TIPS FOR WORKING FROM HOME

 

TIP 1. CREATE A PROPER WORKPLACE.

We get it not everyone lives in a great big house with a separate room you can convert into a Pinterest-ready home office space. Many of us have roommates’ children small apartments house shares and we can go on. However, there are simple inexpensive ways to differentiate your working space from your home space even in your bedroom if the space you provide for yourself is a piece of you. A small inspirational spot in the corner of a room that makes you proud to work. There you could get a room divider to separate the room. A jar of fresh greenery on the desk and a happy pick or two usually do the trick. The main point here is to have a clear distinction between living space and workspace.

TIP 2. PRETEND YOU’RE GOING INTO THE OFFICE.

It's easy to just roll out of bed. Grab a mug of coffee and switch on your laptop to start working but research shows you're less productive when working in your comfy PJs. Then when you're dressed up in some regular clothing you don't need to put on makeup or dress up with jewelry in the whole arc but at the very least brush your hair brush your teeth wash your face and change out of your pajamas by doing this, you're far less likely to stumble back onto the covers throw on Netflix and smuggle in with your pets.

 

TIP 3. PREPARE DECENT MEALS AND SNACKS.

Just because you're working from home doesn't mean you shouldn't be eating the same nutritious meals that you would hopefully be taking into the office. Prepare your meals the night before so, you don't need to be distracted by thinking about what great meal you're going to make yourself and be countless trips to the fridge just to have it echo back at you each time or worse you start creating some intriguing food combinations like what mayonnaise and jelly taste like together. Guaranteed a lot worse than the meals and snacks you're going to prepare for yourself the day before we can assure you.

 

TIP 4. ESTABLISH A ROUTINE.

It takes a while to find your feet when working from home but establishing a routine does enable you to be more productive. In the long term figure out when you're at your most productive for some it's first thing in the morning others is late afternoon it doesn't matter if you get the maximum amount of work done during that time. It also helps to give a copy of your schedule to your family, so they know not to interrupt you during that time. Remember to always end at a specific time and however tempting it is to just sort out one more little thing or quickly respond to a client stick to it to help you create a distinct difference between work and home life.

 

TIP 5. SWITCH OFF ALERTS.

There's a reason why so many companies and businesses have banned social media.  That's because up to 2.35 hours are lost every day to people browsing online content when you work from home it's easy to become distracted when your phone pings to alert you of a message or you receive an update on the latest covet stats and the next minute you've somehow lost 45 minutes of the day and then it's even more challenging to get back into work mode. Switch all notifications off when you're working and only check during your breaks or when you finished work for the day. You’ll become so much more productive and finish your daily tasks on time with extra time just for you.

 

TIP 6. CREATE A TO-DO LIST.

Oh, my goodness is there anything more satisfying than crossing things off your to-do list? Not many things huh so write out your to-do list for increased productivity. The jury's out on this one. Do you start with a difficult task first or do you start your day with the easy one? This is a personal choice some like to do the easy ones first because it gives the appearance a lot is being achieved thereby motivating them for the challenging tasks ahead some prefer to get the challenging stuff out of the way first so the rest of the easier tasks come seamlessly. You'll have a chance to give your point of view later.

 

TIP 7. DON’T STAY HOME ALL DAY.

A change of scenery is very important when working from home and will help you keep your mental health in check too. Choose one day a week to possibly work in a coffee shop just to have some fresh faces and sounds plus you never know who you could meet while doing so you could meet a new business contact that reaps huge benefits for you or vice versa by scheduling face time. While at home is also important but do it at times that don't disrupt your workflow if you need.

 

TIP 8. KEEP INDOOR PLANTS.

Especially around your workplace. Research confirms that plants increase productivity. It's believed that people that have plants around their workplaces are 15 more productive than those who don't. There are other benefits to having plans in your workplace too including happiness increased physical health and reduced anxiety. Even more, benefits include increased creativity reduced air pollution, and a better connection to nature. Great plants inside the home include the snake plant. They're hard to kill so bonus rubber trees are good as are peace lilies, but these ones are not recommended for those with black thumbs the total opposite of a green thumb.

 

TIP 9. CONVERT TRANSIT TIME TO YOUR TIME.

Many commuters use their commuting time to listen to music meditations read a book catch up on social media or chat with friends when you work from home you don't have that commute time to do those things. So set aside a little time each day to make up for that spend some time doing yoga meditating journaling or just being mindful during your workday take proper breaks to keep your brain awake and stimulated remember to schedule them and stick to them. There's no point skipping them because you're busy because truthfully, you'll burn out or tire quickly. By taking a quick walk around the block or stretching while planting your feet into some grass, you'll come back refreshed and ready for the next stretch of work that lies ahead of you.

 

TIP 10. REWARD YOURSELF.

So, it's not like you can just give yourself a raise or buy yourself a great gift for the end-of-the-year office party but you still need to reward yourself for a job well done and it can be a little embarrassing patting yourself on the back. Give yourself little rewards even if it means a sweet treat occasionally go for it when you don't work in an office you miss out on the things like birthday cakes sweet treats and occasional staff pizza parties so create your own environment where you spoil yourself too.

 

TIP 11. AVOID PERSONAL TASKS DURING WORK HOURS.

Working from home one on one don't do personal tasks during your dedicated work time. working from home dilemma one on one trying not to do personal tasks during dedicated work time hours. This is not easy, and it takes a lot of discipline to steer away from getting your personal stuff done but it does get easier and when you work out of your schedule dedicate a time slot to making that doctor's appointment filing your taxes, or doing your online shopping and coming up, we'll share some of the biggest pros about working from home.

 

Tip 12. MAKE SURE YOU HAVE ALL OF THE RIGHT EQUIPMENT.

Going to work means you have all the right equipment at your disposal which is not often the case when working from home. Most importantly get yourself a great chair if you're going to be sitting most of the day you might as well be comfortable AF. Some suggest getting a standing desk if that works for you then great. A decent pc that has the capacity to run all your software and apps without stalling delaying or just generally being busy. Noise-canceling headphones are great to have and a decent printer scanner combo that always has ink. We know that link is pricey but it's better to be prepared than rushing off mid-workday to get something printed and scanned which costs you time fuel energy and money. Become skilled at all online communication hubs and ensure you follow online chat etiquette put your camera on mute your microphone until it's your turn to speak make sure your background is neat and tidy have good lighting and don't forget to put your pants on and to make your day run as smoothly as possible be proficient in whatever programs you're using.

 

TIP 13. ACCEPT THAT THERE WILL BE DISTRACTIONS.

If you get upset each time you get distracted, you'll struggle to get back into your workflow. Just like a regular office job where a colleague's laugh is annoyingly distracting, or you're called into a last-minute meeting you need to be able to go with the flow to some degree by accepting that there will be distractions you'll find they hassle you a lot less over time.

 

TIP 14. GET GREAT INTERNET AND WIFI.

VPNs or virtual private networks can slow down your internet speed. Call your provider to see how you can get the optimum benefit from their service and if it's worth spending a little more to ensure your video conferencing and streaming facilities are up to speed. There are other things you can try at home to speed up your internet before spending extra cash like checking on your router and modem older models can sometimes be the cause of slower internet changing the position of your router could also help and changing your DNS server can be an option check for viruses and see if anything is hogging your bandwidth. Once you've tried all those options and you're still not coming in right then it might be time for an upgrade.

 

TIP 15. ENJOY YOUR FLEXIBILITY.

The great advantage of working from home is that you have the flexibility and it's totally okay to not stick to your schedule every day and enjoy the extra freedom that it does afford you. Take the time to meet up with a friend for lunch and put in the extra hours during the week and take the long weekend break you deserve.