Working from home is a tricky thing because it is great to have the flexibility to do so, but you also need to be highly motivated to stay productive while working from home (especially if there are others around the house distracting you!). After working from home for the past 5+ years (in everything from a studio apartment to a house), I figured now would be the best time to share some tips and tricks that have helped keep me sane and taught me how to survive working from home.
How to Stay on Track with your Eating While Working from Home
This is tricky! I know, for me, the initial transition (as in, like, the first year!) was really hard with food because it seemed like the solution to everything (e.g., boredom, procrastination) was to head to the kitchen to see what was there! However, this led to me making some ground rules for myself to stay on track, which might also be helpful for you:
- No dessert snacks until after dinner (that eliminates the mindset of being able to snack on them during the day).
- If you cannot not eat something if it is in your house, get rid of it!
- Only keep healthy snacks around (but try to avoid “snack” foods during the day).
- Have your breakfast and lunch meals planned out (or at least the general idea).
- Keep your first two meals of the day light. It is too easy to want to take a nap after eating a big meal, so if you keep it light, then you do not have to worry about losing focus that way.
- Only eat when you are actually hungry.
- Stock your kitchen with lots of fresh fruits and vegetables that are ready to be consumed, so there are no excuses.
- Meal prep is really helpful because all you will need to do is to place the meal or components of the meal onto a plate/bowl to either eat or heat up and eat (this saves you time as well).
How to Stay Focused While Working from Home
One thing I always say is that once you start working from home, you will immediately know whether or not you like your job! Because in the office, there is a lot of noise and distraction and productivity is not at its peak. You can say this is due to team building or what not, but in reality, there are a lot of unnecessary meetings and small chat that take place. Without this, you can get a lot more done in the day! Your full eight hours do not look the same when working from home compared to when working in an office.
With that said, after having worked from home for so long, I know how hard it was for me when I initially started working from home. So, here are some tips to help you adjust to your new working situation (aka the real tools on how to survive working from home!).
- Have a proper desk setup. I know if it is a temporary work from home situation, it is easy to sit on the couch and get to work, but you cannot do that for multiple days in a row. If you do not have a proper ergonometric setup at home, make one. You can sit at the kitchen table if you do not have a desk, put books under your laptop to lift it up to help your neck, or add pillows to your chair if it is not comfortable to sit in. Whatever it is, you need to make it comfortable so that your desk setup cannot be used an excuse for lack of productivity.
- Leave your phone in another room! When you are used to not having your phone around in the office, it is too tempting if you have it near you at home. If you use your phone for work, set restrictions on what you can look at during different times of the day.
- Set a schedule. This has been extremely helpful for me in all aspects of life because it really increases productivity. If you have Gmail, Outlook or even the calendar on your phone, you can set your schedule (I suggest doing it for a week at a time to see what you will accomplish throughout the week). While doing this, I set blocks throughout the day to work on different projects. However, instead of just saying that I will work on XYZ, I state in the schedule that I will accomplish XYZ so that I have that certain amount of time to make sure that I accomplish something. There is no time to “work on” or be wishy washy about it because when you do that, maybe you will check emails for a portion of that time or do something that is not what you were hoping to accomplish and that will set you back. This has, by far, been the most successful change to my daily work life resulting in increased productivity.
- Tap into your productivity. We all know that there are certain times of the day when we are the most productive and focused and it is up to us to properly utilize those. For example, if you do your best work first thing in the morning, then you should sit down to work as soon as possible after waking (if this is the case, you could have your breakfast prepped the night before if you are an early eater) and get to it. I know a lot of people say that it is important to get ready and to get dressed like you are going to the office when you work from home, and maybe that is the case for you, but it really is not worth doing if that is cutting into your most productive time.
- Have some sort of way to get in touch with your supervisor (or whoever can answer your work-related questions) and/or other colleagues. Whether it is via text, call, Skype, some other form of electronic communication, make sure that it is in place and that you will be able to get your questions answered in a timely manner (or at least to clarify the project with them before starting). If this is not in place, this can be a huge downfall when working on a project because everything can get stalled.
- Be clear on breaks. Either have them scheduled or push through the day without taking them.
- Make sure to get outside at some point each day. This is very important. There is something about being outside in nature, even if it is just outside of your apartment building walking around your complex. Fresh air and a different view from inside of your house do wonders for your mind, soul and productivity.
- Make sure you have someone to talk to. Even if it is just a five-minute phone call at some point in time during the day. You do need some sort of social interaction. This is especially the case if you live alone or if you have a spouse or roommate that is not also working from home.
- Make sure there is a clear end to your day. Although it is hard to initially get into the groove of working from home when it becomes more of a permanent thing, you have to have set boundaries of when “work time” is over. Just because you work from home should not make you accessible after work hours.
Are there any suggestions that I missed that have been helpful for you during this time? If so, please add them to the comments below!
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