Work From Home: How To be Efficient?
As a blogger, I do not have an office to go to and cafes with high-speed internet have been my makeshift office. But at my day job, I do have an office and team to work with. Though I have loved working from remote locations, in our current situation my work from home ethics was put to test. And, to be honest, it’s tiring. I’m a strong believer that a change of environment can portray a huge difference in the work that we do, however, right now I don’t have an option, but to be home and get the work flowing.
Having said that, since the time I started working from home I realised what I was doing wrong, where. I took my efficiency, discipline, and integrity for granted. There were days when I worked without a break for a long time and then there were days when Netflix and chill were prioritised over my deliverables. Questions like - how can I be structured at work, what practices should I obtain to be efficient, how can I become ethically and morally right when I’m not supervised pondered my head. And I’m sure you are on the same boat as me.
Well, worry not, I’ve got you covered. I did something different and you know what? It worked. Here is a list of things that I follow to work efficiently from home.
Wake up at the same time as you do when you have to go work
I know it’s comforting to hit that snooze button and get under the sheet to catch some extra zzzs. Considering that you don’t have to shower, get dressed or commute to work, you could wake up just 10 minutes before the login time and start working from the comforts of your cosy bed. But I chose to keep a routine and wake up when my alarm goes off.
Messages can wait, but not a healthy breakfast.
Let me confess - I have a habit of checking my mobile phone the moment I open my eyes. I’m sure you do too. But let’s give that habit a little break. Shall we?
Breakfast is my favourite meal of the day. And it’s only recently that I discovered that if I put in some extra effort and practice, I can make omelettes instead of scrambled eggs. Digitally disconnected, I try to focus on preparing a healthy breakfast and a cup of tea. And I’ve come to love this me-time as it lets me connect with my inner-self, talk to myself, ask how I’m, and prepare a mental to-do list for the day.
It’s comforting to work from our beds but let's try not to. What say?
If you pay close attention to the spaces in your house, you’ll come to realise that each corner has a purpose to it. You cook in your kitchen, eat in the dining area and sleep in your bedroom. And in your subconscious mind, you have registered these activities with the different corners of your house and it’s important for you to separate work from your place of rest.
Trust me, the nights that I’ve taken work to bed, I have woken up nightmares of excel sheets and PowerPoint presentations.
Make a to-do list
In the day and age of digital to-do lists, I’m an old school and prefer a pen and paper. This not only helps me disconnect from the technology for a tad bit but get me alert and functioning. And let’s be honest my dear friends - there is nothing more satisfying than striking through the tasks from your list.
Scheduling is the key to your lock
Schedule time for each task in your list and your breaks. Yes. Even though we are indoors and that no one is physically supervising us, we either end up taking longer breaks or no breaks at all. Scheduling helps us stick to a routine. It instils discipline and enables us to become more cognizant of our time.
Time your tasks
While scheduling gives us a routine, timing your tasks can help you finish the task in the given timeframe. I use the Pomodoro technique which has proved to work efficiently for me. I take up a task, work for 25 minutes straight, take 5 minutes off to relax and unwind and continue this cycle three times before taking a bigger break.
And if you have some extra time in the schedule, well you know what to do.
Do one thing at a time, and one screen at a time
Multitasking is efficient, so is focusing on a task and completing it. Social media can be a distraction, but try to focus on finishing your task first before you can treat yourself with that Instagram scroll. Of course, you can get the work while you scrolling through your feed, but ask yourself - is it what you wanted?
I know all of the above sounds easy, but it’s difficult when putting to practice. But as the saying goes, ‘practice makes perfect’, and with the time you will have your answer like I had mine.
What do you do differently to work efficiently from home? Let me know in the comments down below or write to me at weirdlyrosh@gmail.com