As we navigate these new times together, one thing is certain - we need to #stick together. Working from home has A LOT of perks, but it can also get old really quick. The kids pulling on you for attention, or perhaps some homeschooling, see as a lot of us are doubling as teachers & still working are full-time gigs.
Either way, remote work may seem a bit overwhelming. So, we thought we would talk about some tips & tricks to implement into remote work!
Tips & Tricks For Working Remotely From Home:
1. Set That Alarm, And Get UP
This is SO important, and I think it is actually the one that is the hardest to get into. As you are at home, so why not have that extra 5 mins right? But trust us, you do not want to do that.
For sure it can be tempting to stay in bed all day, but you’ll be more productive if you actually get up and start your day on time.
Get yourself an alarm clock, set that smartphone - just make sure that you wake up.
2. Make Sure You Have Space To Focus
Now that we are all at come, kids included, it is so important that we have a space to go to. As tempting as the kitchen table looks or that coach, we highly recommend looking for an area you can close off in - heck, some of us are working out of our closets!
You will notice that once you have space, you actually become MORE productive.
Working remotely can give you the space you need from your work actually, and provide you with that space you need to get back to the work-life-balance. Apparently, a study from Stanford University showed that working from home increased productivity by 13 percent.
3. Breaks, and we cannot stress that word more
This one is an important one. It is very easy to get consumed in your work when you are at home and not take those needed breaks. If this is happening to you, STOP! And take that break.
Researchers at Harvard observed that the most productive employees worked for about an hour and then took a 17 min break.
These breaks could be anything from going for a walk around the block, eating, stretching, realistically it could be anything that gives your brain a break and your eyes a break from the screen (cellphone as well - put it down for at least an hour a day!)
4. Make A Schedule:
A schedule allows for you to figure out the steps you’ll need to take to complete your mounting task list that day - and remove that stress of racing through in a limited amount of hours because you got up later or decided to start a little later in the day. This is a common mistake with working remotely.
So, how can you set a manageable and realistic schedule at home, especially if you are also rocking the homeschooling life. Set yourself specific, and very manageable tasks for each day - avoid that overworking thing we talked about earlier.
And lastly, avoid rolling over any unfinished tasks to the next day. Playing catch up is not only stressful but it causes you to miss things which result in mistakes, which results in reminding those mistakes. Equals extra work.
Working remotely has so many benefits, and we get that extra time with the family, but it can also be easy to lose your way. But with these steps, you should be able to rock that remote life, while also maintaining work-life-balance from home.