It’s truly an upside-down world right now with everyone feeling the effects of the COVID-19 situation. Nowhere is this being more felt than in people having to completely reposition themselves in how, where, and when they work. In order to be as functional as possible in this new reality, I created the graphic above to share the five main areas to focus on while working from home. Here's a quick breakdown.
5 Tips for Being Productive When Working at Home
- Get dressed. It simply means just that – get dressed! It stands as a reminder to make sure you are maintaining some of your normal structure even if you’re just walking into the next room to work.
- Optimize your environment. Get yourself as physically and environmentally set up as you can. This creates stability. Even if it’s the corner of the dining room table, make sure you have all you need there and can have a reliable place to “land” while working.
- Define your boundaries and schedule. Get clear with yourself about what you'll need, including what you’ll allow and what you won’t allow, so you can do some deep-dive work and feel more in control of your time.
- Mix up the way you work. Weird times call for doing this differently. Drawing from my productivity teaching, we can look at a variety of ways to work. For example, try setting a timer for 15 minutes and powering through your email or another everyday task. You may also try using your Hour of Power to get through that thing you’ve been procrastinating on. You could also use the Pomadaro Effect: Set a timer to work for 25 minutes, follow it with a 5-minute break, and then repeat a few times in a row. Switch it up based on your current priority.
- Lastly, communicate! If you’re not overcommunicating, you’re not communicating enough. Online communication is very different than in-office communication—so dial in those 1:1’s, make sure you are clear on expectations, and double down on general daily communication.
Right now, I’m doing a lot of coaching and virtual training around how to be your best while juggling your new home-office situation. If you’re interested in talking more about this for your team or yourself, please reach out.
The following book and podcast are two ways I'm staying sane and taking time for me. How are you staying sane?
This month's takeaway tool is focused on communication, an essential skill we all could stand to work on while working remotely.
