Emma working from Portland, OR in February 2025

November 2025 marked 10 years of working remote and something like 11-and-a-half years of working hybrid. As we emerge from the dark season of feeling maudlin and reflective (mid-winter), I wanted to share a few of the ways I maintain my sanity, don’t go stir crazy, and don’t blur the lines between work time and home time.

Have a dedicated workspace for work

If possible, and I know this is tough for folks who live in cities, have a workspace that you do not touch outside of working hours. Similar to how you aren’t supposed to really watch TV or scroll your phone in the bedroom (cause that should be a relaxation space that you switch into automatically), the opposite is true… you should have a work-zone in which you can switch into work mode!

Have strict working hours!

The biggest trip-up I see remote workers make early on in their remote careers is working at all hours. Working in an office affords you the luxury of being able to walk out the door and be in a world free of professional obligations. Working from home can easily blur the line between work and play.

Make sure you hold yourself to strict working hours. It’s 6pm and you’ve got something to finish? Tough luck, the office closes at 5:30pm and doesn’t open until 8:30am tomorrow morning. Have too much on your plate during working hours? That’s a conversation you need to have with your manager. More hours on a timesheet doesn’t make you a better worker. Working long hours tends to be less productive and is bad for your mental health. Of course there will be times where you have to ‘stay late in the office’, but if that’s too often – change it.

This one will definitely change based on your role, but even if you’re in a leadership role or always on call you should try and keep a consistent routine so you’re getting as much rest as you can. I do some of my best thinking when I’m not thinking. I like to say to my team: let your unconscious do some work for you.

Dress like you’re at work

You don’t need to wear a full suit and button-down in your home office, but put on those hard pants! Take as much pride in what you wear as you would at the office – it helps you get into that working mindset. Wait until 5:30pm to throw those pajamas on. Psst: athleisure is your comfortable friend here.

Working in your pajamas feels comfortable, but it further blurs the line between the workplace and your home. If you’re okay working in your pajamas you’ll end up working from bed, if you’re okay working from bed, you’ll end up answering Slack messages at 11:48pm even though your team won’t even read them until 9:42am the next day.

Don’t have Slack or email on your personal devices

Slack and email are both asynchronous forms of communication. Treat them that way. The number of folks I see responding to Slack messages at 11am on a Saturday is staggering. You might say ‘I have to have Slack on my phone’ but why? You don’t need to respond to an email or Slack message at 8:15pm on a Thursday unless you have a very specific job. In which case, try and get your work to buy you a phone.

If you have to have Slack on your phone because work requires it, make sure your DND schedules are strict and consider using things like Screen Time to make sure you’re getting the respite you need from work.

The one thing I do have on my phone is calendar notifications. There are luxuries that remote work affords which means I might need a little 10-minute reminder that I have a 1pm meeting if I’m popping out for a sandwich at 12:15.

Be near other people

Just because you work remotely doesn’t mean you always have to be at home. Put the effort into finding places in your town or city where you can be productive and be near others. Loneliness is a killer, and just being in an environment where there are other humans present is great. To take it one step further, put in some effort to make friends with folks who are also willing to pop to a coffee shop for a few hours or come sit at your dining table and cowork with you.

If you’re worried about making friends, don’t be. Almost everyone is navigating life as an adult desperate for human connection, oftentimes the difference between someone who does and doesn’t make friends is that initial hurdle of just walking up to someone at a networking event, saying hello, promising to connect, and then actually connecting.

Do the fluffy stuff to help you wind down

Find a hobby that pulls you away from that workspace and lets you think about other things perhaps passively. Do some embroidery while listening to an audiobook if you’re the kinda person who needs to be productive. Find a craft where you can still hit that productivity requirement without it being a Google Doc.

Read fiction, watch movies, play video games. Transport yourself to a place that isn’t real – put down the MBA for Designers Book and read a book that’ll make you pretend that you’re sitting on a boat in the Pacific instead. It’s good for your imagination, creativity, and curiosity. Nonfiction is great but it’s forcing you to be productive again… in a prescriptive way that fiction won’t.

Step away from the computer if you need to. Go for a little walk to get a breather and (repeating myself here), let your unconscious do some thinking for a while. Being outside is lovely.

Forgive yourself if you break your own rules

Look, I break these rules myself! But I’m kind to myself about it and I always make sure there’s an end in sight. As I write this I’m providing additional design support to a team and working on a large research project – these are extra responsibilities so I’m working more. It’s a lot and I’m breaking my own rules, but I’m promising myself that this is not the new normal! Things will be back to normal in March.

I get it, there will be projects that demand more of you, there will be roles that demand more of you, and there will even be projects that you get so excited you can’t resist putting in some extra time. Just don’t make these exceptions the new normal for yourself if in the long-term they’ll be detrimental to your happiness and productivity.

This entire post is about setting boundaries and creating routines

All of this is about setting boundaries and creating routines for yourself to stick to. The more boundaries you set for yourself and work the better. In order to work hard, you have to relax hard as well. Remote work is a surefire way to let work drip into your personal life in a way that would be impossible if you were in the office.

Discipline takes practice. You’ll feel awkward and like you need to reach for your phone or computer, but don’t. We’re all addicted to our devices, but our brains simply aren’t wired to be connected at all times. It was only a few years ago where most of us were able to shut off by the mere fact that our computers stayed in an office and we separated work and non-work life, now we have to train ourselves to get back into that mindset… but push through, you can do it.

If you’re struggling, speak with a professional who can help you create these work/life balances – especially someone who can help you understand the importance of it, meet you at your level, and develop behaviors that work for you.

For managers and leaders it’s also important to be an exemplar of the above. If your team see you responding to messages at 9pm, even if you say ‘this isn’t expected of you’, people will mirror your behavior. Save it until 9am the next working day.

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Some tips from others

I shared an early version of this post to my work Slack a few years ago and got some wonderful extra tips!

“Create a “commute” for yourself to transition between work and home life. One friend would go to get coffee as her morning commute. Another would soak in her hot tub after work as her commute. I will often go for a long walk between work and making dinner to simulate that transition between worlds.” Michelle Shefter

“I had a friend who worked from a desk in her bedroom say she puts her laptop in a drawer and replaces it with a vase of flowers during non-working hours. that way her room doesn’t feel like an office anymore and it’s her sign that it’s off hours. always liked that one.” Alaina H

“Have something scheduled at the end of the workday - for me this really helps create boundaries! Even if it’s an errand to get me to leave the house! I find this helpful without the transition that a commute provides, and without the commute, you can pick something more fun, like a walk with a friend. For me, hobbies that are physically hard (hot yoga, HIIT classes) or that take my entire focus (pickleball) are great and I do one or the other most work days.” Julia Silbergeld

I love all of these suggestions, but the laptop in a drawer replacing with a vase of flowers is sublime. What tips do you have? If you have a good suggestion, please let me know!