How to Commute To Work When You Work Remotely

The move to remote work had me rethink my morning routine.  Here is what my daily commute is like now.

For nearly all of my career, I have worked within about 20-30 minutes of commuting distance from my workplace.  I could even ride to work on some days which was really great for getting your brain awake and ready for the day on the way in and a stress reliever on the way home. 

However, it was still 30-45 minutes out of my day just sitting in car burning gas. Some parts of it I liked.  For example, most mornings I would listen to the Marketplace show on NPR and maybe watch some of the sunrise over the local mountains if I got to work a little early.

The switch to remote work left me with a conundrum.  How do I transition from home to work and back to home?  Would this be difficult to do with no physical distance between the two?  How can I replicate some of the “on/off” time that comes with a commute.

My New Remote Morning Commute

It’s abbreviated to be sure- but I knew I wanted some kind of transition between home and work.  A morning routine helps and that goes for getting into your office at home as well. About 10 minutes before I am due in the office I go for a walk around my block. 

I know a route that is short- about 4-5 minutes for those days I’m cutting it to close from having to help get the kids ready for school or grab something for breakfast.  There is a longer 10 minutes loop around a park if time allows. 

If I have plenty of time there is a longer loop that includes some ponds, and parks that are truly delightful.  I usually save that for mornings when I didn’t go to a workout, so I have some form of exercise in the morning. 

The Transition To Work:

While on the walk I usually think about and pray over may day.  Maybe I will go over what my first tasks will be in the morning or what meeting I have planned. 

Then I will pray over my day and over my kids and spouse as well.  As I approach my house I enter through the side gate and then the back-office door.  This way I can transition into my workspace without thinking about the kids in the other room or doing a quick load of dishes or whatever may distract me. 

With my morning routine completed, I am now at work and can start work.

After Work Commute and Transition Home

This one is usually messier but is a benefit to working remotely. 

The afternoon/evening comes in a trickle.  My son gets home from school first, around 3 PM.  I usually try to greet him and get some quick insight into his day.  This is one of the benefits of remote work and one reason why I took the job.  He really benefits from this check in time and then goes to decompress from his day. 

I then return to close up the rest of the day at the office.  My daughter will come in with my wife around 3:30 or 4- leaving just a short time until I am done with my workday. 

When it’s quitting time, I usually log off, and then go right into home space, closing the office door.  This is usually enough to signal to me that work is done and now it is time for family life.  Some days, if I am lucky, I get a quick walk in after work too to decompress from my day- (the goal is to do this every day, but it’s doesn’t happen every day).

That about sums up my commutes to and from my virtual workspace.  Overall it is a much better morning than a car commute, and if I need to, I can always tune into Marketplace from my back office.