7 SUPER tips for your productivity while working from home

Employers and employees alike worry about that decrease in productivity when shifting to a remote work environment. But, why is it that remote work affects productivity? And, what can you do about it? Keep reading.

So, how does remote work affect productivity? There are three key factors that directly affect how you complete your work and the amount of work you do. These are:

• Work and home are blended 👨🏼‍💼. Home is the place you relax and unwind, and now it is also the place you work. Separating home-time from work-time can be challenging, especially when you share a space with your family and have a list of neverending chores. The realities of the day-to-day interrupt your regular workflow and affect your productivity. Whether that be helping your kids with their homework or pausing work to do house chores--you might find yourself getting easily distracted.
• Communication is affected 🙆🏼. You’ll notice communication with your colleagues is not the same when you all work in different spaces. A piece of information that could easily be said by popping onto someone’s office is now a notification waiting to be answered. This not only interrupts your workflow but also delays things. What could take a few seconds now takes several minutes. These delays affect your efficiency.
• Additional stress 🤦🏼‍♀️. Stress is a big factor that affects your performance, and with COVID-19 in everyone’s minds, we are all sharing an extra load of stress. Additionally, now that you’re working from home, your personal stress can easily blend with all of your work-related stress. It can feel like it is too much to handle and may result in a loss of focus, motivation and lead to burnout.

Boosting your productivity and efficiency when working remotely comes down to separating home from work and creating structure and effective systems. Your goal is to maintain focus, motivation and create strong habits.

So here are 7 tips from our team how to increase your efficiency:

Set priorities 🗂

Efficiency lies in setting your priorities. You might find yourself doing little tasks that check things off of your to-do list but do not get you closer to your goals and targets. In a way, you are being productive but not efficient.

To set your priorities, define which tasks are both urgent, important and get you closer to your goals. These are your top priorities, and you should plan your day around those.

Try to reduce as many as possible tasks that are not important. Setting these priorities and planning your day according to them will ensure you meet your goals and targets. You can incorporate this practice into different aspects of your life, from your email inbox to your personal errands. 

Plan your schedule 📒

Use technology to your advantage and create a virtual calendar. A virtual calendar, like Google Calendar, allows you to share your schedule with others and have your tasks at hand on multiple devices. The virtual element also lets you schedule recurring tasks, so you only have to input them once a time saver.

Being able to share your calendar with others is a game-changer; you will save yourself unnecessary emails asking for your availability. Additionally, you can set blocks of time dedicated to your top priority tasks and plan the rest of your schedule around those. Create a good mix of complex tasks and easy tasks.

Planning your schedule a few days ahead will help you better prepare and stay on track. Having that visual reminder will make sure you set aside enough time to meet your deadlines. You’ll be more efficient than ever.

Define a workspace 👨🏼‍💻

As tempting as it is to stay in your pajamas and work from bed, try to recreate an office feeling as much as you can. Recreating this environment will get you in the right “work mindset”.

Have a dedicated corner or room just for work - keep it peaceful and free of distractions. This corner or room is no longer a rest area; it is a place where work (and only work) gets done. Dress up as if you were going to the office or at least change your pajamas for day clothes. It’s like putting your game face on. 

As little as they might seem, these things will help you separate work from home and increase your focus. 

Stay focused 🎯

Focus results in productivity, simple as that. Start by identifying what the distractors that might make you lose focus are. It could be your cellphone, social media, clutter in your work area, distracting sounds, etc. Once you’re aware of them, it will be easier to eliminate them. You’ll be surprised by how much more productive you can be by just “forgetting”  your phone in a different room.

You can also invest in little things that help you stay focused; for some, that might be a coffee-shop-sounds playlist to play in the background.

Another one of the biggest culprits that make you lose track is multi-tasking. You might want to multitask to get more done; on the contrary, you’ll find yourself wasting time without finishing either of the tasks. Focus on one thing at once.

Take a break ☕️

It is easy to get overwhelmed with the amount of work you have. When the boundaries of home and work blend, it is easy to reach a state of burnout.

Burnout is a physical or mental collapse due to overwork and stress. This has a direct effect on your efficiency, motivation, and overall wellbeing. Avoid burnout by taking intentional and frequent breaks to re-energize. Simply put, we need energy to give energy.

Breaks can be as simple as five minutes to stretch and close your eyes, or longer giving yourself enough time to go for a walk. A good break activity is one that is easy to exit from to return to work. So if you know you get caught in the mindless scrolling of social media, try to avoid that for your break. 

Create a routine 🏃🏻‍♀️

When you start working remotely, you might feel as though your days bleed into each other. You sleep in, work until the late hours of the night, and it all feels like one continuous loop making you feel tired, stressed, and unmotivated. Setting a work routine will bring back structure into your life.

Create a work routine that works with your lifestyle and be consistent with it. Start work at the same time every day, schedule your breaks, lunchtime, and most importantly, set a disconnect time.

Routines create strong habits that will keep you from procrastinating. Additionally, it will be easier to separate work from home and will make planning your days a breeze.

Get an accountability group 🙋🏻‍♂️🍷

Humans are social creatures, and one of the things most people miss about office space is face-to-face interaction. It keeps us motivated and accountable.

Create an accountability group with coworkers, colleagues, or friends from your industry, and virtually meet once a week to go over your goals, struggles, and plans. The face-to-face interaction will keep you motivated, and having someone else hold you accountable will make sure you stay on track throughout your week.

When motivation fails you, knowing that you’ll have to meet your accountability group will give you the push you need.

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