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The way that many of us have been working has changed in recent months, with many people now working from home. It can be a dream for some to do this, without having to be a freelancer, but moving from an office environment with structure to then working from your own home can be a challenge in a number of ways. Learning how you can do your job from home is something that is important, as it will help your productivity and make sure that you carry on being effective in your job role. 

There can be a lot of distractions when working from your home, as well as less accountability, and less communication with your team than you could get if you were in the office. You can still be productive, though! No matter what location you are working from, here are some things that you can do to make sure that your remote working hours are effective and that you make the most of them.

Image credit: https://desky.com.au/

Set yourself working hours

Working from home offers some great flexibility, which is helpful when you want to meet a friend for lunch, have a dentist appointment, or want to drop your child at nursery. However, where possible, it is important that you create a regular working schedule for yourself. As much as it is good to sleep in and not have to commute, you are going to be making things harder for yourself if you don’t work consistently. When you create some regular working hours for yourself, it means that you will be accountable to yourself, but also to co-workers who expect you to be available at certain times. It also helps with your productivity levels, meaning that you’re more likely to get your work done, and easier to resolve problems as communicating with others will be quicker and simpler if you stick to some regular working hours.

Create a positive working environment

When you start out working from home you might think just how great it will be to grab your laptop and get on with work from your bed or your couch. This can work sometimes, but done consistently, it can hinder your productivity in a big way. That is why one of the best things that you can do when working from home is to set up a working space that is going to help your productivity. Using the same space each day can help you to set in your mind that you’re ready to work, and prepares you for what is ahead. It could be that you have a spare room with a desk in, or it might be that you work from the kitchen table. Either way, keeping things consistent is a must. 

In order to make it easy for you to work, make sure that you have all that you need. For example, if you will need to print documents out, then make sure that you have a printer ready to go. Your internet connection needs to be good too, or it can make a variety of aspects of working from home difficult. So looking at getting a wireless network setup and design for your home can be a good idea. Give yourself the best chance of working well and being productive by making sure that your work setup is a productive one.

Tune into inspiration

One big advantage of working from home is that you don’t have co-workers talking to you that can lead to distraction. You could end up being more productive as you’re not speaking to colleagues about their weekend or about the things that they have been up to. If playing some loud music helps to get you pumped and motivated to work, then go ahead and do that. If you prefer some classical music or nature sounds, then you could play this in the background, or just open the window in the room to let in some of the outside sounds. If you are doing some tasks that don’t involve too much thinking, such as repetitive tasks, then you could even find listening to a podcast or an audiobook could help to keep you on track and keep you moving. You might prefer to work in silence. Just figure out how you like to work and then you can go from there,

It can take some trial and error to find what works for you when working from home, as well as what doesn’t work for you. As long as you have a focus on productivity, stick to routine, and plan out your days, then it will give you the best chance at it all running smoothly.