Working from home? Stay productive with these tips

Many businesses have made the move to have teams work from home to stay safe from the coronavirus. Even though this is a very strange and worrying time, we must stay positive and think ahead to beyond this time, continuing a routine as much as possible (within the constraints) for the benefit of our long term physical and mental health. So if you’re now working from home along with most of your work colleagues, here are some tips to help you stay focussed effective and efficient.

1. Tidy up the night before

A massive deterrent from working at home is the fact we can all get distracted and feel the need to do our regular house duties. As someone who has worked from home while starting a business, one thing that set me back in the early stages was feeling the need to tidy up and get things out of the way throughout the day. To avoid this feeling, it’s a good idea to make sure you don’t leave any loose ends around the house in the morning before you get set to start your working day. Organise yourself the night before by washing up the dinner dishes, dry and put them away, put the washing on the night before and hang it up, clean up the kids toys. If you wake up to a clean, organised environment, you won’t have the constant worry of having to tidy up or do odd jobs throughout the day.

2. Set up up your workspace comfortably

This is a huge thing for us at MOVI, make sure you set up a space which is designed to suit how you work. Get all your equipment sorted so you’re not hunting around for pens and paper throughout the day. Put a candle, mirror, photos up on your desk space so that you feel energised working in a beautiful, comfortable environment. Make sure all your devices are good to go, you have all your passwords ready to go if need be. You have the right light and the right chair and set up (a standing desk is a great way to keep moving!) to make your space an enjoyable one to work in.

3. Allocate an hour to set up your to do list

I like to get up ahead of when the kid’s wake up (yes this can be as early as 5am!) to set out a 'To Do' list for the day. I write down all the tasks I want to accomplish during the day and allocate time to each task - I try as best I can to stick to it. This ensures that I stay motivated to tackle my 'To Do' list effectively. It really is sets you up for success. The feeling at the end of the day when you’ve ticked off everything or just have a couple of things carrying through to the next day is a wonderful feeling and gives you the ability to really enjoy family time (or even alone time!) at the end of the day with no work worries on your mind. So go ahead and chuck on Netflix and relax!

4. Get dressed

Sounds simple but it’s so alluring to stay in your pjs when you work from home. Please don’t stay in your PJs! Even if they are cute and comfy Peter Alexander ones. Make sure you get up at the time you usually would, have a shower and get dressed as though you’re going to work. It’s a sure-fire way of separating work time from home time and feeling the boss.

5. Pens down at 5pm (or whenever you usually finish your day)

Don’t work beyond the hours you would have done at work. Don’t extend it because you no longer have the transit home. Long term, this will just result in you feeling tired, sluggish and over it. If you used to read or listen to podcasts during the commute, finish your day listening to a podcast for the same amount of time you were on the train. That way when you finish up at the end of the day, you’ll feel uplifted and as though you’ve achieved a great deal.

We hope you find these tips helpful. 

Please reach out at anytime to support@moviworkspace.com if you have any questions about our products.