Noelle Sterne

A writing friend wrote me that she had just been let go of her full-time office job. She was now based at her kitchen table, she said, and chafing mightily at being home—alone.  “I don’t know how you stand it!  I get distracted so easily and bored being home by myself. Help!”

Having worked at home for many years in both my writing and my editing businesses, I felt for my friend. She was experiencing the shock of going from a busy, people-filled environment to a solitary one, and she didn’t even have a dog. I immediately stopped working on my current project and wrote her back.

I “stand it,” I told her, because I am at heart an introvert and love to be alone (with an occasional interruption from my husband).  But, I added, you don’t have to be a confirmed recluse to make it work, and even I need some shakeups. In response to my friend’s plea, I thought of several remedies for the “stale at home” quandary. These work for me, and I hope they do so for you:

1.  Take your computer and go work in a library, coffee shop, or mall.

2.  Get a little dressed and with your laptop go to a hotel. Sit in the lobby as if you’re waiting for your colleagues to arrive for The Meeting. While you’re waiting, set up your materials. You will look and feel professional and busy, you’ll be around people, and you may even score some complimentary bottled water and nuts from the lobby bar.

3.  Get together with a friend and write for a period you decide on. Then talk and sip your lattes.

4.  Set a timer for a certain number of minutes to work or set yourself a certain number of words and pages per session.

5.  When the timer bings, get up and skip around your house, walk or jog outside, do a couple of physical errands.

6.  Phone someone (set another timer). An old friend or writing colleague will be mightily pleased. You may even get an essay out of it.

7.  Blast iTunes/radio/tv/your special mixtapes. Dance around (great for your aerobics).

8.  Take a nap (set the timer again).

9.  Wallow in a trashy magazine or novel for a half hour. You’ll be rarin’ to write (“I can do better than this!”)

10.  Make a date with yourself for a few hours. Choose something that’s a real reward. (Haven’t you always wanted to explore that automotive store?)

11.  Make a date with a friend for a new exploration or adventure—the zoo, a new outlet mall, the new park nearby you haven’t yet gotten to.

12.  Always take a notepad and pen or install a recording device on your phone—ideas will come to you when you don’t think you’re thinking about your work.

As you mull over these suggestions, realize and be grateful for the benefits of writing at home:

1.  No office politics or gossip.

2.  No outside demands for deadlines.

3.  No impossible boss to deal with.

4.  You can get up and get a (healthy) snack or (healthier) drink whenever you want to. (No stale office break-room coffee.)

5.  You can slip in some necessaries as breaks—a load of laundry, a swipe around the microwave, a programming of the TiVo (absolutely necessary).

6.  You can walk out, literally, any time you want to.

7.  You can work, literally, any time you want to without thinking about how tired you’ll be in the office if you get up to write at 5:00 a.m. or work until midnight.

So, choose one or more of the suggestions above. You’ll probably come up with your own variations. And if you need more convincing, remember the benefits of writing at home. Now, get out…  I mean, stay in!

© 2016 Noelle Sterne

Noelle Sterne (Ph.D.) publishes in many venues, including Author Magazine, Chicken Soup for the Soul, Children’s Book Insider, Graduate Schools Magazine, Inspire Me Today, and Writer’s Digest. Her Trust Your Life: Forgive Yourself and Go After Your Dreams (Unity Books) helps readers reach lifelong yearnings. Her new book, based on her academic coaching practice, assists doctoral students: Challenges in Writing Your Dissertation: Coping With the Emotional, Interpersonal, and Spiritual Struggles (Rowman & Littlefield Education). www.trustyourlifenow