8 Hacks on How to Be Productive When Working from Home

Business Optimizer considers the eight essential productivity hacks to helps you be more productive when working from home.

Even as the lockdown eases for many of us, the need for social distancing at the office and on public transport means that many of us continue to work from home.

By now many work-from-homers have established a good routine that works for us.  But for others, the longer the “new normal” continues, the less in control we feel.

Whichever category you fall into, these productivity hacks will help you boost your WfH performance!

#1. Get your workspace right

It might be that you have to pack up your workspace at mealtimes or at night, but don’t let that stop you organising your space.  As the old saying goes, tidy desk, tidy mind!

#2. Start early

Get up early before the kids and before the rest of the office and get some jobs ticked off your “to-do” list before the rest of the world has woken up.  You get some serious quiet time when you won’t be disrupted.  Plus, starting your day with a sense of achievement is always a good way to begin!

#3. Manage your “to-do” list

It’s easy to get distracted at home, especially if you have family working around you too.  Stay focused by writing out your daily tasks at the start of your day and pinning the paper on the wall above your desk.  Cross off tasks as you go to maintain your sense of achievement throughout your day!

#4. Have a routine

Establishing a routine is an essential productivity hack.  Regular breaks help you stay focused.  Plus, it can help you to manage distractions if you can agree on breaks with the rest of the family – and help them to stay focused too!

#5. Deep work

Finding the time and space to work deeply on a particular project is really difficult when you work from home.  If you’re caring for others, establish some sort of rota with other caregivers so you can each get some quiet time at home alone – perhaps by sending everyone else off for a daily walk or cycle.

#6. Daily exercise

Make time for yourself to get some fresh air and daily exercise too!  Staying healthy is more important than ever in this time of coronavirus.  Plus, many studies have shown how important regular exercise is for our mental wellbeing.  The thirty minutes you spend going out for a jog could be the most important and productive of your whole day!

#7. Switch off at the end of the day

Learn how to switch off.  Routine can help here.  Something as simple as a ten-minute meditation can help to create a space between work life and home life.  Being able to relax and get a good night’s sleep is an essential productivity skill… because you’ve got to do it all again tomorrow!

#8. Stay positive

With days merging into one and limited social contact, it can be hard to stay positive.  Especially when we keep seeing terrible events on the news.  Now is the time to invest in your social and support networks.  Technology is a great enabler for sustaining personal contact and friendships in these difficult times, so make sure reaching out to others becomes part of your daily productivity regimen too. 

For more tips about how to stay positive, read our blog here.