Working from Home | Mike McRitchie | Resume and LinkedIn Profile Writer

When you work from home, it can feel like you’re living your best life. Being your own boss, setting your own working hours, and being in control of your income can feel so freeing. But at the same time, it can be something that you can really struggle the balance. Because the one thing that you don’t often realize when it comes to this kind of career, is that you are absolutely in charge – and therefore 100% accountable. You’re the one that has to do all of the work, you have to motivate yourself, cheer yourself on, and rely on yourself for job satisfaction. So it’s important that you can get into the most comfortable position for this to take place. Let’s take a look at five things that can help you here.

Create A Daily Routine

First of all, you need a routine. It’s essential. You need to make sure that you know when you’re working, how long you have to get your projects and tasks completed. So, you should look to have set working hours here. This can allow you to be your most productive during the hours that you do have available in the day. Otherwise, you may find that you procrastinate too much then get stressed out when things are left unfinished!

Block Out Distractions

Now, one thing that it’s so true about working from home, is that it’s just far too easy for you to get distracted. If you want to make sure that this doesn’t happen to you, you’re going to want to work on giving yourself another routine for your home tasks. Don’t be tempted to do the laundry in the day or chat to your neighbor over lunch. These are the distractions that could make working from home so much harder.

Set Up Your Work Space

Next, it’s going to help you to choose a set workspace. If you work from the couch, it may seem comfortable – but it could be too comfortable. Then you will find that you just end up getting distracted and then no work is being done!

Treat The Space Like An Office

Then, look to treat that space like a proper office. Make sure that you have all of the equipment you need, and look to things like Orange Security to keep it secure and safe. Bring in all of the organization and store that you need so that you can really focus on getting your work done.

Take Breaks

The last thing you need to do, is to make sure that you’re okay with taking breaks throughout the day. It can be natural for you to just want to work through – especially if you only have a few time slots here and there. But, you really do need to make sure that you push on from that to stay productive. So take regular breaks. Psychology Today talks about exactly why it’s important. So get out of your office and your home as often as you can to really recharge your mind.

Working from home, whether that is with your own business or working freelance can mean that you find it difficult to get as much out of your day as perhaps you might in an office environment or being employed. This tends to be because you are the master of your time, and at home, it can be quite easy to be distracted by other aspects such as household chores or other distractions like the TV. So how do you make the most out of your working day at home? I wanted to share with you some of the tips you could try.

Working from Home

Figuring out the times that you work best

One of the first things you might want to start doing is figuring out the best times that you work best. Everyone has a point in the day or even at night where they are most productive. You might be at you most creative first thing in the morning, or it might be that you are a night owl and can really work better in the evening or late into the night. You also need to decide on whether there are moments in the day where you struggle to work. Some people have the Afternoon Crash where they feel tired and lethargic in the afternoon. Whatever the situation might be, working this out can help you to plan you day better and make the most of the hours you have to work.

Trying out different forms of time management

The next thing you might want to think about would be how best to manage the time you have to work. If you only have a few hours before you need to be doing something in your home how best can you utilise it? Ids it ideal to get up earlier before everyone else and get some work done then? Other things to think about would be time blocking where you dedicate a certain amount of time in your day for certain tasks. It can help you to try and avoid distractions at home by having that one focus.

Having a dedicated space to work

You do need a dedicated space to work if you can create one. Getting the most out of working from home is no easy task when you can easily be distracted by household chores or things like the TV. Working in a living room or kitchen can mean that you could be easily distracted so having a dedicated space to work in can help you to be more productive and to also differentiate between working and enjoying home life.

Taking care of yourself during your working time

Finally, at work you were more likely to get a lunch break and time to rest and have a break, but for some reason, working for yourself or from home can mean you don’t give yourself the same courtesy. It is just as important for you to have regular breaks and take time to have a lunch when working at home as it can help to keep your focus, concentration and energy levels high.

I hope that these tips help you when it comes to getting the most from your working day at home.