For many of us, we have spent most of our professional lives working in an environment full of people. We may have had a team that we worked with, a boss hanging over our shoulder or at least colleagues popping in and out during the day creating the typical background noise of the office. In stark contrast, working at home means working alone, often in silence. Whether you are telecommuting for a larger company or working from home in your own business, you will more than likely be removed from that typical background noise of the office. You could likely go an entire day of work without seeing or even interacting with another person.

For some people, that kind of quiet can drive them absolutely nutty. This is something that you need to weigh carefully before asking for or accepting a telecommuting assignment and certainly before taking on owning your own business. Think about how much you enjoy the socialization of the office. Do you take breaks with your coworkers? Do you gather at the lunch table or water cooler to discuss the latest news topics or television episodes? If so, is that something that you find yourself looking forward to? If so, working in complete solitude might not be the best set up for you.

However, if you crave the times when the office is quiet and you can concentrate fully on your work, then this could be the right place for you. For some of us, we simply hate the constant interruptions brought on by an office full of people. I know when I started working from home, I was able to get so much more work done than I had ever been able to get done working in the office. Working from Home was great for me and it could be for you too.

There are ways to avoid going batty and still have the freedom of telecommuting. A very popular way to do this is to find a “third space.” With laptops, internet phones, PDA’s, internet faxes and other technology a coffee shop, library or other venue with wireless internet is a perfect place to stand in for your home office. You can have the addition of background noise, without it being distracting, as television often can be. It can also be a great way to network with other business people who telecommute or work from home.

It is also important to make a concentrated effort to keep in touch with your coworkers back at the office if you are telecommuting. Pick up the phone or shoot off an email to say hi and see how things are going. If you company has regular meetings or company events such as picnics or softball games, make sure that you attend those. If you are working at home on your own small business, find people with other small businesses to meet up with weekly or monthly to talk about business or just to talk. If you have a particular charity that you enjoy working with, set some time away regularly to work with them.

If you make efforts to connect with people, you will find that working from home can be fun and productive. Keep in touch with people via social networking or even in person to avoid feeling like you’ve been outcast to work on a deserted island. Make working from home work for you!