How to Be Productive While Working From Home

With COVID-19 putting a lot of emphasis on social distancing, you are probably stuck at home and working remotely. To be honest, I have been loving it. I feel that I’ve been more productive and able to get more things done. These are my 5 tips on how to be more productive while working from home.

1. Create a routine and follow it

Humans are creatures of habit and this is no different. It is important to create a daily routine and make sure to stick to it. Don’t let the lack of time dictate your schedule. A simple routine like the following is sufficient:

• Wake up at 7am every morning
• Have a bath and start the day with breakfast and a cup of coffee ☕️
• Start work at 8.30am
• Lunch at 12pm
• Back to work at 1.30pm
• End the workday at 7.30pm for dinner
• Netflix & Youtube 😁

2. Set goals you want to achieve for the week

A goal without a plan is only a dream – Brian Tracy. Setting goals allow you to keep track of your progress and having a target to achieve. Set reasonable goals you would like to achieve for the week and increase or decrease them accordingly as the weeks go by.

Goals give you a sense of achievement. It is amazing to know that you have completed all your goals at the end of the week. It is a big morale booster.

3. Ensure you have a proper work environment set up

Having a proper work environment set up can make or break your work from home situation. Do not go overboard and only get what is necessary. Unless you intend to work from home indefinitely. Here are some things which I consider to ensure a productive work environment:

• A stable and fast internet connection
• An extra monitor plugged in to my laptop
• Comfortable chair as you will be sitting for long hours
• Noise cancelling headset (very useful when you aren’t the only person working from home)

4. Schedule regular virtual meetings

Working from home means you don’t get to have regular discussions with your colleagues as often. Thanks to the beauty of today’s modern technology, this is no more a problem. There are many meeting apps out there to choose from and most of them are free to use (up to a certain limit).

It is important to schedule virtual meetings to ensure that everybody is on the same page. These meetings can have different agendas. From weekly sales meetings to even daily team hustles.

But it’s a slippery slope. The more meetings planned equals lesser time everybody has to complete your own work. So plan short and effective meetings instead of long redundant ones.

5. Take well-deserved breaks in between

Working from home means you only commute between your bed and your laptop – figuratively. Saving you more time which you could allocate to work. In actual fact, you work more hours while working from home than at the office. This might be good on the surface but might in fact lead to burnout.

So it is important to take small breaks in between to clear your mind. You don’t have to be on a lookout when watching YouTube or surfing Instagram while at work anymore.

Conclusion

Everyone works differently. Adopt and experiment with different methods to see which makes you more productive while working from home. Most importantly is to have a good work-life balance. A happy you is a more productive you.