Practical Tips for Staying Focused When Working From Home

Working from home can be highly productive, but it can also go badly wrong. Without a proper office space, a prioritized schedule, it's all too easy to be distracted, and to get very little done.

The distractions of home, along with the isolation that often comes with remote working, can cause you to lose focus  and to damage your productivity. 

Here are five key ways to stop that from happening:

1. Motivate yourself. Self-motivation  techniques can help you to boost your confidence, think positively, and set clear goals. 
2. Minimize distractions. Which distractions  tend to affect you most? Maybe you get caught up doing household chores, or suffer interruptions from family or friends. Beating these distractions could be as simple as shutting the door! 
3. Reward yourself. Find ways to make each task more enjoyable and rewarding in itself, as well as giving yourself "treats" when they're done. For example, allow yourself your favorite specialty coffee for completing a task successfully. 
4. Control your social media. Think carefully about which notifications to keep on, and which to mute until later. Allocate time blocks for checking your phone. And, if you're still struggling, see if tools like Freedom or Cold Turkey Writer help you to control your time online.  
5. Know your goals. Along with short-term, task-related goals, make sure that you're also clear about the wider career goals  and purpose  you're striving to achieve. Keeping these in mind will motivate you to do your best work, whatever your location.

Create a Work Space That Works!
Creating an effective work space is essential if you want to stay on track and get things done. 

Make it a place where you'll enjoy spending time. However, you also need to be clear that it's a place of work. A few "office" touches might encourage you to be more productive – but you can still personalize your work space, with fun posters or family photos.

Check you can sit comfortably. If not, you'll likely find plenty of excuses to get up and go somewhere else! A high-quality office chair is one of the best investments you can make. 

The other important piece of equipment is a door that you can close! It's very challenging to work with other people nearby. Be sure to have a place where you can shut the door on potential distractions. If you don't have a door to close consider getting a "Do Not Disturb" sign to place near your open work area. Headphones may also help.

Get Organized
The next essential element of focused home working is getting organized .

Start with your desk. Is it big enough? And is it suitable for the work you do? 

Next, make sure that you have everything you need within easy reach. 

It's easy to lose focus if you're working on several different projects at once. Even when you're at home, organize your work into clearly defined actions programs with with deadlines to help keep you on track.

And keep your work space tidy. Spend a few minutes at the end of each session sorting out things like paperwork or empty coffee cups. Clear away as much of it as you can when you switch off for the day. 

Manage Your Time
Effective time management is essential if you want to continue hitting your deadlines when you're working from home.   

Organize and prioritize key tasks with a To-Do List . This will help you to avoid procrastinating , or losing focus by "switch-tasking ," and add an extra layer of structure to your day.

It's also a good idea to have a list of "in between" tasks. These are relatively minor jobs that should take 10 minutes or less to complete, and which you can fit into your day when a gap opens up. And don't forget to take breaks regularly.

Keep tabs on how productive you are by filling out a Completed Tasks Log at the end of the day. And share it with your boss via email and video chat.

Take Charge of Communication
To stay focused at home, you need to be in control of communication – otherwise, it might start to control you! 

Find appropriate times to "check in" with your managers and co-workers. Small problems can often be dealt with there and then, allowing you to work uninterrupted afterward.

You likely need to experiment with communication in the early days of working from home. You'll want to avoid distractions, but neither should you "disappear." Over time, you'll discover the right levels of interaction that builds your manager's trust in your productivity, and so prevent micromanagement on their part.

If possible, redirect your office phone to your personal cell, and let colleagues, customers and suppliers know how best to reach you at home. That way, you'll be able to take important calls, but switch to your message service when you don't want to be disturbed. 

Tools like Slack, WhatsApp, Skype, Zoom, TEAMS may provide a more direct means for you to contact other team members, and vice versa – and you can set your status to "busy" whenever you need to.

Balance Work and Life

If you still find yourself losing focus when you're working from home, check that you're not trying too hard! It can be difficult to resist the urge to overcompensate for not being in the office, by working longer than you normally would, or by missing out on breaks.

But it's essential that you continue to maintain a healthy work-life balance , and the following six tips will help:   

1. Create physical boundaries. If possible, set up a work space that's separate from your home space. This should make it easier to shut out the everyday distractions of home life, and to cut off from work at the end of each day.
2. When you're working, act like it! You might find it helps to have particular clothes for working at home. Dressing for work can set the right mental tone for the day (and avoid any awkwardness if you get dialed in to a virtual meeting while you're still in your pajamas!). Also, avoid going into certain areas of the house, so that you know when you're in "work mode," and when you're not. 
3. Have "no-go" zones for technology. Laptops and cellphones can be useful for staying in touch with co-workers, but they can also leave us feeling as though we're "always on." This can lead to stress  and burnout . So, try to set up "no-go" zones when work devices are banned, such as mealtimes, holidays and the two hours before bed every night, to avoid sleep disruption. 
4. Set break reminders. Regular short breaks can help to keep you energized and focused. Try setting a countdown timer while you do an hour of work. When the alarm goes off, reward yourself with a five- or 10-minute break – to make a coffee, or get some fresh air. It's vital that you get out of your chair during the day. 
5. Remind your children to let you work!  Set communication ground rules. Let your children know that you're not be be disturbed when your "Do Not Disturb" sign is up. But don't be too rigid. One of the joys or working at home is to be available when your kids (And pets 😀) really need you.
6. Commute to your home office! Consider taking a short walk before starting your working day. Even a 10-minute stroll could energize you, and help to create a break between home tasks and work tasks. If you're adventurous, try this 10-minute morning Qi Gong Routine with Lee Holden. Do it with the whole family.  It will help  unleash your "tiger energy." I practice the routine daily. It's incredible!

There are numerous advantages to working from home. But there are many challenges, too, such as staying focused and doing your best work. 

To your greater well-being,

Peter Mclees, Leadership Coach, Trainer and Performance Consultant

SMART DEVELOPMENT

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