Effective Work From Home Policies for Maximum Productivity

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With the COVID-19 pandemic spreading across the world, forcing many to work from home for safety, a lot of people are working from their home offices, kitchen tables, and couches. Many states and countries are issuing orders for non-essential personnel to remain at home unless they must venture out for food, medicine, and the like.

All this means more people than ever are working from home. Some of those have jobs easily designed for such work, while others have had to adapt to the new situation.

With so many people having to work from home, including arranging meetings, it’s important to maintain productivity and make sure the job gets done properly away from the office. Whether the job is easier at home or more difficult, there are a lot of different ways people can plan and handle the new situation. These work from home tips should at least give you some idea of how to keep the work flowing and yourself sane.

Lots of people talk about the productivity tools they use like Zoom, G Suite, ExpressVPN, etc. But there’re also other key things that will help you work at home effectively and productively.

Keep a Schedule and Routine

First and foremost when it comes to knowing how to work from home, make sure to maintain a regular work schedule and morning routine, or at the very least to have a proper schedule in mind.

Home can have a lot of distractions, which means it can be difficult to focus on work. A schedule helps organize the day, your thoughts, and thus your workflow. Getting up from and going to bed as you did while working is a good idea. Continue using that alarm clock. Though if you used to have to get up early it might not be a bad idea to adjust for the lack of a commute.

Whatever your morning routine is before work normally, do the same things. Take a shower, brew your coffee, eat breakfast, and get dressed. Prepare your mind and body for the work day ahead as you would have before.

This can improve productivity and make for a nice change of pace to keep you focused on work even as you make the arduous journey from your bed to where your computer rests.

Having a regular schedule and routine are important in daily life, but they are especially important when you have to work from home. This is true for newcomers to remote work and old hands as well. Either way, stay scheduled, stay productive.

Step Away Now and Then

At the same time, it’s important to remember not to stay glued to your computer monitor all day during your work hours. Breaks and lunch should not only still occur, they should occur away from the computer to avoid burnout. The temptation to work too much while at home can be just as much a risk as the desire to slack off, so it’s important to take care of yourself in both regards.

As part of that, don’t be afraid to step out of the house once in a while. Despite the name, stay at home orders do not require you to stay inside your home at all times. You are allowed to go outside for exercise and supply runs. This is a lot easier if you have access to a yard, but even apartment dwellers, in fact especially apartment dwellers, can appreciate the need to step outside and go for a walk.

There is nothing wrong with taking a break from your work to rest your eyes, clear your mind, and escape the feeling that because you are working from home, you have to spend the entire day working. That way helps to avoid burnout and reduced productivity.

Stay Organized with a Work Space

Organization is important, too. Some people like to maintain a dedicated office space in their home to work. Having a space where you can work that is maintained for just work can help organize the workload itself and your mind. It also means your job can’t escape to other parts of the home, allowing you to more easily take breaks and not have the work around you when you do so.

The dedicated office space also doesn’t have to be large either, but it’s an area of your home that’s dedicated to “work.” You can start with these home desks that are great options to put against the wall or the L-shaped desks for a corner of the room:

This method isn’t for everyone, though. Some people enjoy or require the mobility remote work provides. That mobility is severely limited during a stay at home order, granted, but those who like to move about while working remotely still have options. The living room sofa can be quite comfortable, as can a balcony or backyard patio. It can be difficult to maintain a work-life balance at home, even with a dedicated space, so make sure if you’re going to take work with you it doesn’t come to dominate your day.

Eat Right, Even if You Didn’t Before

Make sure to eat properly when working from home. In some ways, this is easier than working somewhere else because you have constant access to your kitchen. Cooking meals takes time of course, but can also make for a nice break while working. Cooking also allows you to make meals ahead of time. Be sure to have storage available for your future meals. Make sure they’re microwave safe.

If you’re used to making meals for the week ahead anyway, there’s no reason to not keep it up so you can maintain a healthy diet while working remotely. Just make sure to avoid too many snacks. Those are very tempting when working at home if you have them, but will ruin your diet.

Keep the Home Clean

Something else to watch out for are messes. Keeping your home clean can be hard enough when you have to commute to work, but being inside all the time allows messes to accumulate far more quickly. Taking breaks to keep the home clean, or at the very least to keep the home organized, is a good idea as well.

One Last Thing

Breaks are important when working remotely, but they don’t all have to be productive.

Read a book or listen to Blinkist blinks of books.

Watch a movie or show with a Free trial of Amazon Prime Video.

Listen to music with a Free trial of Amazon Music.

Or even go for a walk.

You don’t have to be productive every minute of the day. In fact, trying to do so can burn you out and kill your productivity. When working from home it’s especially important to remember to take care of yourself as well. Work will come and go, but if you don’t have your health, you don’t really have anything.

Working from home has a lot of challenges to it, and at the top of the list is staying healthy, staying organized, and staying productive. For some, remote work allows for increased productivity and ability to get tasks done faster and more efficiently than at the office. Others might find themselves constantly distracted by hobbies or family.

Not every tip works for every worker in every situation, but hopefully these work from home tips should help keep you productive and on task during these trying times. What happens after is up to you and your boss.

If you’re on the entrepreneurial journey, working from home is your life 24/7. What are some of the best working from home tips that you have?

How to Stay Effective Work From Home Policies for Maximum Productivity

With so many people having to work from home, it’s important to maintain productivity and make sure the job gets done properly away from the office. These work from home tips should you some ideas of how to keep the work flowing and yourself sane.

1. Keep a Schedule and Routine
2. Step Away Now and Then
3. Stay Organized with a Work Space
4. Eat Right, Even if You Didn’t Before
5. Keep the Home Clean
6. One Last Thing – do something relaxing