When I was a gov-type a while back, this is similar to how we worked… if things are going well and the code is flying off your fingers, noticing the clock is the last thing you need. If things are going slowly, getting up and coming back is the best thing you can do.

Additionally, I do consulting revolving primarily around Gentoo - not a lot of consulting, less than 20 hours/month, but it’s a nice bit on the side.

As Keith said, you need a very good environment (non-distracting), and you need good work habits - which can easily be developed if you have worked in a job (like my previous job) where your boss is half a continent away most of the time, and you only have vague outlines of what needs to be done. You gotta figure all of it out, and complete it yourself.

Funnily, I have MORE contact with my co-workers in my current work-from-home job than my previous one. Both my boss and my co-worker lurk in a private IRC channel 24/7.

One of the things that you will find yourself missing, at least initially, is well defined free time - but this will pass as you realize the advantages of total flexibility. I now tend to do a little bit of work every day of the week, and take a break as needed.

One of the tricks is not to overdo things, know when to stop for the day - this is harder than it seems.

I sleep ~2am through noon most days, and work intermittantly throughout the day, stopping often for wrist/eye breaks and doing general household chores.

No matter what, the idea of a 40 hour work week will vanish - you will tend to do more work while there are things on the go, with the side advantage that when off-time comes, you almost go nuts that you have so much free time.

The single most important thing is having the right environment and habits.