Tips for Working From Home And How to Work From Home Effectively

This post features over ten tips for working from home!

Hello! Thought I'd share some tips for working from home as many people are now working at home due to quarantine. Below are over 10 tips for working from home successfully and suggestions for how to be productive working at home. I hope you find these working from home tips to be helpful and allow you to work from home effectively as we all adjust to a temporary "new normal" way of life.

Below are over 10 tips for working remotely - what you need to know for how to work from home successfully! Many of these tips are geared towards people who usually work with others on a daily basis as quarantine has caused the majority of people who do not usually work from home to now work from home as well.


I also made a video full of these work from home productivity tips!

Start of the Day

• Have a routine
• Try to get up at the same time every day and try to go to sleep at the same time every night
• Give yourself enough time in the morning
• Have enough time to get ready, eat breakfast and have time to yourself to chill and actually be mentally and physically awake before starting your work

You want to allow yourself to be and feel prepared for the day ahead of you.

me waking up 30 seconds before my zoom meetings every morning

Getting Ready

• Try getting ready as if you were actually going in to work
• Example- If you usually wear makeup then doing your makeup may help you feel more productive and give you a sense of normalcy
• Put on proper attire- don't just wear pajamas all day long
• You can be comfy but also be dressed to inspire yourself to be productive

Space

• Have a designated work space because having a spot set up just for work will again give you a sense of normalcy
• Try not to work sitting in bed as it is very tempting to fall back asleep
• Ideally do not work in a bedroom so you can separate work and your "regular"/non-work life
• Working at a desk is best but if it is not possible, a table will do
• Keep your space clean in order to have a good work environment for yourself

Photo by Kari Shea on Unsplash

Kari Shea

Dealing With Distractions

• Leave your phone in another room if possible
• Put on some white noise in the background to help you focus or use ear plugs
• If possible, ask (in a polite manner) for family members, roommates, etc. (anyone you live with) to not distract you during your working hours and for them to respect that you are trying to work

During the Work Day

• Make a brief to-do list with the main tasks you need to/want to achieve for the day
• Schedule out your time
• Prioritize your tasks and determine when to do them
• You can add the tasks to your online work calendar and block off that time (most email sites have calendars, i.e. Gmail Google calendar or Microsoft Outlook calendar so you can utilize those not just for scheduling meetings but also for scheduling your whole day)
• Take breaks and schedule them into your day ahead of time if you need to
• It's not good to sit in one spot for 8 hours straight
• Maybe go for a walk outside or do a short workout 

Photo by Ray Bilcliff from Pexels

Communication

• Over communicate with your team, coworkers, etc., to try to minimize misunderstandings as it can be difficult to adjust to only electronic communication 
• Working from home means no longer having face to face communication and in person communication can sometimes allow things to be explained more easily than online only communication (online methods can be missing tone, facial expressions, body language, etc.) 
• Have a phone call or video call when discussing certain things as it can be much easier than text only communication such as email 
• It can allow you to express yourself more clearly
• Be clear about expectations and deliverables 
• Be clear about what you expect from coworkers and make sure you understand what is expected from you
• Be realistic about deadlines (deadlines you are given and deadlines you give to others)
• It's better to ask questions and do something correctly than to waste time being confused and do something incorrectly 
• If you have a tool like Slack or another messaging service that allows you to set a status then utilize that function as it can be very beneficial
• If you are taking a lunch break or a walk, etc., you can set a corresponding status or just an away status 
• this can help people stop wondering why you aren't answering them by letting them know that you are not currently at your computer

General Working From Home Tips

• If possible have set work hours such as 9-5
• Sometimes I would find myself very tempted to keep working after 5pm to get ahead on stuff but that is not a good habit
• You still need to balance work and a personal life so setting up boundaries (work and non-work hours) can be helpful
•  Don't feel guilty about taking shorts breaks during the day (as long as you are still able to get all of your work done when you need to)
• Try not to wonder about what your coworkers are doing the whole day
• It's tempting and they are probably wondering what other people are doing as well but try to refrain from doing so
• Be understanding as everyone's work from home situation is a bit different
• Some coworkers have kids who are at home as well
• Everyone is adjusting to a temporary new way of life 
• "Talk" about non-work related topics with your coworkers
• It's important to still be connected to and and feel connected to people you are used to seeing and chatting with everyday 

I hope these tips for working remotely are helpful!
Take care and remember:

via GIPHY

Other Places You Can Find Me: