Your aim: to get as much done, in as little time possible so that you can pursue other activities. Well, you’ve come to the right place! This post covers how to be productive working from home.
Let’s get straight into it!
Table of Contents
1: Optimise Your Work Space
Aim: You need to create an area in your house that you associate with getting work done. This area needs to be home to all of the equipment and resources that you need during your working hours.
Once you’ve achieved this, you’ll be able to work in a comfortable space, with minimal distractions.
Position the items you’ll need during the day around you
This includes chargers for your devices, a water bottle, healthy snacks, stationery etc.
This will eliminate the need to get up during working hours, helping you to get more done.
Keep your desk & work environment organised, and clean.
Clutter can be a major distraction. The more time you spend being distracted the less time you spend getting work done.
At the end of every workday, clean your workspace and tidy it up.
You might want to consider purchasing some office organisers to keep your stationery tidy. It’s also a good idea to keep office cleaning products such as screen wipes nearby.
Make sure your home office is comfortable
If your home office isn’t comfortable, and you are working from home, you’ll probably end up working on the sofa.
Working on the sofa is great every now and again but long-term it won’t do your posture any favours.
Ideally, you’ll want to work at a desk and sit on an adjustable chair.
Some additional things you can do to make your workspace more comfortable is to:
- Get adequate lighting
- Buy a few small house plants
- Put some artwork on the walls
- Keep the temperature of the room steady.
2: Ensure that your internet connection is rapid
Aim: To have the fastest internet connection as possible. A connection that cuts out or is slow will drastically reduce your productivity.
In order to achieve this, contact your internet provider to discuss your options.
You may need to pay extra to get a faster connection but it is worth it as it will help to boost your productivity.
Consider getting a WiFi booster if your home office is located in an area of your house that has poor WiFi.
3: Create zones in your house
Aim: set boundaries between workspaces and leisure spaces. This is to ensure that you spend work hours in a space that is conducive of getting work done.
Make a list of the rooms in your house that are out of bounds during the day.
For example, you might want to avoid the living room if there’s a high chance you’ll watch TV and get distracted.
Or you might want to avoid your bedroom if you have a tendency to work in bed.
Enforcing these boundaries will stop you from working in areas that will reduce your ability to be productive.
4: Work during the times you are most productive
Aim: To boost your productivity by working during the times you naturally work best.
Not everyone is a morning person.
If your not, there’s little point waking up at 5 am and dragging yourself out of bed to start working.
Working from home gives you more control over your working hours. So schedule your day in a way where you’ll be working during the times that you’ll get more done.
If you are unsure, do a free chronotype test online to find out.
5: Make plans and stick to them
Aim: to have set SMART goals for the following day, and to achieve them
If you plan out what you want to achieve in advance, you’ll stand a greater chance of sticking to them.
How you plan your day will depend on what time management strategies work for you.
You might be a traditional to-do list type of person or a mind mapper.
Knowing exactly what you want to achieve eliminates time spent wondering what to do. It also helps to keep you motivated.
6: Stay focused
Aim: To stay as focused as possible whilst completing tasks. Essentially, you want to get into work mode where you are 100% focused on your task. The more focused you are, the more you’ll get done.
When you work remotely or from home it is really important that you minimise distractions so that you can stay focused.
Identify potential distractions at home
This could include pets, family members, the telephone etc.
Work out ways to minimise the distraction.
This might include telling your family members your work hours so that they do not disturb you.
If you use your laptop for both personal and work use, you might want to block the websites that aren’t work-related during the day such as social media.
Wear headphones
Wearing headphones might help you to stay focused.
This is especially the case if you need to drown out household sounds. Investing in a pair of noise-cancelling headphones might help you to achieve this.
You might find that listening to some ambient noise through your headphones whilst working helps to boost your productivity.
7: Switch off
Aim: avoid burning yourself out or becoming lonely or isolated.
I know that it can be difficult to maintain a work-life balance when working from home, but it is really important.
Once you’ve met your goals for the day switch off and relax!
Spend time in the zones of the house that were out of bounds during the day, catch up with friends and have some you time.
Also, recognise if you are beginning to feel isolated or lonely whilst working from home.
If you are, try working from a coffee shop or co-working space every now and again.
How to be productive working from home: summary
Productivity is all about getting as much done in as little time.
When it comes to knowing how to be productive working from home, you might need to do a bit of trial and error.
Implement the tips above on how to be productive working from home. Then monitor your productivity. Identify anything that is reducing your productivity and take actions to tackle it.
Don’t forget to check out our other posts here at Resources for Freelancers!
Adina Pascall
