How to Work From Home and Get Things Done
I have worked from home for years, and I have some tried-and-true work from home tips for you. Let’s talk about how to work from home and get things done. You CAN be productive from home, I promise.
How to Work From Home and Get Things Done
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Let’s talk about how to work from home and actually get things done. Our home environments tend to distract us more than if we’re sitting in an office with co-workers. But that doesn’t mean you can’t be productive!
I know, I know… it’s ironic that I’m sharing work-from-home tips when I just moved into a studio. But I currently work from home three days a week and in the studio for two days. And I’ve worked from home for years now. So, these tips are still valid.
Time Block – Batch Like Tasks Together
This is a tip for EVERYONE, whether you’re working from home as an entrepreneur or for someone else.
When you have the whole day to get things done, it can be easy to spread out your tasks throughout the whole day. But switching between tasks takes a long time, and you’ll end up not actually getting anything done! So, I recommend time blocking.
If you have the availability to batch your tasks together, do it! If you know the morning is for meetings and the afternoon is for x, y, and z, you’ll know what to do ahead of time to prepare before you get into work mode.
Sit down at the beginning of the week and plan all of your tasks. Figure out everything you need to accomplish that week and then the days/hours that you have to work on it. Then, take the tasks and lump them together to figure out how you can get them done this week.
Have a system in place to track what you’re doing and the tasks you need to accomplish.
A system like ClickUp, Trello, or even a digital planner can change the game. That way, you can see EVERYTHING you need to do in one place. You can bust through tasks and check them off as you go. It keeps you sane – really.
I personally use a combination of a Google Calendar, ClickUp, and a digital planner.
Google Calendar
Google Calendar keeps track of anything that is time-specific. If I have to be at a meeting at 2:00, then it goes on the Google Calendar.
ClickUp + Digital Planner
I use a combination of ClickUp and my digital planner for more fluid tasks. I’ll make a list of everything that fall into a specific category on ClickUp. That lets me make sure I have everything I need to do dumped somewhere, and I can check when it’s done.
But, I really enjoy pulling up a “today” to do list with my digital planner and writing things out that way. That lets me keep everything on my iPad and check it off as I go.
Everybody’s brain works differently! So you have to do what works best for your brain.
Be specific about your work hours and off-hours!
This is the KEY on how to work from home and get things done. Whether it’s for a company or for yourself, you need to get specific about your work hours and non-work hours.
When you don’t have a commute, it can be easy to think that you’ll stay “just one more minute” to finish something up. Or, it can be easy to return to your desk at the end of the day when you should be off. That can get you into a REALLY bad cycle of working when you shouldn’t be working.
For me, it can be really hard sometimes when my kids are home with virtual school. I want to be working during those hours, but they need my help logging on to their computers and doing school. If I just let it be and work whenever, I’m constantly running back and forth from work mode to mom mode. And I’m always getting mad at someone, whether it’s a kid interrupting my work even though it isn’t their fault, or a call interrupting mom-time.
If you can, utilize flexibility here!
Different seasons of life will call for different on and off hours. On the days that I work from home, I know that I have to dedicate my mornings to helping my kids with their school work. Then, I can go into work mode in the late morning and afternoon. It saves a lot of frustration, and the kids also know that during work hours I’m occupied. So, they should leave me alone unless somebody is dying.
Having work hours in place can also help you keep your brain focused. That way, you don’t wander off and wash the dishes when you should be working on something. It’s doubly beneficial because it helps you separate work and personal mode. You won’t feel like everything is overlapping into everything else.
I generally don’t do laundry during work mode. Yes, my laundry room is two doors down from my office. It would be easy for me to throw in some laundry in between meetings – but I DON’T do it, because that isn’t productive for me. I do that during my personal time in the mornings or when I’m done in the afternoons.
And everybody’s time on and off will be different. Obviously if you’re working for someone else, you’ll need to be at your desk 8 hours a day. But if you’re an entrepreneur like I am, you can set those hours when they best fit for you.
Have a designated work space
Get specific about a spot to work! Stop grabbing your laptop and working from bed and the couch and the kitchen table whenever you feel like it. It won’t feel like you’re ever “at work” – the two worlds will collide.
If you have a designated WORK SPACE, no matter where it is, you’ll help your brain get into work mode a lot easier. Maybe that’s your kitchen table or your kitchen island or a desk in your house. It can even be your couch or your bed. It just needs to be a DEDICATED space.
It’s easy to get distracted by the other world that lives in your home when you work from there. So, we’re an actual human living in our home but also working from there.
You can be a work from home genius in no time!
You’ve got aalllllll the tips on how to work from home and get things done. If you have other tips you want to share, come hang out with me over on my YouTube channel and share them!
