Ask HN: How do you switch off from work, particularly when working from home?

Also, if you want to use your computer after work, you can use a different "workspace" desktop on Windows, or equivalent on other platforms, where you surf the web and play games.

I live in tiny apartment and my spouse in WFH too. I have no dedicated work space. But it helps that Outlook isn't generating alerts when I'm browsing Reddit in the evenings on my personal laptop.

What works for me is a combo of things, and this has worked across profitable public companies, unicorns, and startups in roles ranging from senior engineer to engineering manager.

1. I set working hours for myself and stick to them. I do not check email, Slack, or pick up my work laptop outside of those hours.

2. I turn off all email notifications on my phone and I only have Slack notifications on during my work hours plus 1 hour afterwards.

3. I communicate the above with my coworkers so they do not expect that I'll reply to them at 9pm or 7am. My team has my phone number; it's also in Slack and our corporate directory. I tell my coworkers they can call me on the phone day or night for emergencies outside of office hours and that they may have to call twice to get through do not disturb.

I also have a dedicated home office now which certainly helps, but I didn't for the first many years of working from home full time -- my office used to be a corner of my bedroom.

A new thing that I have started experimenting with is to kind of stop work in the last 15 mins and use it to review my office work and plan the tasks for the next working day.

I have also found that I am more likely to stick to a routine if it involves regular exercise and waking up at a set time.