Having trouble working from home? Unsure how to balance your time without coworkers sending you passive-aggressive emails?
Stock photography is here to help. We searched Shutterstock for the most realistic images of what working from home looks like, because if stock photos don’t capture things as they really are, then what does?
Here are the 10 best we could find, with advice to make your career a little more photogenic.
1. Take a nap to recharge your batteries
Some of the brightest minds in history believed in the power of naps. Winston Churchill once said, “Nature has not intended mankind to work from eight in the morning until midnight without that refreshment of blessed oblivion which, even if it only lasts twenty minutes, is sufficient to renew all the vital forces.”
If you want to join the ranks of history’s visionaries, feel free to take a nap during your workday—with your laptop. Not only will it keep you warm, but you can telepathically transmit all of your brilliant ideas to your computer while you snooze. By the time you wake up, you’ll have written the next great American novel in your sleep. Just be sure to place your laptop very close to your head or the brainwaves won’t be properly transmitted.
2. Enjoy time with your significant other
If your main squeeze also works from home, there are a few things you can do that will bring you closer, including sitting closer together. Really close. Uncomfortably close. Next, you should both sit cross-legged. And finally, make sure you’re both wearing the same color.
The more similar the two of you look, the happier you’ll be. Those fights about cleaning the coffee maker will simply vanish once you’ve accomplished perfect symmetry.
3. Vent your frustrations
Working from home is pretty great, but it doesn’t mean that you’re immune to frustration. Maybe a client hasn’t paid you. Maybe your creative juices aren’t flowing. Or perhaps your computer just crashed.
If any of these things happen, look aghast at your laptop and be sure to wildly pull at your hair. Gasp if you feel like the situation warrants it. These actions have therapeutic properties that will instantly make you feel better. Bonus points if you make it look as if your eyes are going to pop out of your head.
4. Always look your best
Just because you’re working from home doesn’t mean you shouldn’t up your game in the looks department. Be sure to gel and coif your hair till it defies gravity. Throw aside the sweatshirt you’ve been wearing for a few days and rock your best blazer.
And then, while you’re on the couch typing, be sure to flash a sexy, smoldering stare at the nearest wall. Damn, you’re killing the freelancing game.
5. Congratulate yourself on a job well done
Whenever you pick up a new client or finish a major project, be sure to give yourself a pat on the back. Like, a literal pat on the back. Actually, it’ll be even better if you exclaim, “YEAH!” as loudly as you can, much like the man in this photo. You might even want to allow yourself a fist pump.
Since there’s no one else around, you have to be the one to give yourself praise. Otherwise, how will you know that you’ve done a good job?
6. Surprise yourself
Whenever you finish an assignment, it’s okay to be shocked by your own genius. Stare in wonder at your laptop screen and say, “I am the greatest freelancer to ever live!”
While you’re saying this, do jazz hands and keep up the self-congratulatory energy throughout the process. You should be continually surprised by the unsurpassed masterpieces you churn out. Shakespeare’s got nothing on you.
7. Learn how to multitask
Who says you can’t iron, drink a cup of coffee, and work on your laptop at the same time? You’re a freelancer. You don’t have time for little things like safety or avoiding third-degree burns on your shirtless torso. And that $2,000 laptop? It totally won’t fall off that ironing board.
While you’re at it, why not do cartwheels, take a client call on your cell, and make a pie? You’ll be even more productive if you can grow an extra set of hands to juggle all your responsibilities. Give it a try!
8. Make a point
While you’re working, always pretend that someone is standing right next to you. When something happens on your computer screen, point at it and look at the fictional person in amazement. Now working from home doesn’t have to feel like working alone!
9. Take plenty of breaks
It’s time for a breather. Instead of going for a walk or checking social media, do what this woman is doing: Lie on an uncomfortable hardwood floor and spread out all of your accoutrements around you—breakfast, your laptop, your tablet, and so on. Don’t question the logic behind doing this. It must feel good for some reason, right?
And don’t forget to wear glasses while you’re doing this. The ceiling should know how smart you are.
10. Fall in love with your work
Literally fall in love with your work. Go head over heels. Take the plunge. Yes, you can do these things metaphorically, but you’ll prove that you’re serious about your work if you dive headfirst into the carpet with your work items strategically placed around you. You’ll have the concussion to prove it.
Thanks for showing us how to work from home, stock photographers. We applaud you.