How To Adjust and Work from Home Productively

By

Theodore Henderson

The Wisdom Man

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Work from home productively has just become your new reality. Like countless others, you’ve probably been forced into adjusting and must work from home productively. Don’t just wait for normalcy to “kick in” after being assigned to be a remote worker. You might as well make the most of the situation. To more easily make the transition, focus on gradually adjusting to working from home—and maybe, you might even manage to reach new heights of productivity.

Don’t forget, if you have never worked remotely in this way before it is best to have a speedy tranisition plan. Don’t try to make everything happen all at once. Keep reading to see how.

1. Setting the Right Mindset

The first thing you’ll have to do to successfully work remotely is making yourself feel that you’re still going to work every morning. Do what you typically do at the start of the day. Have a hearty breakfast, enjoy a cup of coffee, and wear what you usually wear to the office. With something as simple as that, you’re getting the right mindset for a day of productivity. Here is a TedTalks video with some helpful tips to set your mind straight.

2. Finding the Right Location

Don’t boot your laptop just yet. Look around your home and find a place where you’ll be comfortable and undisturbed. Don’t think about working in your bedroom, though. It may be quiet enough for you to get things done, but you’ll end up having difficulty when it’s finally time for sleep. And as you probably know, not getting enough rest will lead to fatigue.

3. Declutter Your Work From Home Space

Once you’ve settled on a place, it’s time to get rid of anything that won’t help you stay productive. For example, if you picked a coffee table in the living room, you could probably remove all unnecessary reading materials currently on it. Aside from having more space for more important things, you’ll avoid having to deal with distractions.

4. Making Use of Applications To Work From Home Productively

While you’ve gotten rid of physical distractions, you might end up facing those that come with the very tools you use for productivity. Social media, in particular, can easily be accessed with almost any device. If you often find yourself browsing feeds and laughing at memes, use site-blocking apps like FocusMe and SelfControl.

5. Refreshing Your Motivation

Sometimes, distractions being too tempting isn’t really the problem but rather your lack of enthusiasm. Whenever you’re feeling down on your work, recall the reasons why you aim to work hard—even at home. Maybe you’re looking to be promoted, or you might be doing this for the sake of those who depend on you.

A short worthwhile article on this topic is How to create momentum to accomplish your goals in 2020 in Fast Company.

6. Following a Good Schedule

While working from home gives you a bit more freedom in how you do things, it doesn’t mean you’re free to go on with your day without any sort of structure. To be productive and feel that you’re really at work, you need to set a proper day-to-day routine—and of course, follow it. Know when to focus and when to relax. Know when to start and when to end your workday.

Create a schedule
“Go” To The Office
Shut The Door
Communicate With Business Contacts
Organize Your Day
Make a “Hard Stop” Time

7. Give Yourself Enough Time

Are you still struggling despite all the effort you’ve exerted so far? Adjusting to working from home isn’t something that you can magically accomplish in a day or two. It’ll take time, so don’t be too hard on yourself if you aren’t being as productive as you aim to be. What’s important is that you stick to these pointers and never lose sight of your goal.

Start With a Real Achievable To-Do List.
Stop Trying To Multi-Task
Stay Away From Chores and Personal Tasks
Don’t Web Surf and Turn Off Social Media
Use the Getting Stuff Done Now Method
Figure Out You’re Most Productive Time of Day
Take a Lunch Break (Yes, really!)
Create A Going To The Office Routine
Organize a Dedicated Workspace

Statistics on Remote Employee Productivity

77% of remote employees say they’re more productive when working from home.
76% prefer to avoid their office entirely when they need to concentrate on a project.
23% of remote workers say they work longer hours than they would if they were on-site.
53% of remote workers say they’re less likely to take vacation days or time off than they would be if they worked in a regular office.
Email is the primary method of communication for 88% of remote workers, followed by instant messaging, and then video chat.

*Statistics via blog.hubspot.com

Conclusion

The seven steps above serve as the start for organizing your activity, but more importantly, figure out what is truly best for your productivity. Sometimes the answer is clear and forthright. But, at other times, you might need some inspiration from other smart, organized, and productive people who are in the same boat.

Prioritize finding or creating a supportive association of remote employees or work from home entrepreneurs. You may find them in your organization’s Slack channel, LinkedIn, local business association, or online through blogs or Twitter. Sounds as if you should approach the new reality with the mind of an entrepreneur, freelancer, or business owner? You’re correct! Click here for a targeted budget friendly to help you get started or stay on track.

About The Author

Theodore Henderson works with business owners, entrepreneurs, and corporate professionals on their business skills, marketing, and leadership strategies. He is an Amazon best-selling author, a Certified Career Coach, Business Skills & Leadership Coach, and a Certified Social Media Security Professional Powered by CompTIA.

Visit TheodoreHenderson.com for more information.

There are some affiliate links below and I may receive commissions for purchases made through links in this post, but these are all products I highly recommend. I won’t put anything on this page that I haven’t verified and/or personally used.