With so many companies adopting permanent work-from-home policies, many new homes now offer flexible living spaces to accommodate home offices. Due to various lifestyles and unique job types, homeowners might have found it difficult to limit distractions and successfully work remotely in the long term.
These work-from-home tips can help you stay productive while maintaining work-life balance:
Dress for Success
Working remotely might not include full business attire, but something about changing out of pajamas to get the day started seems to result in a more productive day overall. This is a great way to draw the line between “work” and “home” and the new everyday routine.
Keep the Commute Mentality
Beyond that, an intentional morning routine can help make you feel like you are taking care of yourself. Try to emulate what a traditional morning would look like before heading to the office. Get a workout in, take a shower, style your hair, maybe put some make-up on. Did your morning commute include catching up on your favorite podcast or enjoying a wake-up playlist? Try to continue to incorporate those activities.
Dedicate a Space
One of the biggest features Kiper homebuyers have looked for in the last couple of years are flexible spaces for remote working or learning. The unknown of 2020 made it clear that at minimum, it
is essential to have the option of flexible space for either.
A change of scenery from a desk to the outdoor patio or kitchen table at lunchtime might seem acceptable, but keeping a physical separation from work and home, much like the experience of going into an office every day, is crucial to productivity. The line between a workspace and downtime space can easily blur if you spread across your home too much.
Of course, not everyone has the luxury of transforming a secondary room into a full-scale home office, but even in open-concept designs, an area can become the designated “office” space with a chair comfortable enough to in for extended periods, plenty of natural lighting if possible and a way to shut the area down when work is concluded for the day.
Time Block + Breaks
According to LifeHack.org, time blocking can increase efficiency and productivity by forcing us to think more critically about the time spent working and not. By treating your time like a resource and budgeting it like your income, you can track your time and recognize distractions and sources of waste.
Time blocking should also include break times to prevent burnout. In addition to a lunch break, these smaller breaks would include refilling your coffee, getting up to stretch or going to grab the mail to get outside even for a minute. If time allows, maybe go for a short walk. While breaks are important, if you are not alone in your home, set boundaries to limit interruptions, and then give 
them your full attention once the workday is done. Click here to learn more about strategic time blocking and resources to get started.
Strictly Work 9 to 5
Possibly one of the biggest challenges to working from home is keeping strict “office hours.” There will always be an exception, but try to ask yourself, if I was in the office right now, would I stay to get this done or can it wait? If there is not a real disconnect from work, general productivity will suffer, as well as home life. Waver between holding yourself accountable and setting boundaries for time to recharge and tackle work tasks later.
Kiper homes feature a variety of flexible living spaces that can easily transform into productive home offices. Click here for our Tips for Setting Up a Productive Home Office.
To explore floor plans and new home opportunities throughout Northern California including Lathrop, Hollister and soon-to-be Manteca, visit www.KiperHomes.com/new-home-communities.