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It was back in 2009 when I first began working from home. Back then, home working was weird and pretty isolating. Things have definitely changed a lot since then, though. So given the fact I’m 11 years into my home-working journey… I feel I’m experienced enough to share some ways to be more productive when working from home. Read on for some genius hacks and some pretty obvious but still important ideas.
Ways To Be More Productive When Working From Home
This topic also fits in perfectly with day 5 of #Blogtober’s prompt too – Manic Monday… So read on for tips to help you be more productive when working from home.
Log Out Of Social Media
This is a huge one for me. I used to spend a good 10 hours a day at my laptop, and produce maybe 1000 words during that time. It was only when apple started their “screen time” feature that I realised just how many of those hours were spent on social media. So I logged out of them on my MacBook.
To activate screen time on your MacBook, go to System Preferences, then click on the screen time icon (pictured below).
Once I had logged out of personal social media accounts, I was definitely sat in front of my laptop for less hours each day.
Establish A Routine
This depends largely on your job, but for me, I don’t “have” to be at my desk from 9-5. So rather than staring at my screen when I hit a wall, my typical work day looks like this…
- 7.30-9.30am: Get ready & take my son to school.
- 9.30-10am: Read and reply to emails and write to-do list for the day.
- 10-11am: eat breakfast and walk the dogs.
- 11-1pm: Work on to-do list.
- 1-1.30pm: Free time. I usually prep tea, nip to the shops or do some chores during this time.
- 1.30-2.30pm: Work on my to-do list.
- 2.30-3pm: Check emails and chase any unpaid invoices.
- 3-5pm: Collect son from school and do tea, then play with him for a while.
- 5-7pm: Work on my to-do list.
- 7pm-7.30pm: Make my son some supper and watch tv with him for a while.
- 7.30-8.30pm: Work on my to-do list.
- 8.30-9pm: Bath time for my son.
- 9-11pm: Work if needed.
9/10 nights, I don’t need to work after 8.30pm. On the nights when I do, I’ve usually been out all day or had after school activities. (My son does horse riding on Thursdays, for example, so that usually means I lose my 5-7pm work time).
Turn Off Distractions
Some people need a little background noise to help them focus. I am one of those people. Having the radio on really helps me to concentrate. However, if the TV is on, I find myself looking away from my laptop and at the television instead. I’ve taken to sitting in the dining room now when the TV is on, so I can’t see the screen.
My personal email was another huge distraction. I’d be working away, then get a pop up informing me about an amazing 20% off sale. So I now only get personal email alerts to my phone. I tend to browse those when I’m waiting outside school for my son, or in the evenings.
Make Sure People Know You’re Working
This was a huge deal for me. I went from being a stay at home mum to working full time from home. This was something a fair few people didn’t understand to begin with. I’d have relatives asking me to visit during work hours, or people asking for play dates so they could go out or such like. I had to be very firm and say I work around the kids, so don’t do a traditional 9-5.
Finally, check out this post on the reality of working from home for more ideas.
