y1 Productivity Tips You Need While Working From Home
A large percentage of people work in an office, a workshop, and other defined workspace. Working from home, on the other hand, has become a trend in this age.
Working from home is amazing. You can save money and time spent on transportation and enjoy the flexibility of your own work hours. There are other amazing benefits of working in your home and a lot of people working from home are productive.
Although it may seem difficult at first, there are lots of ways you can organise your home office space or portable cabins in a way that you’re not distracted.
I have compiled a few working principles that can work for you. Here are the 21 productivity tips you need while working to keep you organised and void of distractions.
1. Make Your Office A Place That Motivates And Inspires You
You need to be sure your office is a place that both motivates and inspires you. Although you may have a functioning office space, if you’re not feeling inspired then chances are you’re going to start feeling less and less focused the more time you spend in there.
Whether you renovate your whole office or add a couple of motivational prints, the more you feel comfortable in your workspace, the better.
If you’re unsure where to begin, you might want to consider taking a look at sites like Pinterest and Instagram for inspiration and ideas.
2. Have a dedicated workspace
To always create an atmosphere of the work environment as you would have it in a regular office, you must create a dedicated workspace. This is a place you have designated for your work.
This could be a section of your home or a room if you have created an abundance of space while constructing your house. In cases where you are short of space, a desk and a chair would do.
Irrespective of the size, make sure this space you have is dedicated to working. Ensure your workspace is as comfortable, serene, quiet, and enjoyable as you can make it. And since you will be in front of your laptop every day, using blue light glasses will protect your eyes from eyestrain.
You may need to purchase a shelf, a large desk, and a comfortable chair to suit your needs. It will be wise to remember that this place is exclusively for your work.
3. Do not allow “job creep”
This is a warning. Be careful not to make your work invade your personal life. When you are always in your workspace, there is a tendency that you will keep working. This is where having a specific work hour comes in.
Know and keep your work hours. Be strict with yourself to stop work exactly at your slated closing hour, just like you will do in a regular office.
Remind yourself that there will always be unfinished work and you can continue tomorrow. This is why you really need some time management skills.
4. Set your work hours
One of the perks of working from home is the option of choosing your work hours yourself (in most cases). You can work as an early morning bird or a late-night owl.
Irrespective of your schedules, ensure you set specific work hours and always work within that hour each day. Make your work hour known and the rule governing that work hour to your entire household.
Let your colleagues, staff, and boss (if any) know your work hours.
5. Group your work
Doing two things one after the other gives more room for perfection than trying to multitask. Instead of multitasking, allocate time and resources to each task until the work is done before you move to the next task.
It is usually easier and more productive to manage a task at a time. Make sure you put similar tasks or tasks that ushers in another task together to get the best out of your time.
6. Use planning & task management tools
Make it a routine to have a to-do list for every day, week or particular project. This is vital for keeping track of your meetings, appointments, and deadlines. If you don’t like to write out the to-do list, you can make use of task management tools such as Evernote.
One of the advantages of mobile phones is that they come with a standard to-do list, some are in sync with your email, calendar, and cloud. It can be accessed remotely and on multiple devices.
For extra management, you can use other apps, software, and hardware such as Asana, Trello, and Slack. Utilizing these tools will ensure you are efficient and never miss a meeting or target. The type of job you do might also determine the technology you will specifically need.
Procure gadgets that will make your job effective and efficient.
7. Listen to Music
Now that your television is probably off or does not have your attention, I will tell you to put on cool music. Music can help you set the mood to be more productive. For instance, if your work involves physical exercise, heavy metal or rock might be your best option.
If you calculate a lot, you might need a Beethoven, while country music might be good for storybook writers. You must select your music based on your preference and the type of tasks you do.
And you do not necessarily need a stereo; a simple headset will do. You might need music for background noise, but you must ensure the music does not distract you.
8. Have a Routine
You should develop a routine, ritual or habit to start your day. This is something we do subconsciously when we prepare to go to the office every day. Do the same thing in your home so that you can start work in a high spirit.
If your work hour starts in the morning, you could have a routine like going to the bathroom, dressing up, having breakfast, taking a cup of coffee and off you go to work.
This will help you to get into a work mood and set the atmosphere for a more productive day.
9. Reward yourself
Either you have a boss, or you are self-employed, be sure to reward yourself. This is the simplest way to motivate yourself and get things done. The reward need not be something huge or tangible.
Your reward might be a short break, a sumptuous meal, snacks, or other remunerations. Personally, I have noticed that when I promise myself a reward, I procrastinate less.
As simple as this looks, it will help you to get things done and find fulfilment.
10. Take breaks
As much as you would like to finish all the tasks you have set your mind to achieve, remember to take breaks. The duration of your break should be based on the type of work you do and how long you work. Make your break regular to reduce boredom.
Give yourself breaks to ensure you don’t become unproductive. This will also help you to recuperate lost strength. You can also include exercise in your break to stay fit. Winks.
Exercise also helps you to be emotionally elated. When you are sick, please take a sick day off. Do not struggle through it (unless it is absolutely necessary, which rarely is!).
11. Keep up with Training
You might miss out on a lot of physical training organized by the organization you work for, especially if the distance is a barrier. An error of omission can also occur.
So, be on the lookout for training opportunities in and outside the organization you work for. It will be beneficial to you and your organization.
12. Break the usual
Flexibility is one of the major advantages of working from home. You can exploit this by changing the environment you work in occasionally. When you notice that you are getting bored or tired, it is time to change your scene.
In essence, break up your routine once in a while. Leave the house during your breaks. Flexibility allows you to run errands during your breaks.
This will not only reduce your stress but will also allow you to get other things done.
13. Eliminate digital distraction
As much as certain things are fun, they might also be a source of distraction. You should not allow yourself to be tempted by Netflix, favourite podcasts or TV shows.
To be efficient and effective, your work needs undivided attention so it would not be a good idea to work in front of your TV.
The only time you should work in front of your TV is when you are using the information coming from the screen.
14. Stay away from social media
This is an extension of distraction. I made it a separate point because most of us have fallen victim to this a couple of times. Social media is good, but it is a massive time-slurping machine.
I will advise you to completely stay off social media while you are working from home, except if you use it to work e.g. a digital marketer.
If it will cost you to silence your notification, go on aeroplane mode or log out your social media handles on the computer you are working on, please do. Focus on the work during your work hours and when you’re done, you can go back to your social media.
15. Eat good food
Eating good food is one of the things you should not neglect when you work from home. When you go to the office, it is likely you package a nice homemade lunch for yourself as you might be at the mercy of the cafeteria if you do not. However, when you work from home, you might be too carried away that you will forget to make lunch for yourself.
As you work from home, create time to cook a nice meal like you do when going to the office, not junk or leftovers. Apart from the fact that they are not good for your health, they are not also good for your productivity.
16. Get help
The truth is, you cannot do everything yourself. Even with your massive resources and time, you will still need the help of others. Working from home might take so much of your time and resources, now you need more help than before.
Besides, working from home as a parent is quite challenging. Children are adorable but they can deprive you of productivity if care is not taken. Caring for and raising your kids is already a great task on its own.
Working and supervising them will only make you lose on both fronts. Have a way to get yourself a kid-free time so you can focus on your work during your work hours. You might have to wake up very early to start working before the kids wake up.
Need I say that you must also create time for them once your work hours is over?
17. Socialize with colleagues
This is applicable to everyone unless you work for and by yourself alone. A few of the problems people who work from home face is loneliness and isolation. Socializing is very paramount for extroverts.
Some organizations provide platforms for socialization among their remote employees. It may be a live chat channel, social media group, or other platform. Ensure you use the platform provided for socialization to get updated info about the organization and reduce the chances of loneliness.
An added advantage is making new friends and maintaining good relationships. You never can tell when you will need the help of a friend.
18. Dedicated office gadgets and tools
Now that you have a workspace irrespective of the size, you should get some tools too. You should get a work phone number and email. Set up a work computer, and residential phone, and get it running.
Peradventure you are using your home computer, set up a new user which will be solely for work purposes only.
If you cannot get a router, use a virtual private network (VPN) on the network you are connected to. VPN is required by some offices for remote workers like you. Even if it is not required, always keep your VPN connected.
19. Have A Large Wall Planner To Organise Your Time
One of the best ways to keep your office and work life organized is to have a large wall planner that you keep up to date. Although you may also use a planner, having a wall planner is a great way to look at your year as a whole.
You can easily block out dates that you know you’re not available, giving you an easy-to-look-at planner when it comes to making appointments and meeting deadlines.
If you put it in a place you’re going to be able to see from your office chair, chances are you will never double-book yourself. You could test out things by buying a large wall planner.
20. Have All The Electronics You Need
Another important aspect of ensuring your home office is organised is making sure you have all of the electronics you need.
Whether that means investing in a powerful laptop or purchasing a printer, you need to be sure you have everything you need to run your business efficiently.
If you do buy yourself a printer, make sure you’re stocking up on ink cartridges too. Exploring resources like Sell Toner can provide valuable insights into how to optimize your printer’s performance and save money on ink purchases.
21. Keep A Planner To Keep Track Of Appointments And Deadlines
Although you should have a wall planner to keep track of your working days, having a planner is a great way to organise your day-to-day activities.
From meetings to deadlines, you need to be sure you’re writing absolutely everything down. For inspiration when it comes to buying the perfect planner, you can visit the site here.
Conclusion
As an entrepreneur with a home office, one of the hardest things to do is ensure your office is organized officially.
Whether you’re staying on top of your appointments and deadlines or keeping your office in check, you need to be sure you are being as focused as you can be if you want to be successful.
What do you need to do to ensure you’re keeping it as organised as you can and also hitting your goals?
Let me know your thoughts and ideas in the comments section below.
