{"id":6040,"date":"2020-05-09T21:45:12","date_gmt":"2020-05-09T17:45:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/krisp.ai\/blog\/?p=6040"},"modified":"2024-07-04T15:40:09","modified_gmt":"2024-07-04T11:40:09","slug":"how-to-be-productive-working-from-home","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/krisp.ai\/blog\/how-to-be-productive-working-from-home\/","title":{"rendered":"How To Be Productive Working From Home In 7 Steps"},"content":{"rendered":"

When talking about the effects working from home has on employees\u2019 productivity, the first bet someone would have is to assume that remote employees are less productive. False.<\/span><\/p>\n

Remote work<\/span><\/a> is actually increasing people\u2019s productivity at work and performance. On average, remote workers spend <\/span>1.4 more days<\/span> on productive activities than in-office employees.<\/span><\/p>\n

We all struggle to keep a balance between work and the rest of our lives sometimes. And recently turned remote workers have it harder.<\/span><\/p>\n

With the unforeseen changes going on in the workspace, few companies got enough time to prepare their resources and strengthen their mentality. As a consequence, most employees are facing the hurdles of remote work alone. From their homes, their basement office, or kitchen table.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

To take this responsibility off of you, I\u2019ve put together this brief guide with the only (but oh so essential!) 7 tips on how to be productive working from home.<\/p>\n

Create a schedule and stick to it<\/span><\/h2>\n

The number one remote work tip I always recommend first if you want to step up your productivity game is to have a set <\/span>schedule<\/span><\/a>. Just like you would for an on-site job. This might seem like an easy thing to achieve, but once you\u2019re faced with so much time to manage on your own, things get tricky.<\/span><\/p>\n

Many fully-distributed companies have a specific schedule similar to your classic 9-to-5. Or, at least a time zone you need to be working on so you\u2019re available for meetings and important updates you have to make. If you\u2019ve got a bit more control over how you spend your workday, though, you need to manage every single second on your own.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"how<\/p>\n

Without a fixed timetable to follow in detail, you\u2019ll find yourself postponing work for several days until it\u2019s too late for you to reach a deadline on time. Luckily, you probably already know when your most productive hours of a day are.<\/span><\/p>\n

You might feel like you\u2019re at your top creativity level in the morning and not able to put in any analytical work after noon. Or you could be a night owl who\u2019d rather do all work in the evening towards midnight.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Every single person is different in this sense. I, for instance, prefer to just take care of all work and finish early. Other people take a break every single hour.<\/span><\/p>\n

Not sure what works best for you? Test different time-tracking methods for 2-3 weeks. Note down your performance during each day to choose the schedule pattern when you\u2019re the most efficient.<\/span><\/p>\n

Take breaks – It\u2019s as simple as that!<\/span><\/h2>\n

Whatever your mind\u2019s rhythm dictates, remember to schedule breaks evenly too. One option would be to divide your time into chunks of 2 hours dedicated solely to work, each chunk followed by a 1-hour break. If your company allows it, you can even go all in and take whole days off, working just 4 days\/week instead.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"time<\/p>\n

You can even take time off when you don\u2019t feel like you need it to unwind and not end up burning out. <\/span>The end result of your work will also have to suffer. Nobody wants to find themselves having to re-do work indefinitely just because they wanted to finish a task faster.<\/span><\/p>\n

Without noticing it, breaks clear our mind, keep us focused, and boost our creativity. That\u2019s why some of our best ideas come to us in the morning or after longer periods of chill time or meditation.<\/span><\/p>\n

The catch here is not to fall behind with work because you\u2019ve decided to spend 3 days watching your favorite TV show. Consistent prolonged periods of inactivity at work will make you subconsciously get used to this way of spending time and think you can get away with not doing much at work. But as always, bad time management = bad results.<\/span><\/p>\n

Learn to prioritize your time<\/span><\/h2>\n

This is the kind of tip on how to be more productive while working from home that would make some people roll their eyes.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cOf course, I know how to prioritize my tasks.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/i>?<\/span><\/p>\n

The truth is that few of us actually know how to get our activities in order and feel like we have enough time to do it all. Reddit is full of threads like:<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t know how to prioritize my time.\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\u201cHow do you know what tasks to prioritize?\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\u201cWhich of my tasks should I prioritize?\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

People are just desperate to get their activities organized. We\u2019ve run over a couple of the best <\/span>time and task prioritization techniques<\/span><\/a> before like the 80\/20 principle or the rule of 3.<\/span><\/p>\n

If you\u2019re short on time though, here\u2019s the single best thing you can try first:<\/b><\/p>\n

Start with the tasks you hate.\u00a0<\/b><\/h3>\n

Leave admin tasks for later in the afternoon when you\u2019re too tired to stay creative and alert. <\/span>Don\u2019t focus all your attention on meaningless tasks that don\u2019t add up to your main goals. This will leave you with no energy or willingness to focus on the ones that truly matter.<\/span><\/p>\n

To boost your productivity, just try this once and stick to it for a couple of days. Trust me, I hate this method, it\u2019s hard to keep it up, but it works better than any other and it takes no time to implement.<\/span><\/p>\n

Stay professional during video calls<\/span><\/h2>\n

You\u2019d be surprised by how many distractions can come up during a single meeting. I can\u2019t tell you enough about how much time is lost in meetings as team members discuss each other\u2019s settings.<\/span><\/p>\n

Video calling tools like Zoom have understood this problem and now provide an option for you to add in any image you want to the background. Just like a green screen so you won\u2019t have to worry about your dogs playing in the background or a pile of clothes you didn\u2019t get to put away.<\/span><\/p>\n