7 Habits For Effectively Working From Home

The world is waking up to a new mode of working this week. It's probably the first time in history that a majority of the global office-based workforce is working from home.  

Since I have been working from home for almost 10 years now, I thought I'd share some tips with those of you who are embracing working from home regularly for the first time.  

1. Wake Up Early & Develop a Pre-work Routine 

It's essential that you don't start your day by waking up and logging on to work. Your mind would be too slow to pick up the pace you want to have at work. And before you know it, you will get into a fire fighting mode that will last till the end of the day. You will feel busy, the day will be stressful, but you won't have gained much momentum to achieve your deliverables. Instead, identify a pre-work routine. Wake up, meditate, work out, make a hearty breakfast enjoy some soft music to get your mind and spirit elevated.  

I highly recommend getting out of your home for a little bit before starting work. It helps change your orientation and make your mind recognize a change in scenery.  

Personally, I wake up at 5, head out to the gym and return by 7. I help my daughter get ready for school and listen to the news on my smart speaker while making breakfast. This helps my mind get active and alert to be ready for my first meeting usually at 8 AM. 

I started avoiding the gym late last week due to COVID, but I am continuing to go out for a walk and working out at home prior to logging in.  

Whatever the routine may be, find a way to step out of the house and provide your body and soul the nourishment needed to tackle the day ahead. 

2. Set Up A Dedicated Workspace 

Your mind is used to you walking into the office, turning on your computer and then cranking out the awesomeness that you do. You need it to feel that way even though you are working from home. If you don't have a work nook or a dedicated space for a makeshift office, then take a corner of your dining table and make it your home office. The space needs to be comfortable, well lit and as further away from other dwellers in your house as possible.  

You should have all the paraphernalia in place, from pens and note pads to stress balls and smart speakers, to make sure you don't have a reason to leave your work station. Every time you have to go get an item, you lose focus and have to restart the process of "getting in your zone".  

3. Break Down Your Deliverables To Bite-Sized Daily Activities  

The biggest trap to fall into when working at home is not having a plan of execution for the day. Quite a few of us are driven by project goals or monthly/quarterly deliverables. Sitting in the comfort of one's own home, it's very easy for anyone to procrastinate on delivering the big goal and end up watching TV all morning.  

The way to avoid the trap is to break your bigger goals into daily deliverables. This would help you avoid getting stuck in firefighting mode while making sure you are aware of the activities that require more attention  

4.  Holding Yourself Accountable 

Having daily goals alone is not enough, you have to be honest to yourself about delivering to the plan. I usually take the approach of rewarding myself after achieving certain milestones. For instance, I'd plan to check twitter only after certain reports are complete or set a target for a mid-morning snack only after completing 5 slides for an upcoming presentation.  

5. Your Calendar Is Your GPS To Navigate Through Your Day 

Everyone has various approaches to using their calendars. I find it highly useful to break it into 15-minute chunks with all activities, meetings, deliverables, and deadlines recorded there and colour coded by priority. It then becomes my road map of execution for any given day.  

Of course, I have "detours" that veer me off course, but the map is always there to help me get back on track.  

I can safely say that there isn't any day, that goes 100% to plan, but having the plan helps me determine my priorities for coming the days and week.  

6. Utilizing Your Tools For Managing "Up" 

Stakeholder management is key to our success in ordinary times and it's even more important now. It's quite possible that your managers are as new as you are to working remotely. In the past, they could see you work or have a quick chat about progress on activities. That can't happen now. 

You need to ensure that whatever systems, processes and tools your organization has in place become the source of transparency and truth between you and your leadership. 

In my domain, CRM tools play a huge part in creating that transparency. In your world, it could be Project Management tools, or something as simple as a spreadsheet tracker to update on progress. Whatever it may be, make sure it's up to date and accurate so that you and your stakeholders are on the same page  

7.  Don't Forget To Check Out 

Just like its important to have a routine prior to starting work, you also need to have a routine to signal to your mind that you are done for the day. Find a relaxing activity that helps your mind leave work behind. It could be doing something outdoors, end of day yoga, chatting with others at home or my personal favourite playing FIFA on PS4.  

The idea is to pick up an activity that helps your mind get into the relaxation zone. When we work at the office, it's easy for our minds to distinguish between when we are at work and when we are in our personal space. Achieving the same at home could be challenging and such tasks help us leave our work at work.  

These are some of the most important things that helped me become productive at working from home. I will share one parting anecdote before I conclude. In my early days of working from home, I'd find myself less inclined to sit at my desk. It seemed my mind wasn't adjusting to being at home and not being on the couch. A friend of mine shared a very useful tip, he suggested I start wearing a dress shirt every day. I thought it was silly but I tried it and it worked! Thinking back it was simply a habit for my mind to get into the work zone after I had put on a dress shirt.  

I am sure all of you have your own tips and anecdotes and I'd love to learn about your experiences. Do share a thought or two here and good luck in adjusting to the normal.