Working from Home: 4 Golden Rules for Ultimate Productivity

No life-draining commute to work. No one looking over your shoulder, micromanaging your every move. More flexibility to structure your workday. Being home to greet your kids when they come back from school.

Working from home is pretty great and does come with undeniable benefits—but it’s not without challenges.

One of the most common concerns remote workers have involves productivity. More precisely, the lack of it.

So in this article, we will share a few golden rules you should consider applying in your day-to-day routine to sharpen your focus, stay motivated and get more things done.

1. Turn off Distractions

Fighting distractions when working from home is not always the easiest thing to do but it’s necessary if you want to have a productive day. Here are a few handy tips that will help:

• Turn off the TV before you start your workday. Or better yet, try to work in a room where there is no TV. It’s hard to stay focused when there are all kinds of noises coming from the television. If you don’t like working in silence and your job allows it, try playing some relaxing music in the background.
• If you dread the thought of turning your phone off when working, just put it away so it’s not within easy reach. This way, you’ll be more likely to resist the urge of regularly checking your social media accounts or other things on your phone.
• When working from your computer, consider using a program that blocks all your social media networks, but still allows for online research you may need to do.

2. Curb Unannounced Visitors

Most people wouldn’t even think to drop by unannounced to see someone working in a traditional office building. You may notice, however, how the situation changes if that someone happens to be working from home.

Certain family members, friends or neighbors may think you being home means you are free and available. Make it clear it’s not the case and you have a work schedule they must respect.

Setting healthy boundaries will help you work without being interrupted.

3. Work on the Least Time-consuming Tasks First

How you break up your work during the day can make a world of difference.

By starting with the tasks that require the least amount of time to complete, you will feel like you’re burning through your to-do list. As a result, your motivation level is likely to go up, while giving you the confidence to tackle other, more difficult tasks as well.

Plus, you avoid feeling burnout after just a couple of hours of work, which is what usually makes people more likely to succumb to distractions.

4. Organize Your Work Space

What’s the current state of your office area? Are there papers scattered all over? Can you spot any items that shouldn’t belong there and just add to the clutter? Have dirty dishes started to pile up in front of you?

If your desk looks like anything but an area designated for work, it’s going to negatively impact your productivity when working from home.

On the other hand, having things neatly organized and easy to find will minimize your stress level and ensure you can better focus on the tasks at hand.

We hope these tips will come in handy and help you channel your most productive self.

If you haven’t yet found a work-from-home job opportunity that is right for you, however, we encourage you to take a look over the open positions listed on our site. There are plenty to choose from, so the best job for you could be just one click away.