I am very accustomed to working from home, but with COVID -19 in "these streets" why not check out my top 8 tips on how to work from home effortlessly.
1.Chill Zones Do not work in the areas of your house where you would usually relax, if you are new to working from home avoid your sofa, your bedroom and anywhere you think you would like to curl up after a long day. Make these places as unattractive as possible. If you have to work in your bedroom, face away from your bed.
2.Please do not do it Do not take a nap during the day; you do not nap at work, therefore do not nap at home, you won't wake up in time for your 2pm meeting, and you will make yourself even more tired. Instead, take a break by going for a short 10-15 minutes walk.
3.Keep it silent Avoid telling close family, or neighbours that you are working from home; they won't believe you, they think it's an invitation to come over and socialise. The time you spend convincing them that you are working, you would have wasted 2 -3 hours of your day.
4.Could you turn it off? Turn off your phone notifications having too many alerts from social media or the news will create distractions and you want to minimise these as much as possible. If you are new to working from home, you may want to switch your phone off, but if you need it for work set schedule times for usage.
5.How honest are you really? Ask yourself, what are you like when no one is looking? That is the actual test. Will you pass or fail? Be honest, most of you don't even do work when you are at work (lol) but for those of us that do and want to stay focused on the tasks remind yourself why it is essential.
6.Accountability As people start to self-isolate, check in on your co-workers and have someone check in on you. Motivate each other to stay on task and then treat yourself by having an online skype social, discuss the day and perhaps come up with a plan on how to work even better the next day.
7.Routine Get dressed. You would not go into work in your pyjamas, so get dressed up for work . Get yourself psychologically ready, put your coat on and then take it off as you arrive at your desk. It might sound strange, but it helps.
8. Stay away from house work.
It might be tempting to do the odd bit of house work, but don't. You will find yourself watching TV and folding clothes, ironing and making cups of tea and before you know it, it's 4pm and you find yourself saying "wow time moves so fast when you are working from home" when in actuality you haven't been working. Start earlier so you can finish earlier, to fit time in for chores and dinner.
Happy virtual working and I hope you get all your tasks done. If you are still struggling, get in touch, let me help you set out a few techniques to help you destroy that procrastination.