Make working from home work for you

1. Have a space that you control. Preferably a room that you call your office and where you can shut the door to the outside world

2. If you have to use a communal space, make sure you sit at a table. Sofas are only good for short bursts of time

3. Avoid distractions, but enjoy them when they are needed. I work well in the mornings and prefer to start early with focus, but in the afternoon I need stimulating, so some guitar-playing or a stroll outside or planning a holiday really helps me. Remember you are not a machine!

4. Choose a spot that has lots of natural light

5. Get all the bits you need together there. Phones, printer, wi-fi that works, pens, paper etc – otherwise it's annoying

6. Have human contact. You will go nuts otherwise

7. At the end of the day, pack your work away – or it will easily bleed into your evening. If you can see work at night, your subconscious is still on it so hide it away

8. Enjoy the freedom. There is no point in working at home if you don't enjoy its advantages. Do stuff you can't do in the office (no, not that…)

9. Working from home all the time is not for everyone. But every now and then we all benefit from working in thick comfy socks with our favourite mug in our hand

10. If you are limited by where you can work, at least try to vary it in some way. Swap spaces with colleagues. Work in the canteen for a bit. Change your desk around. Even small changes can have a huge effect on how we think and feel. Mix it up and feel the benefits

Extract from Free! Love Your Work, Love Your Life (Penguin, £9.99) by Chris Baréz-Brown, founder of Upping Your Elvis and a contributor to Psychologies' LifeLabs blogs

More inspiration

Read The truths of working from home by Sam Cleasby on LifeLabs