Picture the scene, you’re in your PJs or trackie bottoms with your computer on your lap. Daytime TV is accompanying your working day. You are fuelled on coffee and buttery toast and spend the morning procrastinating about your ever increasing to-do list. It’s all too easy to go for these options when you work for yourself. I should know, I’ve worked at home for the last nine years. I am a freelance writer, marketing, and content specialist and for the last eight years, I owned and edited my own magazine.

Here are my tips for staying sane when you work from home

Exercise and eat well 

A morning run or yoga session invigorates the body and mind. There are no excuses for not fitting something into your day, the new trend for short workouts means you can’t get out of it! There are loads of 7 minute or 15 minute workouts that you can do without even leaving your living room. Download an app or find one on YouTube.

Batch cook so you have food in the freezer for evening meals when you are busy. Don’t forget to have lunch. Soup is a great lunchtime meal, you can make some on Sunday night and it can last a few days. Eggs are also a great lunchtime meal, they are quick and easy to make.

Have a specific work area

Don’t work from the sofa, set up a dedicated workspace in your house. A small writing desk with some shelves in a corner of a room or the spare room in your house is a good idea. Make it clutter free and a nice place to work from. If space allows think about a home office in the garden. I have one, which means I can leave my work behind when I shut the door.

Brain Dump 

If your mind is all over the place write everything down that need you need to do. Split it in to two lists ‘home’ and ‘work’. You can then work out the priorities for your day and what can be moved on to the list to action tomorrow.

Stay focused

Once you have written your list of tasks, make sure you complete the top three. Put your phone on silent, close web browsers and get cracking!

Limit email

Constantly checking email means you are being reactive rather than productive. Allocate certain times of the day to check and respond to email.

Find your tribe

Network locally, join a co-working group. Find a fellow businesswoman or friend that you can meet for lunch and talk to. Join Facebook groups for entrepreneurs or people in the same profession as you.

Learn a new skill

Download an audible book that you can listen to when you are driving or on the school run. You might even pick up some ideas that can help you relax or be more efficient at work.

Ask for help

Are you struggling to keep on top of housework? Work out if you can afford a cleaner. Hate doing your tax? Employ a bookkeeper. Figure out what you are good at and outsource the rest. Also consider asking family and flatmates to pull their weight when it comes to household chores. Just because you are at home doesn’t mean you have to do the Lion’s share of the housework!

Learn to say no

Your in-laws want you to come and stay for the weekend. Tell them you have a work deadline, The school needs cakes for the summer fair. Don’t bake, buy some instead!

Be kind to yourself

Accept that not every day will go as planned and always remember the things you have achieved, rather than reflecting on what you didn’t manage to get done.

I would love to know how you stay sane working from home. Let me know in the comments. 

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