Productivity Tips for Work From Home People [How to Stay Productive]
By: Alan Anthony Catantan
Tags: Productivity, Future Of Work, Freelancers, Telecommuting, Work From Home

The pandemic has certainly changed the way many of us work — with most non-essential work done in the home. But this isn’t always a sad story. After all, being able to work from home is a dream come true for many people.

However, this hybrid work arrangement brings with it a lot of challenges. Perhaps the biggest one is time management and how to stay productive.

If you’re also working from home, here are some productivity tips to help you stay productive despite the unique challenges work from home people are facing…

Designate a workspace

Photo by Luke Peters on Unsplash

When you’re working from home, wearing whatever piece of clothing you want, it’s tempting to work anywhere in the house. You might probably experience working from your bed with a pillow on your back.

But having a designated workspace allows you to separate your work from the other aspects of your life. As you may have guessed, it’s healthy to attain a good work-life balance.

On the other hand, you just can’t randomly pick a spot to be your workspace. In choosing a workspace, see if you can use a separate room/office or a work desk.

Personally, I like having a separate room or office. That way, you will be able to separate the room from the rest of the space in your house and use it only for work-related activities.

In addition, having a door that you can close will help you keep others out while you work. If not, you might experience what this lady below experienced when his dad walked in (in his underwear) while she was working.

Naturally, you must also use a room have doesn’t have many external distractions like television, gaming systems, and others…

On the other hand, you can always set up a work desk if a room isn’t available. It will be like your “work spot”.

But of course, you must position it in a way that you’re not facing any distractions, like maybe in a corner. You should also declutter the desk so you can freely focus on the task you’re doing.

During the start, you should always keep your work within the workspace only. But after some time, you must occasionally…

Mix up your work routine

Once you get used to your workspace, it will get boring after a while. The loneliness and boredom from working alone, isolated from the rest of the world, could lead to burnout and stress.

This can result in unproductivity as you try to find ways to entertain yourself.

That’s why you must explore other possible workspaces to mix up your routine (at least once in a while). Maybe you’ve got a balcony with a nice view or a garden where you can set up a temporary work station.

Better yet, if it’s already possible (and safe) for you to go out, you can try going to coffee shops, libraries, or coworking spaces.

Working in coffee shops and libraries can definitely boost your concentration and productivity and even lessen the feeling of being isolated.

Even better if you can find coworking spaces nearby. The atmosphere in these places is similar to that of an office and even incorporate social interaction with like-minded individuals and other work from home people.

Research from the Association of Psychological Science indicated that…

Participants exert more mental effort when the person next to them [is] doing so… Simply performing a task next to a person who exerts a lot of effort in a task will make you do the same.

It definitely pays to be in an environment that helps you become more productive. That’s why you should mix up your routine if you feel stuck or bored in your designated workspace.

Block out distractions using technology

Distractions in the home are everywhere. Even if you tell yourself that you can power through on your work while working in the living room with the television on, you know you’re just kidding yourself.

According to data from Statista, here are the top nine distractions among work from home people:

Social media

Smartphones

Binge-watching

Kids

Gaming

News media

Pets

Online shopping

Partner

For distractions caused by technology, you can use technology to fight them too. You can download apps like…

Naturally, the key still lies with you. The point of these apps is to minimize the distractions that you get and make it hard for you to open the distractions yourself.

Unfortunately, you can’t use the apps to block out distractions not caused by technology (like having a kid running around the room). That’s why it’s preferable to use a room as your designated workspace.

Establish a work schedule

Photo by freddie marriage on Unsplash

Without a schedule, it’s easy to work more than you need and almost impossible to unplug yourself when you need to rest. In a way, a work schedule is more about limiting your hours and help you avoid overworking.

As quoted by Katharine Zaleski (co-founder and president of PowerToFly):

When there isn’t a specific cutoff time, it can be hard for people to step away from their work.

The truth is, when you overwork, you’re also influencing the quality and quantity of the sleep you get. When you don’t get enough sleep, your productivity decreases. Because of that, you might get tempted to work more to make up for the lost time.

The loop then gets back to the starting point. There’s no benefit to overworking.

That’s why you need to set up a work schedule that you’re comfortable with:

Start early in the day if you’re an early riser

Start later in the day if you’re a night owl

You can use apps like Toggl or RescueTime to help you track your work hours and optimize your work schedule.

Once the workday is finished (according to your schedule), don’t go back to work. Don’t reply to emails unless they’re urgent and important. Emails can wait until tomorrow.

Also, let your family know your work schedule so they can know you’re unavailable during those hours.

Don’t forget to take a break

Photo by JESHOOTS.COM on Unsplash

Taking a break helps your mental well-being. Even a well-oiled machine needs regular rest.

JDP, an employment screening services company, surveyed 2,000 people and found out that a majority of those who work more indicated that they have a hard time keeping the boundaries between work and home life.

That’s why you need to keep a schedule. And once your workday ends, you need to unplug yourself from work and take a break.

You can then use moments to:

Meditate

Exercise

Entertain yourself with movies and games

Talk to someone and stay connected with others

Start a new hobby

The bottom line here is for you to be able to reset yourself so you’re fresh when you need to work again the next day.

Stay productive and stick with it

Working from home brings as many distractions as there are benefits. But you can always choose to deal with the challenges and stay productive.

As you can see, being productive doesn’t mean doing more, it’s sometimes more about eliminating the tasks you need to do and optimizing the environment you’re working in.

To stay productive, remember to…

Designate a workspace

Mix up your work routine

Block out distractions

Establish a work schedule

Take a break

Which tip do you find most helpful in staying productive while working from home?