The percentage of people working from home is growing by the day and with the current COVID-19 pandemic, the number of people working from home has even soared higher. This has been necessitated by the increasing and evolving technologies such as Zoom, Skype, Google Hangouts, Slack and Facetime among others including emails and phone calls. Technology has proven that employees do not necessarily have to be at the traditional office setting full-time for them to be productive team members. Working from home has over time proven to be effective and allows one to be more effective with less distractions if proper plans are put in place.

Working from home is awesome just by the thought of it… right until your child pours water on your laptop or your neighbor keeps firing up noisy power tools across the street. Below are tips and tricks of working from home.

1. Be an early bird

The transition from your bed to your computer desk at home can be very slow and shuddering. To avoid having a slowed-down morning, feeling sluggish and with lack of motivation to work, dive into work immediately you have woken up and have had your breakfast. Some people who are morning persons prefer diving to work immediately they wake up then when they hit a wall is when they take a break to have breakfast.

2. Assume you are going to the office

To keep your momentum going and avoid the temptation of going back to bed, treat working from home like you are actually heading to the office. Do all things you would do in an office setup to make your working from home productive. Set your alarm, wear formal clothes, grab your coffee and put in place any measures needed to make your working from home experience like a real office set-up.

3. Have dedicated work space

Avoid working on a couch or any space set aside for family leisure time, dedicate a specific space in the house to be your home office. Consistency in the work space will help put your mind in the right frame to work every day.

4. Keep a daily calendar of work to be done

Working from home requires you to work without supervision. This therefore calls for a properly worked out schedule clearly outlining what you will do at a given time. An online calendar such as Google Calendar could come in handy to schedule work and keep reminders.

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5. Alternate working from home with working outside the house

Any Wi-Fi enabled space such as a coffee shop or library can be a good alternative to break the monotony of working from the house. It can help stimulate the working energy and make you productive.

6. Steer away from social media while working from home

The secret is to log out from all your social media accounts and removing them from browsers and shortcuts. This will reduce the temptation of taking social media breaks while working making you more productive. Above all, discipline is all you need.

7. Work when your productivity is at the highest

Capitalize on the times you are most productive by saving harder roles for the most productive hours and taking small and easier tasks like making calls when less productive.

8. Use of technology to connect with colleagues

Videoconferencing and other applications like Zoom have now come in handy to break the distance barrier when it comes to communication and meetings with colleagues while working from home. Find the tool that works best for you to connect with your team members on matters that require teamwork and keep your productivity high.

9. Communicate with your family members at home

Make it clear to the spouses, siblings, relatives at home with you that when you are working, they should not distract you because working at home might seem to them like you are taking a break from work and hanging out at home.

10. Have a clear schedule for breaks

Working from home might bring in some distractions and this might make you to feel guilty to take any breaks from work. The body needs rest and you cannot sit in front of a computer all day and be productive. Takes breaks away from your desk, walk outside, interact with family, etc. Lastly, pick up a definite finishing time for work each day to avoid overworking and to ensure you have a balance between work and social life. Set an alarm if need be to alert you when your working hours for the day are over.

I hope these few tips on working from home will help you work better and be productive in your work. Ensure you have the technology you need, reliable fast internet and keep the ground rules discussed above. Make the best of your time and yield great results in your targets. All the best, enjoy your home working experience!