How To Ensure You Are Working From Home
Working from home. The current health situation has forced many businesses to embrace remote working arrangements. For companies that are new to the concept of virtual offices, it can be hard to maintain your productivity in those hard times.
Investing in collaborative platforms, such as using Slack for shared projects, can be a game-changer. For companies that are making their first step into a remote work style due to the coronavirus pandemic, ensuring you can still manage your team remotely becomes a necessity.
For instance, it can be a good idea to schedule a morning conference call to get everyone on the same page. From a manager’s perspective, you can guarantee your team is up and ready to work at that point.
Daily reporting can also help to keep track of everyone’s activities. However, while managers can hold their team accountable and maintain the overall productivity as much as possible, it’s a different problem if you are a freelancer or a solo entrepreneur. If you’ve been relying on a co-sharing office or a vibrant coffee shop to keep yourself motivated in the past, how do you make sure you stay motivated and accountable when you’re stuck at home?
Motivation 101: Nothing happens in a dull home office
The thing is, while you might have a spare room that can become your emergency home office, it probably doesn’t compare to the cozy comfort of your co-sharing office in town. Even though the situation is going to be temporary, you can’t delay decorating the space. Why so? Because an empty room is uninspiring and depressing.
If you’re going to work from home, you need an environment that inspires and delights. Spruce up your spare bedroom or your empty nook with your mental health in mind. A beautiful photo framed as acrylic printing can bring life to a spare room. If you’re feeling enthusiastic, you can paint the walls too or use home printing.
Comfort: You need an ergonomic setup
As fun as it can be to work from your sofa with the laptop resting on the coffee table, it’s not a sustainable situation. After a couple of days bent over to reach the keyboard, you’re going to develop soreness and back pain.
You need to set your home office with comfort in mind. What does comfort mean when you’re working? It’s all about ergonomic solutions. Ideally, a desk with an adjustable height can let work sitting and standing. When you’re stuck at home, standing will become the best alternative to a healthy and active lifestyle. Giving yourself the option to stand up or sit will transform your work routine throughout the day.
Stress: Freelancer and solo entrepreneur anxiety is real 
Employees and employers face a tremendous amount of stress as they worry about the future of their business. But that doesn’t compare to your anxiety levels when you’re an independent professional.
The COVID-19 pandemic is scary in its own right. On top of that, worrying about how you’re going to make ends meet with no fallback option can affect your productivity and creativity. Now’s the best time to introduce relaxing routines to your lifestyle. Meditating every day can help to clear your mind.
The addition of houseplants in your home office can also keep you focused. Photos and succulents are a pop of green in your decor. They bring soothing energy to the room.
Accountability: Finish all your tasks
I’m working from home. Nobody can see me. When the work is getting slow, your deadlines are likely to become a little lax. As such, you might find it hard to finish your tasks on time because there’s no time deadline anymore.
Don’t be tempted to fall down the trap of laissez-faire. Instead, make sure to add a task management solution to your work essentials. Something such as Trello can help you to stay on track. This ensures you remain accountable, which, in the long term, can help you to stay motivated.
Time management: Create a realistic schedule
When you leave your home to head to the office, your work schedule falls naturally into place. However, when you work from home, figuring out when to work and when to stop can be tricky. The key to your home-based work schedule is to establish a good work-life balance.
You set the rules, and as such, you need to structure your workday to account for unexpected interruptions – such as a call from a friend, for instance. Without rules, you may find yourself working too much or not enough.
When you’re new to working from home, establishing a productive home office routine that keeps you motivated and accountable is hard. But you need to set things right, even if it is for a short time! As the pandemic forces everyone to adjust to new ways of working, your home office may only be temporary.
