12 Surefire Ways to Lose Your Telecommuting Privileges

Even here in the Communication Age, working from home is a rare treat for many people. You often have to lobby hard for the privilege of getting to work from home, and even when granted, it might only be for, at most, one day per week.

So after securing the ability to work in your bathrobe at the desk in your study, don't squander it.

WebWorkerDaily recently put together a tongue-in-cheek list of 20 ways to fail at working from home. I loved the list, since I have personally seen people actually pull many of these stunts. Here are my favorites -- consider them cautionary tales to help you thrive, rather than fail, when working from home.

1. Work on your side business or personal projects instead of work.
2. Don't set goals or figure out what materials you need to do your work from home.
3. Make sure that you leave important documents, tools, or technology at the office which keeps you from getting stuff done at home.
4. Spend large chunks of the day on Twitter or Facebook.
5. Squeeze in as many household chores as possible. Do laundry, dishes and home improvement tasks while you are at home.
6. Ignore your e-mail.
7. Don't answer the phone or return voicemail.
8. Make sure that you set your IM status to offline. Ignore incoming IM.
9. Don't contribute during conference calls. Bonus points if you ignore questions directed to you.
10. Don't bother to mute the phone when kids or pets come tearing through the room.
11. Spend all day watching TV.
12. Don't accomplish anything tangible or complete deliverables.

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