Working From Home: Are You Doing It Right?

Lifestyle

Team MONEYME|13 October 2020| 4 min read

While working from home saves you a lot of time and effort, there could also be some drawbacks especially when you’re one who easily gets sidetracked by trivial things. We know this is easier said than done: but try not to easily give in to them.

The below tips might be able to help you keep your focus and boost your work productivity.

Set your goals for the day

And when we say, ‘set your goals’, don’t just list them down on a piece of paper and completely ignore and forget about them after a couple of hours or so – make sure you stick to it! If you’re not 100% sure if the goal is attainable, break it down into smaller pieces. One foot in front of the other, little by little, and next thing you know you’re already well in the zone and have built a good momentum.

Keep your workspace sacred

Declutter your space. Feel free to let go or put aside the unnecessary things – like that calendar from a year ago, or your old earphones that always tangle with your work headset. Are you always using that wireless charger that keeps on touching your elbows while you type on your keyboard?

Surround yourself with only the things that are necessary for your work. After tidying up your space, set the right work ambience. Get the right light, buy yourself a mood-relaxing humidifier or adjust the temperature. Shopping online for work essentials has been made more convenient, thanks to tech-driven financial services like a line of credit that you can access through your smartphone. In just a few simple taps, you can purchase now and pay later interest-free for the stuff you need to get you in a productive mood. Plus, it saves you heaps of time as you don’t have to go outside anymore, which means you can focus on the more important things.

Identify your distractions

Is it your toddler who keeps on barging into your workspace, your dog who furiously scratches the thin wall on the other side of the room, or your phone that keeps on buzzing with notifications? You’re not alone. A recent survey showed that 32% of Australians said that the major challenges while working from home are their kids, unnecessary noise and non-work related phone calls.

These are just some of the common reasons, but the factors still vary from one person to another. It’s best to know the internal and external stimuli that hinder you from attaining meaningful work, so you can find fitting solutions for them.

Get dressed as if you’re going to an actual office

As pointless as it may sound the first time you hear it, there’s actually a good psychological explanation as to why you should be in your work attire even when working from home. Just like putting on your PJs to prepare yourself for snooze time, dressing up in your work clothes gives you the office energy vibe that puts you into a ‘working mode’. It also enhances your cognitive processing and affects the decision you make and how you work in general.

On the other hand, being on your loungewear may get you in an extra comfortable mood, making you feel relaxed – way more relaxed than you’re supposed to be, hence the decrease in focus.

Keep it in the cloud

You’re finishing up a report and suddenly realised you need some stats shared to you by a co-worker ages ago. You can’t quite point the exact folder location in your home laptop after spending some time looking for it. Next thing you know, you’ve opened multiple windows that lead to nowhere close to the document you need. Maybe it’s in your work computer instead? Did you save it in your inbox? You don’t know anymore.

Having your important documents all uploaded to cloud storage makes it easier for you to access them anytime and anywhere you are. This way, you save time and get to do actual work instead of getting lost skimming through tons of files.

Get up from your seat and change your scenery

It’s okay if you can’t go outside. Simply looking away from your computer, standing up and walking around the house for a few good minutes can make a big difference. Get some snacks, pet your dog, or grab your weights for quick cardio. This gives you a fresh mind and a fresh set of eyes to notice lapses in your work that you might have overlooked a while ago, come up with brand new ideas or simply regain focus.

Dedicate time for the things you love

Learn when to extend extra hours for work and when to call it a day. When your workplace and your home come together in a single place, it becomes harder to stop looking at your computer and start doing things for yourself or your loved ones.

A positive workplace reaps a positive daily impact on your success. You must also bear in mind that just because you’re working at home doesn’t mean you have all the time in the world. After taking care of all the external stimuli that affect your daily work routine, check yourself, too. Is your mind all set to get things done?

Now if you’re reading this during office hours, it’s time to close the tab and get back to work!