Telecommuting

[JPolen01]

i do fap at work, but come at me to prove it.

:lol: :lol:

[ScottyB]

You can write off some portion of the home office, I did this for 4 years 100% and the past few years about 20% of the time I'm working at home. There's caps on it, like everything, I think the max is 300 sq ft. It's not a huge deduction, and if the employer is footing the bill for the rest of the stuff there's no deductions there.

I worked from home for 4 years, it was a rough transition to start but I really grew to like it. You'll have to start enforcing some good work habits now or else you wont get anything done. I'll write more thoughts on that if you want.

i was going to pick a few sentences from what he said, but honestly, all of this.

the tax write-offs are there but nothing impressive. being self-employed i get more than if i was an employee but still. if you have an CPA help with your taxes they'll be able to maximize this better than you might be able to just because it can be nebulous.

i've been working from home for the last 6 years and that will likely never change due to the nature of my work. overall? love it. however, oddly i've found my biggest problem isn't being able to fight distractions to do the work, its being able to shut it off. i tend to constantly stay busy with projects or lists and i have to force myself to shut down and leave the room at standard business hours instead of "just finishing that one more thing" later and later into the day. i still fight that battle with myself constantly and don't always win. Yeah, feels good to get stuff done and get that paycheck but it seriously does turn you into a shut-in.

that's the second biggest thing next to scheduling yourself fairly....being active. in an office, sure you sit on your ass a lot but you do move around a little for all the tasks you carry out throughout the day. at home, with your commute being bed -> kitchen -> office, its really easy to plant your ass in one place and just camp out for 10 hours. its hugely important to get out for your body and your brain. i try to make it a point to go out and get lunch once or twice a week. meet up with friends. this year i'm putting aside a few hours every friday morning to bike the local trails since my weekends are hectic. i tend to use the breaks like rewards and that keeps me feeling satisfied when i'm on a break instead of just using it to think about work more. breaks for me are things like walking, biking, general chores and landscaping...busy work to just get my mind off stuff and get my eyes off a monitor.

still in pajamas and probably will be until noon :thumbup:

[WRXtranceformed]

I have no idea how the tax deduction works or if it's even worth it. I will end up doing the research and I'll report back. I'm trying to find any way to lessen the blow from Uncle Sam because my commission checks are taxed so fucking heavily.

Woof. I feel your pain my man, welcome to the most not fun of the first-world sales professional problems.

And what Evan said about drawing attention with those kinds of writeoffs. Like I said feel free to give me a call when you get closer to tax season for more advice on this. You should be doing your taxes by the book but little things like that throw up red flags and you are asking to get audited...which isn't a fun process I would imagine.

[.RJ]

I also think "some" people's social skills can get a bit rusty. We have a couple friends that 100% work from home and you uh..can tell. :lol: Others you would never know.

This is true. If I had been working at home all day, or 2 days in a row without any calls or client meetings and it was like I forgot to talk and turned into a mute. Well, more than usual if you can believe that.

For tax deductions, I do the little wizard in turbo tax. I dont think it amounts to anything and its usually nothing but I just keep it on there and it only takes a few minutes to do. I let the software figure out I'm getting $0. I would not worry about that, you are going to be saving a ton of time and money not commuting or buying lunch out every single day. THAT adds up.

[JPolen01]

I would not worry about that, you are going to be saving a ton of time and money not commuting or buying lunch out every single day. THAT adds up.

That's what we are both excited about. Wayyyy less gas, wear and tear on the car, oil changes, tires, etc. Less money she has to spend on work clothes (read: more money for her to spend on other clothes), dry cleaning. Should be very nice for us.

[Jake]

I don't WFH full time, but usually a few days a month at least. One thing I find beyond the basic "put on pants" mantra - put on clothes that are at least sort of nice. No PJ pants or ratty hoodies. Jeans/t-shirt/nice sweatshirt goes a long way to making you feel more "time to get work done!" versus crap clothes.

[Apoc]

I never get dressed when I WFH. I think it helps to have a job where I actually have to work all day.