Since quitting my job in August 2020, I've been struggling to stay focused when I work from home. Adjusting from a totally different career and way of working is a challenge to say the least.
As a full-time stay at home wife, it can become difficult to achieve work at home balance, let alone being productive!
Besides running a blog, I also manage eight Pinterest accounts(not including my own). Staying focused and being productive when you work from home is really important, that's why I've compiled the 5 best tips from my own experience of working remotely and from home.
Setting non-negotiable boundaries at home
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In my quest to be productive, I decided to set a few non-negotiable rules for myself. As my office is also where I rest, sleep and share a life with my partner, I need to create boundaries when it comes to my work.
Here are some rules I've set when it comes to my “office hours”:
- No work outside of my office hours
- No laptop after 8pm on week nights
- Must have 30 minutes rest after every 2 hour blocks of work
- Exercise and proper diet should be maintained every day
- Before starting work, I must write down my daily tasks, goals and create a working schedule of 2 hour blocks
- On working days, I must follow my success morning routine
5 Tips To Help You Stay Focused And Productive Working From Home
When it comes to being more productive at home, it is crucial for you to establish a clear work schedule that also prioritizes rest. Here are 5 tips to get you super productive every day that you work at home:
a) Set up a reasonable work and play schedule
Most people understand the value of setting up a work schedule, but most hardly schedule play into their days. Instead of having a very loose idea of work life balance, make space in your schedule to meet up with your friends, do what you enjoy outside of work and spend time with your family.
One of my girlfriends who owns a home business has so many clients that a coffee catch up session with her has to be scheduled in just like a work appointment. As working at home is flexible in nature, it's very easy to start ignoring any other things other than work without scheduling them in.
b) Have realistic goals and expectations
When you work at home, it can be very easy to fall into the “work all day and all night” trap. To avoid burn out, I'm starting to set realistic goals and expectations for my working days.
Instead of forcing myself to work unrealistic and gruelling hours, I instead focus on simple tasks that I know I can get done within a certain time frame.
For example, instead of telling myself to “finish writing up my blog post”, I tell myself to “complete the last paragraph on my blog post in the next 30 minutes”.
As a piano player, I've often had to chunk down long and complex musical pieces into bite-size portions I can understand, memorise and perform.
I've since learned that this can be applied to many things in life. Instead of getting overwhelmed by your work piling up, feel empowered knowing that you do not have to tackle everything at the same time. You can manage things one at a time, and in time, you'll get your job done.
c) Focus on what you can control
It's also very important to focus on the things you can control. We often beat ourselves up over little things we hardly have control over such as the weather and how our clients behave. Stop obsessing over things that you have no say over. Start focusing on the things you can control.
When I first quit my job, I wanted to make at least $200 a week right off the bat.
At the time, I had only one client. And I was only making $200 A MONTH. So, I started to work like a dog, chasing any kind of odd, low-paying job online that was not even worth my time!
I kept telling myself, I need to make that $200 dollars.
A couple of weeks into this madness, I realised that I was wasting my time and driving myself to the ground. One of my friends even commented that I looked utterly drained.
She reminded me that taking care of my own physical and mental health should come first.
This was the lightning bulb moment for me. Ding! I thought to myself, this is it! I can control how I look after myself and what I can do to get clients. The money will come later. I can't control whether the money flows into my bank account or not. Duh…
d) Start your day with a morning ritual to ground yourself
One of the biggest challenges of staying focused and getting motivated to work from home is the lack of structure. As there is no longer a set time to wake up, commute and go to work, it is important to start the day with a morning ritual.
Every morning, I will follow the same routine to set my day up for success. From my morning meditation to affirmation, I never compromise on my routine.
These 6 morning habits literally changed my life and help me quit my job, so it pays to create a morning routine if you are working for yourself or working remotely from home.
Having a solid morning routine gets you in the right frame of mind to do quality work. Not only does the morning routine signal your mind to start the day, it also gives you a sense of structure to be productive and get work done.
Our home is our sanctuary, thus it can have a totally adverse effect on us when it comes to gearing up our mindset for work.
Kick start your day with a work out, meditation or a quick journal entry. Trust me, you will definitely see a huge difference in your productivity and energy levels.
e) Spend some time each week doing a quick weekly reflection
After a long and productive week, I always do a quick weekly reflection entry in my journal. This helps me sit back and look at what is working and what is not working in my business. Having space to think, reflect and relax is also very important when you run your business from home.
Working at home is rewarding, but it has its own unique set of challenges! I can tell you honestly that working at home is not for the faint hearted. Be prepared to work long hours, sit down for long periods of time and having to learn new things all the time.
Learn To Accept Imperfections
As life can be chaotic and busy at times, it's very important to accept imperfections when you run a home business. Remember that progress is more important than perfection! Don't compare your own journey with others who have been at it longer than you. Focus on your path, accept your imperfections and keep going!
Sometimes, I feel really defeated after a long day of challenges, fixing problems and putting out “fires” or emergencies when it comes to dealing with a client.
But I do feel really glad that I've become a successful work at home Pinterest virtual assistant and manager.
Are you looking for tips on how to optimise your Pinterest business account? Read about how you can grow your Pinterest account successfully here.
Did you enjoy this post? Comment below on what else I should write about in my future posts!