Work From Home: 25 Smart Tips for Better Productivity

With the culture of remote working gaining traction, especially amid coronavirus pandemic, work from home seems ideal choice for many private as well as public institutions.

But can you be as productive when you work from home like you might be in a regular office? Yes why not! This blog post provides some of the best productivity tips for remote workers.

Work from home trend is emerging as professionals, start-ups and even established enterprises are acknowledging its pros like saving on commuting time and a better work life balance. But as with everything, even working from home has its perils.

It’s not easy to maintain your productivity levels when you are working within the comfortable confines of your home. There may be too many distractions to affect your focus and attention.

So if you are joining the work from home tribe you need to plan your work schedule in a manner where you can get your tasks done and get adequate time to unwind too. Here is a list of 25 smart tips for better productivity when working from home.

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Work from Home: 25 Tips for Better Productivity

Have you heard the maxim ‘work smart and not hard’, these productivity tips here basically expand upon this simple yet powerful saying.

The popular perception of productivity or being productive with your time is slogging for long hours, is not necessarily true. With an unwavering focus and attention you can easily get done with your work within a set time-frame.

In addition, when you put systems in place to ensure your workflow is seamless there is simply no better alternative than working from home.

Now let’s dive straight into these 25 Smart Work From Home Tips.

#1. Determine Actual Working Hours

The first problem when working from home, especially if you are a solopreneur, is fixing your work hours. Just like in an office determine your work hours at home too.

Consider These Questions:

How long can you work without being distracted?

When are you most productive is early morning or mid-mornings?

Do have to attend any home chores in between?

Our productivity levels vary throughout the day. So think realistically how many hours you can work? Observe when you are most active and create a routine accordingly.

A) Try Pomodoro technique where you work distraction free for 25 minutes followed by a 5-minute break to reset yourself and resume your work again.

B.) When you are unwinding for the day or setting your day priorities you can try the time-blocking method where you block your hours as per your personal and professional requirements.

#2. Focus on Deep Work

The aim of deep work is to create a 100% distraction-free environment. When you are working from home it is easy to lose focus with so many enticing options like a short walk to the fridge or check numerous social media notifications.

Infact nothing can plunge you into the rabbit hole like social media apps. So definitely keep your phones away when you are focused on deep work or maybe install an anti-distraction app like Forest that makes you accountable for your time.

#3. Create a Designated Space For Home Office

An important aspect of working from home is to have a separate space for your home office complete with desk and chair and other office essentials, to help you fully concentrate on work.

Some Work From Home – Office Essentials

Monitor Side Panels

Monitor side panels are so functional; they have space for phone and any sticky notes, so automatically your desk has more space and looks less messy.

Acrylic Organizer

I got this acrylic organizer as I was fed-up losing of my notes, pens, and highlighters all the time! If you want an organized desk get this cute acrylic organizer.

Cable Management Box

Entangled cable wires spread all over your desk-space is so annoying. This cable management box keeps all those wires in order and looks neat.

#4. Get a Standing Desk When Working From Home

Standing desk will ensure you don’t compromise on your health while working, do a few stretches, move around a bit while you are working at your standing desk. These wonder tools are also known to ease lower back pain.

#5. Get Ready for Work

Best part of work from home is the comfort of working in PJs but many people find this a productivity killer. To get into full work mode develop a routine you would adhere to if you were working in an office.

This means waking up at a certain hour, eating your breakfast and getting ready for work. Yes, actually dress -up for work to be mentally and physically ready for the day. This is would also help you look more professional in case you have to attend video-calls with clients and colleagues.  

#6. Establish Some Ground Rules with Family

There is this erroneous notion that work from home is gives you ample time to attend various household chores, make time for useless chit-chat, sleep; basically do everything that wouldn’t do in a real office.

So at the very onset make some ground rules with your family which means respecting your work hours by not disturbing you every now and then. Make it very clear in as many words that your work time is sacred.

#7. Don’t Watch Netflix and TV while Working Remotely

It is easy to lose track of time in the wonderful world of Netflix or TV so don’t encourage this bad habit especially if you are running your own enterprise. Work from home is about assuming responsibility and not being lax about work.

#8. Create a Morning Routine

Since you will be spending a considerable stretch on your desk starting at your laptop you might as well break this cycle of a sedentary lifestyle by creating a morning routine by getting early morning fresh air, stretching your body, taking a nice shower and then settle down to work.

#8.Don’t Skip Breakfast

There is a very real possibility that you may become lazy when working from home because getting ready is optional and commuting is largely absent. So you may use this time to indulge in some sleep only to frantically wake up and start working, on an empty stomach.

Breakfast is important because it stabilizes your low sugar levels in the morning. So set some time aside to savor the most important meal of the day. Here are 11 Quick and Healthy Breakfast Recipes you can try

#9.Designate Breaks In Between Your Work

Short breaks are so important to break the cycle of monotony. Allow yourself some short 5-7 minute break to step away from the whole work mode and get catch some breath.

If you are remote worker be clear on your company’s policies on break-timings.

If you are self-employed it is easy to get overwhelmed with work especially when you are doing everything by yourself. In such a case it becomes all the more important to designate some short breaks and let mind wander.

#10. Establish Clear Communication With Colleagues

Sometimes when you are working from home or managing a team remotely communication can get lost in translation. So pay attention to what you communicate. If the need arises over-communicate to remove any room for vagueness and confusion. If you don’t understand any official instructions ask twice don’t hesitate.

#11. Designate Tasks For Seamless Workflow

People who are in managerial positions need to follow this tip, automate work among your teams, designate as much as possible for seamless work culture.

Don’t be a control-freak and hover around your team-mates, trust them to meet their deadlines. A gentle reminder or two is fine but bombarding your colleagues with endless mail trails is only a waste of time.

#12 Use Time Tracker Apps for Better Time Management

When you are working from home it is easy to lose track of time. Time tracker apps will help you manage your time better by showing when are you most productive, time taken to complete a task, where you can improve.

When are you working remotely and need to manage a team it is highly recommended that you use project management apps to stay focused on deadline.

Project Management Apps

1. Trello

2. Microsoft Teams

3. Asana

Video conferencing apps

Zoom

Skype

Anti-Distraction apps

1. Focus@Will

2. Mindful Browsing

#13. Create Some Daily Work Goals

When you are working from home, it may be difficult to maintain your motivation. So create some small attainable daily goals or to-do lists and make sure you put in a place where you can view it.

One way of doing it is getting an eraser board, these tools are so functional, I use mine to write my daily task list and it has improved my work so much.

#14. Don’t Stretch Meetings Unnecessarily

When you are conducting virtual meetings via video calls, you have to keep in mind certain risk factors too.

A.) Some people may not have a robust internet connection when it comes to video calls.

B.) Video conferencing isn’t free long meetings over Zoom or Skype consumes electricity, time and human resource.

Keep your meetings to the point and preferably under 45 minutes in a day. Before conducting a meeting, write down your points and allow your colleagues to make their observations as well.

#15. Affirm Your Availability for Remote Meetings

When you are working remotely it may happen that you are working in a different time-zone than your colleagues and clients. Make sure you inform them well in advance about your availability and the time-zone you are in. Activate out-of-office message in case you can’t reply to mails instantly. This will remove scope for any confusion.  

#16 Get a Webcam Cover To Protect Privacy

Turns out your webcam can get hacked, so putting sliding webcam cover can prevent any security breach

#17. Don’t Work During Lunch Time

Working from home doesn’t mean you eat as fast as possible and rush to your desk. If you lunch allows the luxury to have a stroll then take it. Don’t skip your lunch and feed yourself on just energy bars. Stock up your fridge with some fruits and veggies.

Munch on some healthy nuts and relish some good chicken breast salad. A weekly meal planning would go a long way in resolving your “I don’t have anything to eat” woes. Give your mind some nourishment for productivity to leap-frog.

#18. Pay Attention To Cyber Security

Cyber-security should be your priority when you are working remotely. The information you device holds could be very crucial to hackers and cyber criminals. Use VPN (virtual Private Network) when sending important data for internal use.

Most companies do have their own encryptions in place. Aim for one IT audit annually. Use premium communication tools during video conferencing free tools can compromise important information.

#19. Bond With Other Remote Working Colleagues

Working from home may also be a lonely experience for some people, so do catch up with your colleagues once in a while via chat. Discuss things other than work as well. Seek to find common interests, or discuss on enhancing your skill-set through trainings.

Get to know the person behind the screen. If you are a loner, still try and make an effort to bond with your team-mates. Also if your team-mates are in a common geographical area it doesn’t hurt to arrange for a get-together at common location.

#20. Listen To Some Soothing Music

Music has amazing benefits on productivity. Most people find themselves more focused with music playing in the background. When you are working from home try to put some soothing music in background while you work.

This would also abate your sense of loneliness while working from home. Get a good headphone put on some good music, not too loud though and begin your tasks for the day.

#21. Separate Work Number

A separate work number is more professional and it helps in maintaining your privacy and a better work-life balance. You can reduce your stress by not having to answer office calls at odd hours.

You can organize your business better by setting up a system by which clients can communicate with you, like having an automated voice response system even when you are available. For eg when you are attending calls from customers you set up a voicemail wherein the customer has to dail “1” to talk to you.

#22 Invest In Technology

When you are starting a business from home you may have invest in technology. If you can’t invest in the beginning consider upgrading your tools in future when your business gains traction. Don’t compromise on this, because as your business expands you will have to fuel it for smooth functioning. If you are working remotely for some organization don’t hesitate to ask for essential supplies in proportion to the work you have to put.

#23. Know The HR Policies When Working Remotely

Work from home doesn’t mean you can let go off perks like travel, casual or sick leaves. Be clear on your HR policies, ask plans on skills trainings and compensation for overtime etc.

#24 Don’t Keep A Cluttered Workspace

Believe it or not but cleanliness actually improves your productivity. A clean environment helps you to concentrate better at task. Start your day by cleaning your bed or your desk and have a scheduled weekly or monthly declutter session for your workspace. A bit of organization prepares your mind for the day.

#25. Shutdown For the Day

Just like your morning routine create an evening routine where you can set your intentions and priorities for the next day. List out all the things you have done for the day as a means to develop a sense of responsibility and accountability.

When you are working from home it is easy to mess up your routine so be mindful when setting priorities. Your work time shouldn’t eat into your family time or the need to unwind your mind.

Final Thoughts on Smart Work from Home Tips

Ask someone who works from home and they would always tell you it is as real as working in an office minus the commute. If you already work from home or intend to in near future keep in mind these 25 points, even if you can’t follow all pick crucial tips that would work to your advantage. Did you find this post useful? Which of these tips would you apply when working from home?

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