Tips for Working from Home

With these unprecedented times we are living in, many more people have been thrown into working from home. I’ve worked from home for nearly 4 years now, so I wanted to share my top tips for keeping motivated and productive for those of you who are only just getting started.

I hope these 5 tips help you get the most out of working from home.

1. Routine: I find it is really important to keep up a routine at home with the same start and finish times each day.  I would encourage you to continue your usual routine as much as possible.  Get up at the same time and use your usual commuting time to do some exercise, whether that’s yoga, a workout, cycle, walk or run.  This sets you up really well for the day, having already ‘achieved’ something early on.  The hardest thing is to switch off at the end of the work day, but I encourage you to do so, using the extra time you would’ve been commuting home to keep in touch with friends and family (virtually), or do something creative either more exercise, crafting or cooking.
2. Maintaining motivation: It’s hard to maintain motivation when you are at home on your own, sometimes even harder when you are not alone with others to distract you!  I find setting myself tasks for what I want to achieve each day really important to keep me focused and on track.  Personally, I like lists, but you could block out time in your calendar to set time for specific tasks.
3. Communication: Just because you are at home, doesn’t mean you are alone.  Keep up contact with colleagues via tools like Skype, Slack or the plain old telephone, either via messages or calls individually or as groups.  These may be work meetings or schedule more informal coffee breaks to have together.
4. Stay focused: As much as communication with others is even more important when you work from home, try to set time aside to focus on your to do list or you could get lost in messaging and calls and not get any work done!  This is where scheduling your day in your calendar can help with specific time for work, meetings and more informal communications.
5. The right chair:  If you don’t usually work from home, you probably don’t have a proper office chair that provides the correct support for your health and well being.  You might even be working at the kitchen table on a kitchen chair, which is not designed to be sat on for long periods of time.  So please be careful!   If you can, invest in a proper office chair.  However, if you can’t afford a new chair ensure you take regular breaks and walk around your house, flat or garden and stretch your back as much as possible.  Try standing up when on calls or change location from one room to another to avoid always being in the same position.

I find working from home very productive, I hope with these tips you find the same.