I work from home, and I'm constantly distracted.
I get it — in specific ways, you have more freedom to do what you want when working from the comfort of your abode.
But that also means you have more responsibility for being productive, which can be a new challenge if your personal life is a bit meandering.
It helps to be explicit about what hours I will be working and when I can be interrupted.
Of course, you'll want to work in time for family — but if you don't set expectations, it's easy for your "work time" to turn into "family time," and suddenly, the laundry isn't done, and dinner isn't cooked.
When you work from home, setting expectations with your family is essential. This will help everyone to understand when you are working and when you are available. Planning out your days helps everyone stay on track with their schedules and responsibilities without feeling overwhelmed or underwhelmed by the options available.
Here are some tips for setting expectations with your family:
Let your family members know what your work schedule is. Lacking communication is a common problem. That is because I will know when you're absent and when you're around.
Explain to your family why it is essential for you to focus when you are working. This will help them to understand why you may not be able to talk or play with them during certain times of the day.
Create a designated workspace in your home that is just for work. This will help your family members know that you are working in this space, and they should not disturb you.
Working from home means there's no reason to procrastinate on decluttering.
Clean up in between jobs and as you get the urge to do something else.
That might be folding laundry, organizing files on your computer, or cleaning off your desk; dive right in!
If you can't find it after a half-hour of searching, chances are good that you don't need it anymore anyway (unless it's something very important)
Fortunately, decluttering your workspace is easy and can significantly impact your productivity. Here are some benefits of decluttering your workspace:
There's really only one exception here — if you need to check email or social media accounts regularly, set a timer and only check them for 5-10 minutes at a time.
You can check Facebook while making coffee, but don't let yourself get distracted by "checking Twitter really quick" when you are going to make a pot of coffee anyway.
Multitasking is less efficient because your brain can't focus on more than one thing at a time," said Dr. Sanjay Gupta, a neurologist and CNN chief medical correspondent.
That's why he recommends that people who work from home or are remote workers try to focus on one task at a time. If one of your intentions is to successfully complete whatever it is you're attempting to do, turn off your notifications, silence your phone, and focus.
Only a few repetitions will be necessary to break the habit produced in multitasking. However, it will prove to be all the more effective in the end. You'll be able to get more done in less time and with fewer mistakes.
If there's something that can wait until tomorrow, then shut it down and come back to it another day.
Workers with more experience in an office setting who switch to homework may face difficulty transitioning to a new environment. Distractions such as family, pets, and household chores can make remaining concentration on work tasks challenging.
Additionally, remote workers may miss out on important company news and announcements that are communicated in person. For these reasons, it is essential for organizations to carefully consider whether or not allowing employees to work from home is the best option for them.
To be productive and focus on your company goal, equip yourself with time-tracking software like Time Champ so that you have exact productive hours.
Time Champ helps companies unlock productivity potential with feature-rich automatic time tracking and productivity measurement software.
Time Champ helps you to identify where they are spending their time during the working day, allowing you to ensure their time is spent productively.
Next step Book a Demo and get all the insight in detail with Time Champ.
