Category: Work At Home

Are you thinking how to work remotely from home in an efficient manner?

You will be able to work effectively if you apply these 10 simple tips to your routine.

Being efficient working from home can be a challenge.
There are tons of distractions, less accountability, and less communication
than when you’re working in the office.

But that doesn’t mean it’s impossible.

There are lots of ways to keep yourself working productively from home.

Whether you are working from home due to corona virus, any sickness or only on part time basis,
these tips can help you to get the most out of your remote work hours.

You won’t believe how much you can get done in a day!

Maintain regular work hours

This is the first step to ensuring productivity while working from home.
It’s tempting to give yourself total flexibility as to when you get started,
take breaks, and call it a day. But you’re doing yourself a disservice
if you don’t keep yourself to at least some amount of consistency.

Setting yourself consistent hours keeps you accountable to yourself and to your boss.
It makes you more likely to get all your work done, and it makes it easier to get in touch with you.

Here are the important factors to consider when you’re setting an at home work schedule:

When your boss needs you to be available
Communication with your coworkers and customers
Time of day when you are most productive
This doesn’t mean that you need to work 9-5 every day.
You should work at the times of day when you’re most productive.
However, it’s a good idea to find out when your boss really needs you to be at work.

For example, it might be important for you to check your emails each morning,
or to be available by phone in the afternoons.
Other than that, choose times of day when you’re likely to get the most work done.
Communicate those hours of availability to anyone that might need to get in touch with you,
and you’ll be on your way to productive, consistent work days.

Keep work time and personal time separate

Just as it’s important to work when you say you will, it’s important to give yourself time off when you’ve promised it. Don’t extend the work day too far beyond what you planned, at the risk of burning yourself out.

Keeping work time and personal time compartmentalized also helps you keep productive while you’re at work, and reduces stress when you aren’t at work. In the same way that you scheduled your work hours, schedule, communicate, and plan when you will not be available to work.

For example, if you like to take evenings to spend time with family, make sure you communicate that you aren’t available for work during that time. And then hold yourself to that commitment!

Plan your workflow

One surefire way to keep productivity up is to get smart about planning your work day.
Before you even start working, make sure you know what your priorities are for the day,
how long you think it will take you to get everything done, and what you will work on if you have extra time.

You might find it helpful to take a few minutes before you go to bed to plan for the next day. You may find that you sleep better without the stress of planning in the back of your mind. If you find that planning before bed actually keeps you awake, try making a plan for the day while you eat breakfast or exercise before work.

In your planning, consider the following:

Do the highest priority tasks first.
Plan your day around your own natural cycles–do the hardest work when you have the most energy throughout the day.
Plan yourself rewards and breaks throughout the day.

Break up the day time.

If you followed the last step, then you’ll have already planned breaks for yourself throughout the day.
Make sure you get up from your desk during those breaks–get some fresh air,
grab a healthful snack, and talk with another human being if at all possible.

All of these activities will help you reset, get your work flowing,
and make sure you’re ready to tackle the next chunk of tasks.

Try planning how you’ll spend your breaks ahead of time, so you have something to look forward to.
Just make sure you decide how long you will spend on a break, so you don’t get too distracted.
Ten to 30 minutes is great for shorter breaks, and an hour or two is perfect for lunch.

Dress like you are at your office

Even if you won’t be interacting with another person all day, it’s important to dress for success.
This includes showering and brushing your teeth!
This will tell your brain that it’s work time, not relaxation time,
and that will give you a lot more energy.

Sweatpants and a T-shirt might be more comfortable, but you may also feel sluggish, sleepy, or unmotivated.

It’s also a good opportunity to give a new outfit a test drive–risk free!

If you have a hard time motivating yourself to get ready in the morning,
try laying out your outfit the night before, or planning an outing during the day so that you have to get dressed.

Create in home office desk

It might be tempting to work from your couch, easy-chair, or even from your bed, but this could take a huge toll on your productivity. Try to always work from a consistent room, desk, or chair, to tell your brain that it’s time for work, not relaxation.

You are likely to feel more alert, more confident, and more organized. Try setting up a desk where you always work. Set yourself up with a comfy, supportive chair, a spacious desk, and consistent workplace tools. Make sure to personalize your space. After all, you will be spending a lot of time there!

No distractions allowed room / office desk area.

Being efficient working from home is all about boundaries, as we have previously discussed. This also means setting boundaries for kids, pets, and your spouse or roommates. Try to encourage them to leave you alone while you are working so you can stay focused.

Try to keep the boundaries friendly and playful, but make sure you stick to them. One fun idea is to make a sign for the door of your office that indicates whether you’re working or not.

Stay Connected Online

One of the best things about working in an office is the potential for collaboration and socialization. You don’t have to lose this just because you are working from home. Try to check in with your coworkers at least a couple of times per week, whether by email, phone, Skype, or even in person.

Make sure you keep up on a personal level as well as a professional level. You can do this without taking a lot of time–just share the things that are most important, and encourage your coworkers to do the same.

Check in with co-workers and the boss several times a day. 

It is better to telecommute several times a week. Because everyone in the office should know that you were really working and not watching TV or shopping, Make a point of emailing and calling co-workers and especially the boss in a day to report your work progress and check on next assignments to complete..