You may have heard about those real work from home jobs that provide excellent work-life balance. If you have high expectations of yourself and the future of your business, this article is for you...
How To Work From Home Having Your Cake And Eating It Too
If you own a business or work as a freelancer from the comfort of your own home, then chances are you have needed to motivate yourself more than a couple of times to get things done. Too often knowing that you are free to do as you please can lead to very relaxed attitudes towards work.
The joy of freelance and home business, of course, is that you are indeed free to take time when you need it. But to be successful you should be as highly productive as possible when you do work.
Here are six productivity tips for business owners that work from home.
Absolute Office Space
If you don’t have a dedicated space to work in your home, then you need to create it as soon as possible. Having an area that is dedicated to professional pursuits, is vital for staying focused.
The room should only be used for activities related to fulfilling business goals so you can begin automatically in work mode when you are there. If you don’t have a room you can dedicate, utilize an area that has the least amount of people traffic and noise to avoid distractions.
Be a Busy Bee
You will need breaks during your working day, but not the type where you grab a bowl of popcorn and get lost in a movie. Instead, think five and minute bursts of time.
- Grab a water
- Stretch your legs
- Use the restroom
And then get back to it.
Also consider keeping something nearby to fiddle with. Many creatives have small zen gardens filled with sand, stress balls, pens and a notepad. Others keep a nerf ball in a drawer to pitch into a miniature basketball net.
Declutter
Throw things away. All the time! Don’t let your desk get piled up with papers, mess, wrappers, empty cups, etc. You know the stuff.
Often home offices or just the desk itself can get so cluttered it becomes hard to concentrate. Your brain will be thinking about how you need to tidy up, at the same time you are trying to produce great work.
Make it a habit to clean-up your work space once a week. Build it into your routine, put it on your to-do list.
Purpose And Prioritize When You Work From Home
Try, where possible, to always head into your office with a purpose. Often this should be:
- Writing new blog content
- Building your brand
- Calling on clients
- Updating your web design
- Scheduling your social media content
Heading into work mode without a purpose, you may simply waste time figuring out what you should be doing, or you will be tempted to settle for easy distractions instead of doing what really should get priority.
Like Lists
Adhering to to-do lists will make a big difference in your overall success. When we define our goals and make plans to meet them, we are more likely to reach them.
Try this: Over your morning coffee (is there any other AM beverage?) make a list of what you need to accomplish by the end of the day. Better yet, on Sunday, spend thirty minutes planning your work week so you are ahead of the game before each Monday.
Tap Into Tools
When it comes to maximizing your productivity, there are tools that can help you. Automating several of your daily support tasks can make a world of difference toward your accomplishments each week.
Here is a hearty list of trusted automation tools that many thought leaders and business leaders use.
