It happens! You work from home and—in the middle of an important videocall—there’s a knock at the front door. Looking out the window, you see that a cable TV truck is in your driveway. A technician has arrived to resolve your Wi-Fi signal issues—except it’s two hours earlier than the appointment window you were given. “I’m sorry! Please excuse me a moment,” you say, and mute yourself before answering the door. You direct the technician to the router and return to your desk to rejoin the meeting. You’re back in work mode.
The occasional work from home (WFH) interruption is inevitable and increasingly more relatable. Because of technology, WFH is not the exotic proposition it used to be. A February 2025 Gallup poll shows that over half of the United States workforce is employed either entirely from home or in a hybrid form. One of the main challenges of WFH is the demarcation of professional and personal responsibilities. You’re at home but you’re at work. And two essential concepts must be considered for successful WFH—flexibility and boundaries.
The WFH employee enjoys flexibility. And flexibility is freedom, which is great for work-life balance. It might show up as the capacity to reschedule a meeting when your child’s home with the flu or to go for a walk in the park during your lunch break. WFH nicely accommodates the reasonable deviation during the workday. The flexibility WFH offers shouldn’t invert a practical work schedule, though. You win at WFH as you would with work from office (WFO), with consistent performance and efficient delivery.
A WFH position will require boundaries. Make a resolute contract with yourself—and possibly with others in your household—to support the best possible conditions for focused work during business hours. Maintain a functional workspace, aim to keep distractions to a minimum, and leave enough wiggle room for breaks. Be disciplined. The line between duties and personal affairs may blur at times, but it can’t be eradicated. Self-accountability is key when you’ve been entrusted with WFH. Your integrity matters regardless of where work occurs.
A cable technician showing up unexpectedly during a work call is a relative inconvenience—a brief diversion in the WFH day. To be sure, more pressing personal duties will sometimes arise to demand your attention. It’s okay, though, because you probably view this trade-off as a built-in benefit of the WFH agreement. It’s a given that work and personal matters need to be balanced during WFH. Use flexibility to your advantage Set boundaries to guard the workday. Find a cadence that upholds professional standards.