Miranda Priestly vs. Michael Scott: Working From Home & Your Inner Boss

Don’t wanna be. All by myself.

I have been in transition from my office life at Burberry to completely working from home for about a month now. Many of my friends and former colleagues have commented on how much more I must be getting done, and how amazing it is to be able to create your own schedule.

I will go back to one of the creepiest, yet most true things my Grandpa ever told me: "Idleness is the devil’s playground."

I know — that is so something you would hear in Flowers in the Attic, right? But it is so true.

What I have learned so far, (and I am only 30 days into it) is you actually almost have less freedom.

Hear me out.

While on the one hand, you do have the freedom to attend a mid-day workout class or throw in a load of laundry, you also are in charge of your own fate. You are answering to yourself. Your inner boss is either Miranda Priestly from The Devil Wears Prada, or Michael Scott from The Office. Only you decide which one shows up for work that day. That is A LOT of pressure.

At the end of the day, if you didn’t make sh*t happen that is on you. So how do you mitigate this problem? With a very strictly managed calendar.

For those of you wondering how to make the transition, there are two very important things I have found to be true on this journey:

1. Make the most of your day.

Manage your calendar closely. I put everything on my calendar now. I even found myself blocking off 1-2 for lunch. I want to ensure that each day, I am setting strict, yet realistic goals for myself, and then checking back in with myself midday. I then check in again at the end of the day to see where I have landed. Routines are key.

2. Join the living.

Going from seeing my team and co-workers every day to sometimes just seeing just my dog all day, has been the toughest part of my transition. I knew that going in. Thankfully, NYC has many amazing co-working spaces (which I can’t afford yet, but maybe soon!) and coffee shops with free wifi to help with human contact. I am also making an effort to get out after finishing work and meet friends for dinner so that I don’t lose that part of myself.

Working from home or with a flexible schedule can be just as rewarding as being in an office, you just need to ensure you are taking control over it before it takes control of you. You certainly don't want to wind up on your couch at the end of the day highlighting your biggest accomplishment as finally seeing what that Game of Thrones hype was all about. Put on your favorite music, and allow yourself to be productive and focused. You got this.

This message was brought to you by my inner Miranda Priestly.