- Chris R.
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- Published: May 30, 2018
- Modified: November 10, 2020
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Working from home has its perks, but there is definitely also downsides! One big downside to being able to work from your sofa, your bedroom or your dining room–there are plenty of distractions that can steal your attention. You may find yourself doing everything from surfing the web to procrastinating by cleaning your house. When your designated work hours come to an end, you may realize in horror that you didn’t get nearly as much accomplished, as you needed to for the day.
Even if you are the king or queen of procrastination or have difficulty managing your time, it is possible to make your home work space a productive one. Following these tips will help you boost your home productivity, so that you can enjoy all of the benefits of finding an online job, working from home, and make sure that you’re still successful at your day job.
1. Hold Yourself Accountable by Tracking Your Time
Often, you don’t realize how much time you’re wasting when you work at home in the moment, which is why keeping a running record of what you’re doing during the day can help you stay on task. At the start of your work day, write down a list of times in 15-minute increments up to the end of your day.
Then, take a few seconds every 15 minutes to write down what you did during that time. Even though you might want to go watch a video on monetizing your Instagram account or browse an internet forum, knowing that you’ll have to make an entry on the paper will help you avoid these types of distractions.
If you’d rather go the high tech route, you can use an application like Harvest, Tick, Rescue Time or Toggl to record your 15-minute check-ins.
2. Partner Up
The buddy system can also help you put a stop to unnecessary distractions and procrastination. Find another person who works from home and make a pledge to check in with each other at the beginning of the day and two or three times during your work day. When you contact each other in the morning, say what you wish to accomplish by each of your check-in times. Then, tell each other if you achieved what you set out to do when you follow up with each other. Not only will you be motivated to get your work done, but you’ll also have someone that you can discuss aspects of working at home with.
3. Share Your Space
If you have extra space in your home office, consider inviting someone else to come and work with you. Even if you’re involved in completely different businesses, having another person in the room can help you resist the temptation to get up and do other things. You may not need to have an office buddy every day; you might want to have someone come in when you’re working on a high pressure deadline or have a tedious task on your agenda.
4. Get Out of the Office
When things in your home are stealing your attention, grab your laptop and tablet and go somewhere else to work for a while. You could try a coffee shop, the library or anywhere else where you can work in peace and not be distracted.
5. Dress the Part
Some people find that they’re more productive and focused when they’re dressed the way they ordinarily would. Working in your pyjamas may be comfortable (Maybe even as comfortable as earning money sleeping?), but it could be too comfortable, leading you to feel relaxed and less inclined to stay on task.
6. Close Your Tabs
When you’re using the Internet for work, don’t keep tabs open that distract you. Close social media accounts, news sites and even your web email, so that you’re more focused on the task at hand. If you have a side project and want to learn things like what is cryptocurrency, do that outside of your designated work period. You can also purchase blackout programs that hide everything else on your computer while you work.
7. Reward Yourself
If you worked in a traditional office, you’d take some breaks during the day, and it’s fine to do that at home, so long as your day doesn’t become more breaks than work. Make your breaks something that you have to work for. For example, tell yourself that you’ll stop and make coffee when you have completed the next item on your to-do list.
You can also incentivize working productively by telling yourself you can quit work for the day when your to-do list is gone. The idea of finishing at 2PM rather than 5PM may be all that you need to get through that work you’d rather put off until later.
8. Schedule Time for Communications
Constantly stopping to make phone calls and reply to emails can eat up a lot of your time and make it hard for you to focus. Schedule various times during the day to return calls, make calls and handle your emails. Keep your smartphone on vibrate and put it in your desk drawer so you’re not tempted to peek at it.
This guide has hopefully helped you with getting an idea of how to create a good productivity for working from home. If you still haven’t found a way to work, and earn money from home, you should check our different ways of earning money on the internet here.
