do you do anything to mentally shift gears into work mode?
I'm working from home on Wednesdays and Fridays right now but both DDs are home with me. It's impossible! I didn't get to log in until 10:30am when I put DD2 down for a nap. Thankfully my ILs take DD 1 in the afternoons and DD 2 is napping right now.
I have a feeling I'll be putting in hours after bedtime and perhaps even early in the mornings!
admin / wonderful grape / 20724 posts
@regberadaisy: I struggle to get anything done if the kids are around!
GOLD / wonderful pomegranate / 28905 posts
@mrbee: after I put DD2 down for her nap I just turned Frozen on until my ILs picked DD1 up! I *had* to put in some hours.
Screentime FTW! 
squash / 13208 posts
I can never get in a full 8 hours when the kids are home - lots of screen time here too!
grapefruit / 4663 posts
I don't think it is possible to work at home with your kids; kids just require too much attention My DH works at home daily but he gets very little done is DS is home sick.
I tried to work at home to extend my maternity leave and it just wasn't possible.
pomegranate / 3706 posts
I ended up selling my business because I couldn't keep up and didn't have any "free" childcare (family) nearby. I mostly worked at night, after my girls were in bed. I highly recommend child care for some chunks of time, so you can focus without sacrificing sleep! I hired some for big projects and it made all the difference.
GOLD / wonderful coffee bean / 18478 posts
It was awful if DD was around. That is why I had daycare!
wonderful pear / 26210 posts
To answer the question, when I work at home, yeah, I do a mental mindshift. I do a quick "routine" where I put in a load of laundry, plug in my phone, go to the bathroom, fill up my water bottle and then begin the log on process.
I can't work at home with my son around though, lol. He's wanting to work on the computer too.
GOLD / wonderful apricot / 22646 posts
I can't get anything done besides turning on my laptop and logging on when DS is around.
pineapple / 12053 posts
super hard to do for me because my desk is in the living room, so i am pretty much always on it. 
pomegranate / 3113 posts
My telecommuting agreement actually specifies that I have to have alternate childcare while working at home. I totally understand the policy, it's hard enough for me to get into a work mindset when I'm home alone and with a LO around, it's impossible. My boss is nice about looking the other way if I have to stay home because DD is sick, though, just as long as I don't abuse the privilege.
GOLD / wonderful pomegranate / 28905 posts
@PurplePeony: that makes sense! When I was offered this job I made it clear to my employer I need to be able to WAH 2-3 days week otherwise it's not worth it to me. I'll just have to fill in during the week.
pomelo / 5093 posts
My husband often works from home, but he goes into his office and shuts the door, and we try not to interrupt him.
apricot / 364 posts
I WFH 2 days a week (only work part time until noon) so first hour DH is home, hour of independent play, hour of PBS kids, another hour of independent play and then lunch for last hour of my working day. LO is 2 and I've always worked 2 days at home so maybe she's just used to having to play by herself? I get more done at home than I do in the office.
As for your actual question about mindset...the end of the previous day I list what I want to accomplish the following work day. Things change but having a list to work my way through helps me stay focused when I might otherwise be staring blankly at my computer.
persimmon / 1281 posts
I work from home. When I have big projects, I call the nanny over because there is no way I can focus while he's awake... needing to be fed, engaged, played with. If I have a small project I try to find a few minutes here and there during the day (baby Einstein helps a lot in this regard, but not recommended), or I wait until he's sleeping since he STTN now from about 9pm to 9am. Last night (this morning) for example I didn't finish my project until 4 am and he decided to wake a little before 8 am... 
wonderful grape / 20453 posts
Well i worked from home today and I worked from 5-7am and am on now until 1:30 pm. I can get 4 hours in that way with E home with me. You just have to get very creative with your hours and extend into bedtime, i'm sure. It's hard to be truly productive with a toddler and/or baby underfoot.
pineapple / 12566 posts
I WAH and I cannot work with my kids around. The older one goes to daycare full time. The younger one has a babysitter every morning. She will start daycare in January.
As for mindset, I'm a really self driven person (procrastination is not in my personality), so it's not hard for me to drop off DS at school, kiss DD goodbye and then sit down and start working.
persimmon / 1404 posts
I don't have kids so I don't know if this really helps, but whenever I work at home I always give myself a time when work starts.
GOLD / papaya / 10166 posts
yeah.... I think my boss knows nothing happens until nap time if I'm working from home w/ the kids.
hostess / wonderful grape / 20803 posts
I can't even take out my computer when T is awake. He wants to play on it and won't leave me alone. There's no way I could work with him home!
blogger / eggplant / 11551 posts
We have childcare on a regular basis - they both go to preschool, but it is a definite juggle and I can only get 50% done when one or both are home sick and I'm trying to work. It's easier now cuz DD is older and can be distracted by TV or can play independently for long periods if I give her something to do, but I'm still constantly having to fetch her this or that, or answer her questions - hard to focus! Impossible to get anything done with DS around.
grapefruit / 4213 posts
I WAH and my work hours are nights and weekends when DH is home to watch LO. I don't have any strategies for mentally switching to work mode. I just do what I have to do and reward myself with bed during the week or family time on the weekends.
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