By Elisi Studios
It can be a huge adjustment switching to a home office. One of the biggest challenges is learning how to stay productive when there’s no clock to punch or boss looking over your shoulder.
Check out these tips to help you stay productive and motivated when working from home.
Create the Right Environment #
You can’t concentrate on work if you’re in the middle of the chaos of home life. You need a specific place that is designed for you to be productive.
Studies have shown working from home has benefits for the business and the employee. It has become more popular as technology and needs increase.
The pandemic will increase the likelihood of more companies taking a remote worker model of business for at least the foreseeable future. Millions of employees may find themselves having to adjust to remote work becoming their new normal.
Get rid of distractions and create a spot that is designated for work. Set up a desk or area that has all the supplies you need to successfully get through your workday.
Try to make sure you have peace and quiet to be able to work without interruptions. This can be especially embarrassing in these times of video conference calls and Zoom meetings.
Have a Plan to Stay Productive #
You can’t just be productive without having a plan for how you’re going to do it. Take some time to organize your day, weeks, and months ahead. This will help you see what you need to do and how you are going to accomplish everything that it takes to get it done.
Taking time at the beginning of each week and then each day to not only see what your to-do list has on it but to develop a strategy to accomplish it successfully.
Bullet-point journals can help you brainstorm and create an action plan for your day.
A Realistic Plan for Success #
You don’t want to set yourself up for failure when it comes to being productive at home. There are simple things you can do to ensure you aim for success and are more likely to keep your motivation.
Be realistic about your day when creating your schedule. Creating a schedule that is unrealistic and impossible to keep up with will become discouraging very quickly.
S.M.A.R.T. Goals #
When you’re creating your action plan for success it will help if you create S.M.A.R.T. goals.
Specific #
If you make a goal on your to-do list as detailed and specific as possible then you are able to know exactly what you plan to do and can easily tell when you’ve accomplished it.
Setting vague goals like “I want to do some Marketing today” doesn’t give you a starting or ending point. It can be difficult to successfully accomplish something if you don’t know what it is you are hoping to accomplish.
A specific goal would be “I will develop the social media marketing posts for this month”.
Measurable #
You want to be able to celebrate your success and to know when you’re making progress. When you have a goal such as finishing a large report by its deadline on Friday you can break that goal down into measurable steps.
Achievable #
Don’t set yourself up for failure by setting goals that are impossible to achieve. The greatest motivation killer is knowing it is impossible before you even start.
There are only 24 hours in a day and there is only so much YOU to go around. If you know you have a conference call that’s going to take up your afternoon it doesn’t make sense to set a goal to organize your files and make your marketing phonecalls during the same time.
Realistic #
It’s great to be optimistic but you also have to be realistic.
It’s like saying you want to swim in the summer Olympics this year when you haven’t even taken your first swimming lesson.
Timely #
Don’t waste your entire day on goals that don’t get you any closer to your overall weekly or monthly goals. Set priorities based on what is most important to achieve what is most relevant to you.
Give yourself time and make sure you practice self-care to make sure you are at your best mentally, physically, and emotionally.
Celebrate Staying Productive at Work #
You can stay productive at work by making S.M.A.R.T. goals and being conscious of time management. Give yourself breaks throughout the day and celebrate a productive day with some quality time for you and your family.
For help staying productive at work connect with us today.
