Working from home as a freelancer is a dream job for many. Getting up on your own time and working with your own hours seems like a luxurious work life. You don’t have to get up early and rush to work by surviving the traffic and heat.
But, maintaining productivity is not easy when you have comfort in every corner. The home environment is a lot different than the workplace environment.
When you work from home, your bed is a step away, you have tons of options to eat, your TV is constantly staring at you, and you work in cozy pajamas. This all sounds amazing, but it can trigger laziness inside you.
Maintaining productivity in a home environment needs a lot of focus. You might need to set up some goals and boundaries to make your day as productive as it would be in the workplace.
Here are some tips to help you have a productive day at work from home.
4 TIPS ON HOW TO BE PRODUCTIVE WORKING FROM HOME
1. HAVE A FRESH WORKPLACE IN THE CORNER OF YOUR HOUSE.
When you work from home, you have tons of options like your bed, balcony/terrace, couch, and floor to sit and work. It’s good to keep changing your place to work. However, having a desk set up at home is way better than laying on the bed while working.
A desk keeps your posture suitable for productive work and helps to increase focus. It’s like your small home office. Decorate it and keep it fresh. Select a corner of your home where you will not get sleepy or feel lazy. Your work corner should boost your productivity.
I would recommend choosing a corner of your home where there is enough sunlight, proper wind, and a bit of privacy.
I personally recommend cleaning your work office every morning. I have a small desk by the side of the window where I get fresh air throughout the day. If you don’t have a desk or don’t want to use one, it’s totally fine. Your goal is to choose a place in the home where you feel more focused and less sleepy.
2. CREATE A TO-DO LIST EVERY MORNING
Create a list of tasks that you need to complete in a day. If you have a deadline, assign timings to each task to get it done on time.
This helps a lot when you have more than one project to work on. I recommend using a pen and paper or a notepad to write down your tasks and keeping the notepad next to your laptop. Once you finish a task, put a checkmark in front of it. If you don’t like pen-paper, use apps like Google Keep or notes app.
At the end of the month, track the log of your work to analyze your work hours, productivity, and the versatility of the projects you have worked on.
Find out what you need to improve. Praise yourself for the great work you have done in a month. By the end of the year, you will see a considerable improvement in your work life.
3. STAY AWAY FROM DISTRACTIONS
As we all work on a computer, distractions are just a tab switch away. Do you have high-speed internet, a browser, a Netflix subscription, Facebook, Instagram, and whatnot?
It’s easier to get distracted when you have easily accessible entertainment options. You need to keep yourself under control. Block entertainment sites during work hours. Keep your smartphone away for a while, and prioritize your work.
Of course, it’s okay to take a quick break and watch a small episode or scroll Instagram for a while. But don’t get too zoned out, you have a goal to complete.
Nowadays, smartphones have a feature to set a timer for apps. Set it to as minimum as you can.
4. QUICK EXERCISE WHILE WORKING
Spending more than 9 hours in front of the screen can affect your health. Your eyes, neck, back, and even your brain need a little break.
To give five minutes of your time to your health after every 2 hours is really very important. To start with, keep yourself hydrated by drinking water. Rotate your neck left-right-front-back to give it a light stretch.
For eye exercises, blink your eyes 10 times after every 2 to 3 hours. It’s also proven that wearing an eye patch can improve the eyesight of both of your eyes. Put an eye patch on one eye and work for 15 minutes with only one eye, switch the eye patch on the other eye for the next 15 minutes.
Lightly fold and rotate your arms and legs at the joints. Stretch your body and then resume your next task. These exercises will not only clear your neck and back pain but also increase your work focus.
I have been working from home for more than a year now. Initially, it was difficult for me to focus on work. But I tried a few things, changed the way I work from home, and finally found these four hacks. The tips I have shared above are tried and tested by me, and it has helped me improve my productivity a lot.
Rucha is a freelance writer and a future author. She put ideas into words.
Writing blogs, news articles, and listicles are her profession. When Rucha is not writing, she spends time reading books with a cup of tea.
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