3 Rules Every Home Worker Should Live By

So you work from home. You've decided not to work from a co-working space, or perhaps it's not practical for you to do so. Whatever the case is, there are a few things you're going to need to make your work life at home as comfortable as possible.

Here are three things that every home worker needs in order to maintain a happy and healthy relationship with your work/life balance.

1. Find a designated workspace

Believe it or not, working from home isn't good for you. They say you should never ever work from bed because you need to associate your sleep space as a place of rest - if you want to sleep that is.

If your desk is in your bedroom, try to pack away all of your work items every evening when you pack up so that it's out of sight and out of mind.

If you have the space, buy yourself a desk, and set it up in a place in the house where you wouldn't go during your down time. For me this has always been in our dining room - which we actually now never eat in because we don't want to feel stressed while we eat!

Here are a few desks we love for making your workspace pleasant but separate from your home:

2. Have Designated Working Hours

It's easy to fall into the trap of working all hours of the day when you're at home. At least when you're in an office you have to leave to come home and cook dinner, wash, sleep - but when you're working from home you only need to roll out of bed to your desk (which can lead to lots of lazy mornings) and in the evening the kitchen is never far.

Set your normal work hours like you would if you were in an office. 9am-6pm or 8am-5pm. Once the day is over, shut everything down as you would in an office and enjoy your evening!

3. You Must Have Proper Ergonomic Positioning

There is nothing worse than getting a bad back from working at home. At an office, your employer is legally obliged to set you up with proper ergonomic positioning. To avoid getting a hunch back and a whole host of back problems (trust me I've learnt this the hard way) - it's time to buy yourself a laptop/computer stand, a decent office chair, and a desk where you can adjust the height.

Then it's time to set yourself up. This video provides really simple tweaks you can make without having to spend a fortune.

Here's a few things we use for a healthy back:

Laptop Stand - £31.45

Back support - £44.99

Long hot water bottle (heat is your friend!) - £20.35

What rules do you live by if you work at home?