break and getting outside for some exercise to pump the blood back into your brain after a plate of homemade sushi rolls.

Staying focused:

There are many potential distractions; partners, house work, XBox Live etc. can be phenomenally distracting. Avoiding the temptations of home can be easy for some, harder for others. In the past when my wife was at home with me, she would incorrectly assume that because I am home, I am capable of participating in household chores and errands while on the job.

Making clear boundaries with your spouse or family members about work times and expectations is paramount. Its also useful to have these boundaries for yourself. While 36 hour coding stints have a hero like quality about them, its fair to say that they are ultimately counter productive. My wife and I settled on the following arrangement:

• Between 8am - 6pm we can communicate on issues, but I wont be able to action upon them until after work.
• We can convene at lunch time, however since it is my lunch break I expect to have some downtime.
• After 6pm I pledge to cease working unless there is a emergency. Oh, and blogging isn't working :)

In essence our relationship is treated as though I am actually in the office. I'd have to say that avoiding the XBox is easy in comparison.

Staying connected:

Try to stay in contact with your fellow employees as much as you can by whatever means necessary. Staying in the loop really helps to keep you motivated. If you are in the dark, you might miss out on another task, or not realise there is an urgent situation that requires your attention.

I also think it is important to have face time with my colleagues. While I am a complete MSN addict, I do find that it is far easier and more efficient to converse about complex issues via the spoken word. Since I actually work at the office about 75% of the time, this is not a problem for me.

I am yet to try webcam communication, and I would be interested to hear from anybody who uses it for work. However a brief trial of teamspeak proved to me that you just need to *be there* sometimes. It was great for 'thinking out loud' and discussing more complex issues, however it does require everyone involved to have a microphone + headset, which during our trial, was not possible. Much cheaper than call conferencing though.

In summary I treat myself and those around me at home like I am at work in order to keep a clear separation, although I balance this by treating myself to the perks of being at home and having more time. I might take a slightly longer break and spread the day out, or treat myself to a stint on the couch, or go down to the beachfront to read some blogs. Staying connected with my colleagues helps to define this balance and maintain my focus.

I hope that for those of you working from home or considering it as an option will find my experiences useful. How do you like to roll at home?