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If you would have told someone 5 years ago that a good chunk of us would be working remotely most or all of the time people would have laughed at you thinking you were insane, but here we are. Working at home has become a huge part of life for many people, and while it has obvious advantages, it brings its own unique set of challenges. So what can you do to make sure you stay on top of your work while not having to make that drive through rush hour traffic? Try these 5 tips and make sure you are working at your best!
Keep a standard schedule
While this may seem like a no brainer, it can be easy to get off of a schedule when your office is a short walk from the coffee pot. A problem I have personally run into is forgetting to end the work day. Unlike when your sitting at an office waiting to go home, when you work from home its much easier to find yourself work late into the night. While this may seem like a great way to get things done, you can quickly find yourself burning out or catching the dreaded brain fog. While you may get more quantity your quality of work is sure to go down! Stick to your schedule, take your breaks, and makes sure you are at your best when you are working
Avoid distractions
One of the biggest downsides to working from home is that you have more distractions. Maybe your kids want to chat, or the dog wants to go for a walk, or maybe you have the urge to do a little binge watching on Netflix. While none of these things are necessarily bad, if you find yourself behind on work because you're too distracted it could lead to negative consequences with your boss. Its best if you can set your home office up somewhere quite, preferably with a door you can close to ensure everyone else in the home knows your working.
Utilize your employers tools
Most employers who are allowing or promoting remote work have tools in place to make sure things are running smoothly. Utilize tools like VPNs, Teams, Zoom, and others that allow you to utilize your team and corporate network as if you were still in the office. If you feel like your missing something reach out to you boss and make sure you have access to everything you need to get the job done, because after all the more tools you have the more efficient you can be. Just remember if you wear pajama pants with your dress shirt for that Teams meeting, don't stand up.
Take breaks
I know we already mentioned this, but its worth expanding on. Taking breaks is critical to ensuring your working at your best. Been working on that report for 3 hours straight? Time to go get some fresh air outside. Sometimes your brain needs a few minutes to get itself back together so that you can focus and provide quality work. Taking regular breaks can allow your mind to refocus which improves productivity, creativity, as well as just being good for your wellbeing. No one wants to spend 10 straight hours working only taking breaks to use the restroom!
Take your days off
Here in the US we have an expectation of work hard play hard, and for many workers working from home they feel they aren't working hard if they aren't getting dressed up and communing to the office. Multiple studies have shown that taking days off can help you out both at work and in your personal life. Work to live, don't live to work! Take your regularly scheduled days off and, when possible, use a few of those vacations days so you can relax. Also remember to utilize your sick time, just because your working from home doesn't mean an illness doesn't effect your performance!
While these 5 tips for working from home are far from all you can do, its definitely going to give you a head start. Remember that you work your best when you feel your best, and overworking will prevent that every time!
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