How To Stay Productive While Working At Home

With more people suddenly asked to work from home this past year, not everyone was prepared to. Companies adapted quickly using technology and apps to keep everything as “normal” as possible. Daily morning meetings are now via Zoom, and apps like Slack replaced knocking on your coworker’s cubicle to ask a quick question. For those with no experience working from home, or who have a house full of rugrats running around, staying productive becomes a challenge. It is easy to shift your focus from completing an online presentation, to having the dog whining at the door to be let out. 

If you are struggling with productivity while working from home, follow these guidelines to stay focused and on task. 

Maintain the same routine

Before you started working from home, you woke up, took a shower, had coffee, then got in the car to commute to the office. Keep the same routine minus the headache of dealing with road construction, traffic, and inadequate parking jobs. You’ll gain a sense of normalcy and prevent showing up to your office space unmotivated and groggy from waking up right before your first meeting. Maintain the same routine but understand that you now have more flexibility with your schedule. The positive about working from home is that so long as you do the work, you can work whatever hours you’d like. Take a break in the day to entertain the kids, take a walk, or go grocery shopping. Getting away from your desk (and house) is healthy. You’ll feel much more energized to get back to work when you’ve briefly relieved yourself of cabin fever. 

Find a change of scenery

Working from home means you can work from anywhere. If coffee shops are open, spend some time using free wi-fi for a chance to get out of the house and maintain productivity. Another option is to travel to another part of the state and rent an Airbnb for the week. Doing so is a win-win for yourself and for your family. You get a change of scenery and the kids get a vacation. 

Take a day off 

Experiencing burnout at the office is sadly all too common these days. To experience burnout at home is far worse. If you feel comfortable traveling, do so! For those who aren’t comfortable traveling, enjoy some time locally. You can avoid cabin fever by exploring areas of your community you’ve never gone to before. Go to a nearby park to catch up on some fun reading. Get some exercise by going on a bike ride, taking a hike, or enjoy water activities. Do anything to step away from the house and from work to keep the body and mind healthy.

Continue with your office culture

Despite social distancing, you can continue with your office’s culture. If you exchanged jokes and viral videos while at lunch, send them via email to discuss later on. Did you enjoy happy hour on Fridays? You still can! Same time, but different places while you enjoy a drink with your coworkers via video conferencing. Once you return to the office, it will be as if you never worked from home. 

Working from home comes with challenges and distractions you usually wouldn’t deal with while working in an office. You can learn more ways to be a productive individual with Iris reading’s Personal Productivity Course. In this online video-based training, you’ll learn the science behind productivity, how to make better decisions, manage your time, and decide whether or not multitasking works. Click the link to learn more and to sign up today.