Working from home is becoming more and more common. While working from home has its advantages, it can also be challenging to stay focused and productive. It can be very tempting to start doing things around your house or watching a TV show, but in the back of your mind, you know you have work to get done and deadlines to meet.
These are the 9 tips that will make you work from home effectively
1. Get Ready in the Morning
When you look and feel good, you will do good. If you are in your pajamas all day, the days will start to blur and you will go to bed feeling like you just got out of bed. Your motivation is going to dwindle and you won’t feel like yourself. Getting ready, even just a little, will change the way the day goes and will get you into a good routine.
2. Set a Routine and Stick to it
Just like when you’re working in an office, setting a routine can help you stay productive and focused when working from home. Try to stick to a schedule as much as possible and you will build good habits that will help keep you motivated and staying on track.
3. Socialize
Working from home can feel isolating, especially if you have a position where you aren’t talking to your colleagues all day. Socialization will make you feel 10x better.
Say yes to more opportunities and put yourself out there. If you have friends, hang out with them and go out of your way to make plans. If you don’t, try to do your work at a coffee shop where you have the chance to interact with more people. (and don’t sit alone in the corner lol) Also, you can learn a new hobby and join a group or find a community who do that hobby.
4. Establish a Workspace you Love
Having a dedicated workspace, whether it’s a separate room or just a corner of your living room, can help you stay focused and separate work from personal life. Make sure your workspace is comfortable, well-lit, and free of distractions.
Making an aesthetic workspace can motivate you because you will like how it looks and therefore want to be there. This can increase your efficiency because you actually like where you are and want to do well.
5. Avoid Distractions
Distractions like social media, email, and household chores can eat away at your productivity. Turn off notifications, block distracting websites, and create a to-do list to stay on track.
Recently, I have been using the platform, Click Up, and it has helped me so much. It keeps everything organized and helps me stay on track to make my work as effective as possible. It is free and I would definitely recommend it.
6. Set Wellness Reminders
Setting timers on your phone to take a break and go outside can be really beneficial. Staying inside all day is not good for your health and taking five minutes to stretch your legs and get some sunlight can make you more productive.
You can even set reminders to eat and drink more water to maintain your routine in case you are too “in it.” I always have vitamin reminders to make me remember to take my vitamins after I have lunch.
7. Stay Organized
Working from home can make it easy to lose track of your tasks and to-do list. Use tools like calendars, task lists, and project management software to stay organized and on top of your workload.
Like I mentioned earlier, I have been loving the platform Click Up, but I have also really loved using Google Calendar for calendars and task management. There is also a “task” feature that can help keep all of your tasks and projects organized.
8. Set Boundaries
Working from home can make it difficult to separate work from personal life. Set clear boundaries with family and friends, and let them know when you’re working and not available.
The same applies for work. Make sure you have a desiccated time to work and maximize your efficiency, and when you are done, you are done. There will definitely come a time when you need to put in extra work and time, but setting clear boundaries for yourself can help you establish those boundaries with others.
9. Establish and Maintain Clear Career/ Work Goals
When you set your goals each day, with yourself and/or your employer, you will be in agreement and have a good understanding of what you need to get done in the day. Map out the day when you get started and stick to it.
You will be surprised at how effective having a daily checksheet along with the work you have to get done will be. You can stay on top of regular tasks as well as the new projects you are working on.