If you are trying to balance your personal and professional life, all from the same space, it is likely that you will face some unexpected wrinkles that will interrupt your professional productivity. However, the truth is that the problems encountered by most home-based workers can be sorted by setting some ground rules.
These problems, ranging from distractions and interruptions, can be dealt with using a bit of discipline so that your family members, coworkers, and you personally start to understand the integrity of your work. Even though the specifics and rules for every work-from-home individual will differ, here are some goals you must ensure that you achieve to boost your productivity:
1. Track Your Working Hours
When you are working in an office, you know that your day is over when you pack up to go home. However, when you are working from home, it is easy for your workdays to stretch into your personal time. Since you are not physically going into work, you may continue working beyond work times. You may also get distracted, leading you to not finish your work in time. Moreover, your coworkers may also start to believe that you are always available for work since you are always home.
To ensure that you are not working beyond your work hours, you need to set your work hours beforehand. This means that you need to have a mental plan on what your day will look like when you wake up in the morning. You must always be realistic with your plan so that you do not over-assign yourself work.
To ensure that you get the hang of working from home, keep a timer for every 40 minutes to remind you that you should be working. Moreover, make sure that you follow the plan and complete the given work during that time frame.
2. Set Goals
If a time schedule doesn’t do the trick for you, it is important that you set goals for yourself to achieve in time. Even though your employer may already have set short or long-term goals for you that are meant to work around your agreement, you need to set some goals based on your personal experience. You need to figure out how you work best, what time your productivity is high, and how you can ensure that you are finishing your work in time.
We would advise that when you start setting your goals, you begin with your long-term goals and then work backward. Think about where you would want to be a few months from now? What projects do you want to be a part of in the next six months of your job? Is there any position that you want to fill desperately? What kind of work do you need to do on a daily basis for that? As you start with your long-term goals and work back to your short-term ones, you will understand the necessary steps you have to take. This way, you can change up your weekly routine as you continue to evaluate your progress from time to time to ensure that you are on track.
3. Minimize Interruptions from Family
Everyone living in your house should know that they are not supposed to interrupt you while working unless it is a serious situation. Children usually tend to forget instructions while adults think that they don’t have to follow them, so you need to set strict rules for everyone to understand how important your work is.
Remember, your rules need to be different, depending on how old or young your children are. Small kids usually cannot look after themselves, while older kids can. You need to figure out a way to put the interruptions to hold so that your family members do not demand your time when you are working.
If you have children, it is important that you plan their day and ensure that they are busy every second of the day. You must lay out snacks and clothes in advance so that they do not need your help. When you take breaks during the day, check on your kids and readjust their schedules if needed. Moreover, allow your babysitter to take care of your kids without feeling the need to keep checking on them. Set clear boundaries so that your babysitter only disturbs you when needed. You must also set boundaries in your head so that you do not run out of your study room each time your child starts to cry.
4. Keep Your Work Environment Separate from the Rest of the House
Your physical work environment needs to be productive. It is important that you have a separate home office with a door so that you are not constantly distracted by other things. However, we understand that not every house has space for a separate study room. The key is that regardless of where you choose to work, you must ensure that that space is dedicated only for your office work. Do not relax in that room or spend time with your friends in that room. This will allow you to be interrupted less while allowing you to get more disciplined.
Once you build a separate workstation for yourself, you need to decide whether you want your kids in your office during your work hours or if you want to go out to them whenever you are taking a break. If your job requires you to have frequent video meetings or pick up calls throughout the day, you need to find a space with a door. Moreover, you need to set some rules for your kids like they need to know before they enter your office room or that they need to always talk in a quiet voice when you are working so that decorum can be maintained.
Conclusion
Working from home is not everyone’s cup of tea. It is easy to get distracted and feel burnt out, especially if you work a 9-hour job. Moreover, if you’re not careful, you could easily end up working overtime. Rather than working from 9 am to 6 pm, you might end up working till 11 pm, only to fall asleep and start work again in a couple of hours. This will lower your job satisfaction and make you feel like you are stuck in an endless rut with no end in sight.
Hence, to ensure that you are setting and achieving goals when working from home, we strongly recommend that you follow these tips. Keep yourself disciplined so that those around you can take your job seriously and encourage you to do better. Good luck!
