Becoming More Productive While Doing Remote Work
Since the start of the strict implementation of social distancing, millions of employees worldwide have brought their work home. Most of these work-at-home tasks were implemented well before anyone could adjust, causing many managers and employees alike to adapt to their new working conditions.
However, while working at home might sound like less stressful, working-at-home causes unnecessary distractions that could bring down your productivity and overall performance. Staying productive at home can be a struggle and a big downer for employees who are used to socializing at work. Here are some tips to help you get through your stay-at-home working days productive.
Dedicated a Working Space and Relaxing Space
Working at home is all about dividing your space; it could be as simple as only dedicating a single table for work and your sofa as your relaxing space. By dividing your room, you hardwire your brain to be productive in your work area. This division of space will free your mind from distractions so you can solely focus on your work. The same goes for your dedicated relaxing area.
Much like a coworking space, ensure that your working area has a transparent barrier between your place’s other sections. You don’t need to be in a wide-open space to do this. As long as you don’t mix your work and relaxing areas, you’ll see an enormous boost in work productivity.
Set Priorities
It is easy to get distracted at home, so it’s become critical for managers to step up and help their subordinates prioritize what needs to get done at a reasonable amount of time. It’s crucial for managers and employees alike to reduce clutter in the to-do list that isn’t essential to the company’s primary function.
It is also essential for an employee to set realistic goals on what you want to get done in a certain amount of time based on their home situation. By setting realistic goals, you can prevent unnecessary anxiety and stress while increasing productivity.
Implement Working Hour Ground Rules
It’s essential to set ground rules with the people who share your home with you. If you have children who are home while you’re working, they need to know what area they can play in and how much noise they can make (if at all) during working hours. If you aren’t a single parent, consider cooperating with your husband or spouse to switch between working and taking care of the kids.
These ground rules will help you focus on work better without the stress of dealing with distracting noises from your children or roommates and can even help you finish your tasks earlier than you would have expected.
Take Scheduled Breaks
While working at home, it can be easy to forget when to take a break. Be familiar with your company’s work-at-home break policy and take full advantage of them. Taking a scheduled break can increase your productivity because it refreshes your brain. Consider taking a walk around the house, getting a healthy snack, or even just laying down on the couch for a good ten minutes can drastically improve your motivation and focus,
However, if you’re self-employed and aren’t constrained with a time limit, consider using the Pomodoro Technique:
- Select a task
- Work on the said task for 20 to 30 minutes
- Take a 5-minute break intervals
- After every four breaks, take a longer break, usually around ten to 15 minutes
- Continue this process throughout your tasks
This technique has been shown to increase productivity while keeping stress levels while working at home at a minimum.
Communicate
While working from home, you must communicate your availability and schedule to your managers and workmates who need to know often. Let them know when you’ve finished a task, which task you’ve started working on, and which tasks you think should be the team’s priority.
Communicating with your workmates and managers can help the team finish their tasks efficiently and prevent any time from being underutilized and prevent future headaches. Clear communication between workmates can also bolster morale and thus improve company productivity.
Stick to a Routine
This pandemic is stressful enough with all the economic and health uncertainty, so it’s essential to set a routine and to stick with it. Patterns can give your life a semblance of control and can boost your morale and productivity.
So if you start your workday with a coffee cup, get a cup of coffee. If you find your routine boring and tedious, don’t be afraid to switch it up.
Working at home in this pandemic can be as stressful as working at your company’s office, especially if there are unnecessary distractions that prevent you from getting work done. So it’s essential to take care of your mental well-being and physical well-being in this pandemic to keep pace with your usual work productivity.
