Staying productive and Mentally healthy whilst working from home
With the spread of the Coronavirus, more businesses are opting to work from home. Normally we’d find ourselves working at our desks, but now it’s on our couches or kitchen tables. Trying to complete our to-do lists without the built-in discipline of the office.
The expectations and tasks are the same, but the environment is not. Transitioning for some may be hard. The key to success is to create an environment that allows you to focus on your tasks. Here are a few tips on how to be productive at home;
dedicate your space
As tempting as it sounds working from your bed is setting you up for an unproductive day. Creating an established space dedicated to working can help turn on the right mindset for work. When you work from the office you mind automatically knows you’re there to work. It turns off all distractions and allows you to focus on work. Creating this dedicates work area will help to recreate that. If you can dress up your workspace, make it somewhere you feel happy and enjoy working.
Declutter
Wherever you are working from the kitchen, living room or home office. Having stuff around that reminds you of household chores can distract you. Whenever you work from home remember to declutter your workspace. This will help you stay focused and help to get that office atmosphere.
Get ready for the day
Many people think working from home is an easy life, working in your pyjamas in front of the TV. Just answering a few emails here and there. Having this mindset will set you up for a very unsuccessful and unproductive day. Get ready as if you were going into the office. Set a morning routine, get dressed (no loungewear), morning drink, and anything else that gets you in the right mindset. This might even be a quick morning workout. You may also want to start the day by making a list of everything you want to achieve that day. You increase your chances of being productive when you have goals.
Recreate the office atmosphere
A great thing about working from home is you can custom your workspace in a way you may not be able to in the office. A comfortable and productive space that perfectly suits your individual working style. You can add items that promote a calming and inspiring atmosphere, such as houseplant/ flowers, candles or even crystals.
Make a schedule
Whether you’re new to working from home, do it all the time or only part-time, you’ll need to plan out your daily schedule. Establish your start time, midday break and your finish time. If you can inline these up with your office ones, it’ll give you more structure and help you to adjust. This will also help you to keep on track of the goals you set earlier. Also, this will help when booking in meetings with colleague, clients or customers.
Get out
While working from home, even though you’ve made a comfortable workspace, sometimes you need to break up the day. Take 10 minutes to step outside or have a walk around the house to freshen up and encourage the flow of new ideas. If you know others that are working from home also arrange for a quick catch up. Whether that’s just a phone call or even a video call. It is great to stay socialized!
Log off!
This is one of the most important steps to take, not just when working from home. It allows you to have a healthy work-from-home routine and creates boundaries. You should log off for the day, not just on your laptop. Stop checking work emails even on your phone. If you have any ideas out of work hours jot them down and come back to them during working hours. Just because you have access to work 24/7 doesn’t mean you should! Allow yourself to have the work-life balance we all know we need.
