Table of Content
Work from home is an adaptation that many people have had to make in the chaos of a global health crisis that’s forced most of humanity into isolation. Alongside this, many capable and experienced professionals have found themselves jobless as a result of the economic decline. For some, this has been the push they needed to embark on a new career trajectory as an independent contractor. If you’re among those who work from home all of a sudden, the following five strategies will help you boost your efficiency.
5 Strategies To Boost Work From Home Efficiency
1. Automate Your Work From Home Based Office
Commencing work from home based office can be challenging. The sudden circumstances that forced this change left us with little time to prepare. If you feel like you’re still playing catch up, a virtual office service can help. This enables you to automate a number of functions, giving you a receptionist to answer the phones and all the benefits of having CBD premises without the responsibility that comes with it.
2. Create A Work-Only Space
Trying to work in a space where you usually enjoy leisure activities goes against how your brain is wired. The brain likes to associate a particular place with being productive. So, if you want to train yourself to focus better, make sure you only sit at your desk when you’re ready to concentrate on work. When you need a break, don’t hover over your emails or waste time – get up and walk away. After a time, sitting at your desk will naturally lock you into concentration mode.
3. Set Working Hours And Make Them Reasonable
It’s a good idea to work in two-hour blocks to increase your attention span. This is the ultimate way to stay engaged with your work. After two hours, get up, have a walk around, enjoy a beverage and a break. Once break time over, sit down and commit to concentrating on your work until your next block of allocated time ends. Making your work blocks realistic lengths will ensure they’re actually productive. Anything over two hours is likely to lead to brain fog and time-wasting.
4. Plan Your Day To Start Work From Home
A to-do list can help you structure your day according to your priorities. The most urgent tasks are easier to bump up to the top of your list if you have everything neatly mapped out. It’s also important to be realistic about the workload you can handle in a day. Work from home is undeniably challenging. And your plans often won’t go as you hoped. In fact, more often than not, you’ll have a few curveballs to deal with. The to-do list you mapped out for yourself will make it easier to multi-task and double down on your efforts with well-coordinated intent.
5. Have A Do-Not-Disturb Policy In Place
Work from home can lead to family and friends believing they can pop round anytime for a visit. Few people understand that the allocated work slots you have planned for yourself are part of a schedule. This is a good opportunity to put boundaries in place and ensure that people understand when you are not available. If people fail to respect your work hours and turn up anyway, it is imperative that you politely apologize and refuse to let them interrupt (unless it’s an emergency, of course).
Concluding Remarks
By creating these structures and rules for yourself when you work from home, you are creating the opportunity for long-term success. These habits form the basis of discipline, relying on the force of habit rather than your mood to ensure you are efficient in your tasks at home.
