How to Stay Focused, Productive and Organized When Working From Home

How to Stay Focused at Home?

How to Get Organized?

How to Create a Workspace That Works?

How to Manage Your Time?

Whether you’re working from home in the wake of the Coronavirus pandemic or you’re already a full-time freelancer on a distributed team, remote work can come with unique challenges. Especially if you’re not used to it, it can be tough to channel the same level of focus that you might have in an office setting. And when you’re suddenly away from the rest of your team, a lack of collaboration and connection can be difficult to navigate.

How to Stay Focused, Productive and Organized When Working From Home

Be Honest

Staying productive while working from home can be challenging for some. But if you use certain tactics that force you to prove what you are getting done, you can stay motivated in a better way and reassure your managers that you can complete your work even when you’re not in the office.

Start your day with mindfulness

Just as commit to conference calls and meetings, commit to practicing daily self-care rituals. Instead of checking email when wake up, read a daily affirmation. Commit to ten minutes of mindfulness a day, which typically includes a guided meditation or breathing exercise. Best ideas and solutions to problems come to us when our body feels energized and our mind is clear.

Set clear working hours

The beauty of working from home is that you can be flexible in setting your working hours. For example, if you are most productive in the morning, or if you need to get the kids to school, then you may want to set your work hours from 7 a.m. until 3 p.m.

Use your deep focus to zoom through your tasks. Keep reading to see how to manage your time effectively.

Enforce a hard limit at the end of the day. Distance yourself from work, so you don’t work nonstop.

Regardless of your schedule, be sure to establish set work hours to follow each day. This will give you added focus and motivation, and keep you from giving in to distractions.

Set a schedule

Time management starts with scheduling. If possible, set your work hours in advance so both you and your family know when you’ll be working.

Assign time slots to your tasks

When writing a to-do item in calendar, assign the item a certain amount of time. When you are working at home alone, the time can really run away from you! It is helpful to assign blocks of specific time to your tasks.

Open the window

We have to learned to nourish yourself while working from home through incorporating regular short breaks, standing up, opening the window for a deep breath, and going for a walk during lunchtime. Diffusing some essential oils for concentration and motivation also helps us a lot.

Close non-work-related tabs and Stay off social media- Think carefully about which notifications to keep on, and which to mute until later. Allocate time slots for checking your phone.

Establish a designated work area

Not everyone has the luxury of having a dedicated office, and that’s ok. Even if you live in a 500 square foot apartment, you can set aside a small area that’s just for work-related activities.

When you’re in that space, determine that only work-related activities will happen there. If a family member is at home during the day, ask them to treat that area as they would an office; meaning while you’re there, you’re not available.

Stay connected to teammates

Working from home can be lonely, and having no colleagues or teammates to talk to can be emotionally exhausting. Make an effort to sync up with the team every day on video calls or over the phone. The daily syncs and occasional jokes help us stay connected. Talking regularly to other humans is important for our productivity!

Work out during your workday- We know that exercise can help improve mood and increase energy. But did you know that setting aside time to exercise during your work day can actually improve productivity?

Set GOALs

Goal setting is vital because it helps you decide and focus on what’s really important to you. Effective goal setting also lets you measure progress, overcome procrastination and visualize your dreams.

When you set goals, you have a target to work toward. Goals can be small, daily tasks or larger ideas requiring several steps. Whichever you pick, working toward a goal’s completion calls for careful planning, which requires you to figure out ways to manage your time.

Take little micro-breaks

Know your company’s policy on break times and take them. It may seem counter intuitive to take breaks when you’re trying to stay organized and maximize productivity, but you’ll be far more successful if you take mini breaks throughout the day. To help add order to your day, try to take your break at the same times throughout the day.

How to Create a Workspace That Works

In a season where it’s easy to lose motivation, connection and certainty, look to ways to bring joy into the home. Using creativity to brighten your space, interacting with others virtually and maintaining a positive spirit can have a lasting impact. A friendly smile is just as encouraging on your screen as it is in your office hallway.

While setting up your workspace each following point you need to consider to make your workspace contemporary:

Good WiFi connectivity

When all home residents are working from the same location and utilizing the router, it’s a good to have high-speed router.

Comfortable headphones

You may find yourself sporting those headphones more than ever before, so make sure you’re equipped with ones that work well, and are comfortable.

Flat surface

Clear a few areas of clutter or distractions and mimic the flat desk area you’re used to at work. Take the lap out of “laptop” when it comes to working from home. Laps and lounging are for relaxing — not a productive work environment!

Ability to connect with colleagues

With limited access to connection and interaction, make a point to do so virtually. Continue meet & greets, happy hours and coffee chats. This remote working time presents a unique opportunity to connect with others without distraction.

Sight, sound, smell and touch. Each of these senses can help you get into a productive head-space and bring the office home to you:

Sight

What does the view from your desk at the office look like? For fun, try to replicate it! Find a place that is naturally well lit, but try not to get distracted by any activity you might see out your window.

Smell

Find a new scent to associate with a productive work day. Essential oils might be the trick here! Diffusing oils is said to increase memory, cognitive function and focus.

Touch

Discomfort is distracting. A good chair that allows you to sit upright and comfortably can make all the difference! If you enjoy switching to a “standing desk” throughout your work day, find a location in your home that allows you to be flexible! If you want a change of pace or would like to work and exercise simultaneously, sitting on a yoga ball can help increase productivity and decrease lower back tightness.

Sounds

Have your go-to tunes to bob your head to while you work? Listen to that “Work Hard, Play Hard” playlist at home as well, or create a new playlist for this new working situation! Be sure to change to a different playlist when it’s time to relax and close your computer.

All about Location!!!

If you have the option, find a room to work in where you can close the door. This is helpful for minimizing distractions, but more importantly, to give you the chance to shut the door at the end of each work day and leave your work inside. Separating spaces for work, play and relaxation is critical to helping your brain know when to turn your working mind on, or off.

If you have kids, think about how they may impact your work environment. Do they have a dedicated play area? Homework/project area? How is their space connected to yours — but separate? Try to find the right shared space, but be mindful of associating different areas with different activities to maximize productivity for both you and your kids while working from home.

Above all else, figure out what works best for you. Sometimes the answer is apparent, but other times you might need some inspiration from other people who are in the same boat. A supportive community of remote employees does exist, whether you find them in your organization’s communication channel or online through blogs, LinkedIn or Twitter.

Krunal Patel

Tekstaff IT solutions inc.