There seems to have been a real boom in people working from home in the last couple of years. Some businesses have worked out that it is a more cost-effective option, or people were forced to work from home through unforeseen circumstances. Subsequently, the number of businesses operating from what is essentially someone’s living room has dramatically increased.
However, how do you make a success of working in an environment like this, with so many distractions around you?
Remove All Distractions
For starters, go around whatever room you are likely to be using as a makeshift office and remove anything that will distract you from the task at hand. This could be the TV, games consoles, or even something as silly as a newspaper rack. By minimizing any possible distractions. you are more likely to focus on the work for more than five minutes. This also removes the temptation to go and find something that you know is likely to be considerably more fun.
Make It Feel Like Work
Set up a routine so that it still feels as though you are in an office environment. Although you might not have an office space, especially if you are a smaller business, setting boundaries in terms of routine and structure means you can differentiate between being at “work” and being at home. This should hopefully improve productivity on your part as you have the boundaries in place. It is important to let other people know the boundaries as well, that way you will not have every person and their dog trying to speak to you or distracting you when you are trying to get some work done. Schedules breaks accordingly and structure your day as if you were traveling to an office, even if your job is solely remote. It might seem silly now, but sometimes the only thing you really need to make sure work gets done is a real routine.
It is important to make sure that you are giving yourself a break when working remotely; otherwise, you run the risk of driving yourself into the ground. Set some time to one side, so that you can just relax midway through the day. You could always pop online and play a few games or even research the history of poker. By doing this you can refresh your mind and be ready for the next spring at work.
Set Up a Bespoke Office
Set a specific room to one side as an office, so that you have a safe work space. By making sure you reserve this space, you can almost replicate the feeling of being within an office — even if it is easier said than done. By having this specific space set aside, mentally it helps to create some idea of structure within your home and it means that it is easier to process how you are working when these parameters are in place. Without them, you might find yourself twiddling your thumbs when you could be working.
