House habits: Wise words on 2020’s work — from — home realities

Working from home entered the mainstream in 2020. Here’s a look at some of the best quotes from our stories about adjusting to working at the kitchen table this year.

On being realistic about your COVID situation

“Working in a new setting, taking classes online, spending every minute with the same people — it’s something new they haven’t had to deal with before, so it doesn’t make sense to set a rigid set of rules without talking about them first. If you are setting unrealistic guidelines for the family members at home, there’s potential for conflict. It makes more sense to be flexible about what you truly want to accomplish.”

— Dr. Kenneth Farr, Ph.D., clinical psychologist, Dayton, Ohio

On staying active while working from home

“The time saved on commuting can be used for exercise, and if you like walking, then take a 60-minute walk at a brisk pace. It’s going to help more than 500 steps here and 500 steps there. There’s no stop-and-go. It’s just an hour of walking.”

— Elaine Branch, trainer in Henderson, Nevada

On working from home during the pandemic

“Working well past your normal quitting time. Sometimes, if I’m not interrupted or don’t have something else to do, I can work until 8 p.m. without even noticing. That’s not who I want to be. Just because you’re working from home doesn’t mean you don’t have a life.”

— Rebecca R., medical records specialist, Conshohocken, Pennsylvania

On working from home now vs. working from home in the future

“More people will discover actual working from home when one’s partner and kids are not there to bother you. It’s not really telework until you aren’t managing the kids simultaneously. Still, we’ve discovered that it’s not catastrophic to have pets and kids intrude on work meetings or even national TV and radio broadcasts.”

— Josh Calder, a futurist with Foresight Alliance, a future — focused consulting firm in Washington, D.C.

On old work-from-home perceptions vs. new realities

“Workers who were told their jobs cannot be worked remotely or from home have found new ground to request this option because they’ve learned their job, in fact, can be worked remotely. Hopefully, disabled workers will find more opportunities to apply and work remotely after this remote revolution.”

— Kirby Wilkerson, digital media manager at The Impact Kind, a marketing and public relations firm in Canton, Michigan