This pandemic has driven many of us to work from home for two years. No wonder this has made many employees’ lives easier; most of these employees have accepted facing distractions from working remotely.
True, a home cannot provide the same environment as an office. These two personal and professional worlds of home and office are complete opposites. But we often intermingle these two spheres.
And it’s for this reason, setting boundaries might be difficult, but it’s also necessary if you want to increase your attention, productivity, and drive while working from home.
Here are a few pointers to help you focus more on your job and increase productivity while working from home.
1. Make a list of things that disturbs you
When you are aware of the problems, half of the problems are solved.
Yes, if you understand the problem, it will be easier to address it. So, take a deep breath and consider what distracts you the most while you’re working.
Your phone, television, or even your family members can distract you when you are working from home.
Make a note of everything that disturbs you, and then make a conscious effort to avoid all of these distractions throughout your working hours.
Try to get away from the television and your phone, and find a quiet area to work in where no one will disturb you.
2. Make a separate workplace for you
You can’t force your family members to stay away from home while you work, and also, you can’t make them do anything they don’t want to do.
What you can do is to find a safe nook or space for yourself, away from any household distractions.
Choose one of these areas and turn it into your office; it’s also a good idea to put a ‘do not disturb sign on the door.
While it is easy to become distracted while working, you must focus on avoiding getting involved in all of these. As a matter of fact, these minor, useless activities do take up your productive hours.
3. Inform others about your work schedule
Most of your family members, friends, roommates, and relatives might not feel concerned about your work-from-home routine.
They might try to involve you in every little thing that goes out during the day. And there’s a possibility that you might get into this as well.
There are several incidents where family members come and unintentionally disturb employees during their office meetings.
So it would be best if you inform everyone prior about your work schedule and strictly makes them understand that you are not available for everything.
It will help you to concentrate more on your work without getting any distractions.
4. Make a schedule for household responsibilities.
Working from home provides many advantages, including managing household chores as and when needed.
However, if not properly handled, you may find yourself with unfinished office tasks as well as household duties. Avoid combining the times for both and try to set up separate time slots.
Try completing home chores after office hours unless urgently required, as multitasking can be exhausting on your mind and body.
When you’ve completed your workplace tasks, you’ll have all the time in the world to devote to other activities.
5. Allow yourself some time to relax.
Taking breaks at regular intervals will freshen your mind and help you avoid additional distractions.
You will be more enthused about your job and more committed to it. Taking a break in between will give you a better understanding of what is going on in your house. You will feel more at ease knowing that you have not missed anything essential.
You can enjoy your lunch breaks with your family. These little breaks will re-energize you by allowing your mind and body to relax. These breaks help in increasing employee productivity as well.
If you fall for distractions, you will have trouble with your professional career. And it doesn’t matter which firm you work for or what job responsibilities you have.
Any distraction will only detract from your productivity.
If you are working from home, you must try to remove any distractions to achieve a good work-life balance.
