When people find out that I work from home and set my own schedule, the conversation is often met with an upbeat, "Wow you're so lucky" quickly followed by, "You must have so much self-control. I would end up watching Netflix all day."

From the outside, it might look like people who work from home have more self-discipline or drive than others. But I'll let you in on a little secret.

We're flattered, but what we have isn't more willpower or passion for productivity - it's habits and routines that we cling to religiously because we know we're all one tiny, little, harmless peek at our notifications away from getting absolutely nothing crossed off our to-do lists for the day.

When people find out that I work from home and set my own schedule, the conversation is often met with an upbeat, "Wow you're so lucky" quickly followed by, "You must have so much self-control. I would end up watching Netflix all day."

From the outside, it might look like people who work f...