5 Ways To Increase Productivity When You’re Working From Home

When you’re working from home you should always be looking for ways to increase your productivity. More work done in less time means more time to kick back, relax and have fun. Here are a few suggestions that can really make a difference:

1. Keep a daily routine

Some people who are new to working from home will scoff at the idea of anything resembling a daily schedule. The truth, though, is that it can really boost productivity and prevent work from spilling over into your spare time. By starting and stopping work at approximately the same times every day, you ensure you’ll have plenty of time to recharge afterwards, which is ultimately great for productivity.

2. Always plan ahead

Something as simple as a daily to-do list can do wonders for your productivity. Sure, deciding on the spot what to do next has a certain charm, but it leaves you spending too much time on deciding, and too little on actually working. Keep a daily to-do list and decide on your tasks for the next day before your work day is over – you’ll notice the difference almost immediately!

3. Stay healthy

It’s impossible to stay productive in the long run if you treat your body and mind poorly. You don’t have to become a health nut to get some real work done, but you should at the very least try to schedule some exercise a couple of times per week, even if it’s just going for a walk around the block. It’s also a good idea to invest in an ergonomic workplace, including a good chair to sit on, as that helps reduce fatigue and keep you energized throughout the day.

4. Eliminate distractions

Yes, some people are able to watch TV while they’re working. They’re probably a minority, however, as most of us find it quite difficult to focus on two things simultaneously. When you’re working, turn off the TV, set your phone to silent, close your Facebook tab and shut the door – your productivity will skyrocket!

5. Get out of the house

Even if you’re the type of person who enjoys working alone, the fact is it can get lonely after a while. If you spend all your week cooped up in your office, rarely seeing the outside world, chances are you’ll feel a bit isolated and your work will suffer as a result. Therefore, make a point of leaving the house at least a few times per week, even if it’s just to do something simple such as meeting a friend for lunch.

These were just a few examples of things to you can do to improve your productivity. Most people should benefit from implementing these, but feel free to experiment and find what works best for you. Good luck!

The High Cost Of Distractions At Home and Work

We all get distracted. Some of the distractions are brought on by others, but a lot of the time, we do things to distract ourselves. We browse through email and social media instead of getting right to work, we get home and turn on the TV to zone out. We play on our phones whenever we need to take a break and check out for a bit. We cause these distractions for ourselves throughout the day without ever giving much thought to what it costs us in the long run.

Lets start with working hours. Getting distracted will greatly diminish how much you can get done in a given day. Not only do you lose the time that youre distracted, be it a minute while you check email, a couple of second while you glance at your phone to see what the flashing alert is about, or the fifteen minutes when a co-worker stops by to chat. You lose additional productive time while youre trying to figure out where you were at and what you are supposed to be doing. The time it takes to get back into productive mode is often longer than the time of the actual distraction. And it all adds up. After a couple of dozen distractions in a given day, youve easily lost a couple of hours of work time.

By itself, it may not seem like much, but multiplied over weeks, months, or even the year, its a lot of time. Its a lot of progress that you arent making on what youre working on. It may be the difference between getting that raise or promotion and missing out. It may make the difference between taking your business to the next level, and barely scraping by. It will make a big difference in how much money you make at the end of the year.

Lets not forget about your personal life. While you may not be able to put a dollar value on the time you waste here by letting yourself be distracted, the cost ends up being even higher. How many hours of quality time that you could be spending with your kids or your spouse are you wasting by watching TV shows you dont really care about, browsing through YouTube videos, or wasting away scrolling through Facebook and doing a Google search that ends with a cat video after two hours of mindless browsing. Even if its just a few minutes here and there, this time adds up and its time youre not getting back.

Isnt it time to take back control of your time and your life? Start by cutting out as many distractions as you can.

Why To Do Lists Work

Are you using to-do lists throughout your day? If not, you may be missing out on one of the post powerful productivity tools out there. It doesnt matter if you use the old-fashioned notebook and pen, or a to-do list app on your phone. There are three reasons why they work so well when it comes to keeping you productive all day long.

To-Do Lists Make You Plan

When you sit down to make out your to-do list youre forced to plan your day. Youre taking a look at everything youre working on and deciding what you need to take care of today and in what order.

Depending on how you make out your list, you may even think about what items on your list have the highest priority. The simple task of making the list makes you work out a lot of things in your head ahead of time. This alone will help you stay more productive throughout your day.

To-Do Lists Keep You Focused

Having that list in front of you, or next to you as you work away will help you stay focused on what you need to work on and accomplish throughout your busy day. We are all dealing with distractions. Its easy to lose focus and get sucked into meaningless tasks and conversations.

With your list you know at a glance what you should be working on and if you make yourself get into the habit of not calling it a day until each item on your list is taken care of, youre less likely to allow those distractions to take over a big chunks of your day.

To-Do Lists Give You A Feeling Of Accomplishment

Checking of an item on your to-do list gives you a sense of accomplishment. For some this is more effective when they can cross something of a piece of paper. For others, clicking the little check mark on the app does the trick. Try them both and see what works best for you.

Take a moment to appreciate how much youve gotten done each time you check an item of the list. Then use that feeling of accomplishment to power you through the next item. Rinse and repeat and before you know it, youve made it through another highly productive day.

If youre not in the habit of using daily to-do lists yet, I hope this encourages you to give it a serious try. Make a list of five things you want to get done before you call it a night today. See how that goes and then get in the habit of working from a daily list starting tomorrow morning.

Benefits of Getting Organized

Getting organized is not just a good idea because your mom said so. There are lots of benefits to being in control and developing a clutter-free lifestyle.

1. Less stress

When organized you are automatically less stressed, you know where your keys, wallet, important papers, phone charger and phone are. Similarly, if your project plan is up to date and you complete your reports on time, theres no need to worry about on-the-spot requests for project updates or meetings.

2. More time

Planning your time and keeping up-to-date means you can allocate time for everything in your life, including downtime. Being organized means, you wont get sidetracked or panicked by not being able to find important items. Youll be punctual and more productive.

3. Ready for the unexpected

You can be prepared for last-minute requests or deadlines because youre not distracted by untidiness or the mental cloud of not being quite sure where things stand. That is true for everything from planning your childs birthday party to that big project at work you are overseeing.

4. Better health

Studies have shown that being organized has demonstrable health benefits. Lower stress levels mean lower blood pressure and less body inflammation. Also, your immune system is stronger, and youre less likely to be at risk of depression. You set up a positive feedback loop that spills over into other areas of your life. Better organization habits lead to better eating, exercise and sleep habits.

5. Nothing feels overwhelming

Having your life running smoothly, means youre much calmer and in a better mental position to deal with things. You can look at your to-do list without panicking because you know you can do it. You know that you can tackle the list task-by-task without feeling overwhelmed.

6. More energy

It might seem counter-intuitive but putting effort into planning and organizing your life gives you more energy. Youre less stressed because your mind isnt obsessing about all the stuff you have to do. When you have a plan, youre in control and know you can get it all done. If your papers, ideas, and tasks are in order, you can see a way through. Life is no longer a chaotic mystery!

Finally, being organized signals trust and reliability. If you are on time, follow through on your commitments and are ready for whatever comes at you, you will project an image of professionalism and responsibility. You will look promotion-ready and get more respect from your colleagues and your family.

4 Distractions That Drain Your Focus on Your Goals

There are plenty of distractions in the modern world. They take away your focus and your energy and can stop you from having the life you want. If youre not hitting your goals, maybe its time to look at your main distractions and do something about them.

Here are the most common distractions that are likely stopping you from living your best life.

1. Social media

It wont surprise you to hear that the biggest distraction for most people is social media and the hours it eats out of the day. Take a quick look at your Instagram feed or Facebook, and before you know it, youre mindlessly scrolling through what looks like other peoples perfect lives.

Its time to take stock and decide how much of your life you want to spend watching what other people are doing. Set some boundaries about when and how long you will spend on social media. Take a look at your friends and see if they’re people you want to know.

2. Smartphone

Smartphones are great tools, but they can quickly become a huge distraction. Look around and see how many people are walking down the street with their eyes glued to their phones. Think about how long you can go without checking your phone. Try leaving your phone in your purse or your pocket when you go out for a meal. Leave it at home when you take the dog for a walk.

Another tip is to cull some of the apps on your phone. Work out what you need and delete the rest. And remember mobile games are one of the biggest time-sucks. Think about how you want to use your time and be strategic about how you use your phone.

3. Online watching

How much time do you waste watching meaningless YouTube videos or binge-watching box sets? These might feel like simple, relaxing things to do, but if youre not careful, they can drain as much time as social media.

Keep focused on how you want your life to be and make decisions about how much recreational TV you want to watch.

4. Negative people

Giving your time away to negative people can be damaging to your success. You can probably name the people at the office or in your life who drain you of energy and who take up a lot of time with their complaining, attention-seeking, and neediness.

If there are people around you who are undermining your chances of meeting your goals, you need to set some healthy boundaries and get out of their orbit. Look for positive, high energy people who will support you and cheer you on.

Dont Forget to Declutter Your Mind

One of the things you notice when you start decluttering is how so much of the clutter in your house reflects the clutter in your mind. If youre hanging onto to clothes that dont fit, or the ugly vase your mother gave you for Christmas or the exercise bike you might get around to using, you dont just have a problem with too much stuff. You have a problem letting go. Chances are youre also hanging onto a whole bunch of bad feelings, ill-founded assumptions, old grievances and future worries.

If it feels good to declutter your house, it feels even better to declutter your mind. Here are some useful expert tips to make some space in your mind.

1. Use some meditation techniques

You dont have to do the full sitting on a cushion in a darkened room thing to benefit from meditation techniques. If youre feeling overwound, some simple breathing techniques can help you calm down and focus. For a few minutes, focus only on your breathing and nothing else. If your mind wanders or gets back into the worrying groove, you must put that aside and come back to focus on your breath.

2. Write it down

It can help to write down anything thats on your mind. Once all those worries are down on paper, you can prioritize them and work out a plan to deal with them. You can also assess them to identify whats essential and what isnt. When you can see whats important, you can focus your energy and free up some of that mental space!

3. Stay in the present

Brooding over the past and worrying about the future take up a lot of space in your mind and achieve precisely nothing. Let go of regret over past mistakes or resentment of past slights and move on. Keep your focus on what you can influence right here, right now.

4. Do one thing at a time

Multitasking is not only overrated (its very inefficient), it also leads to greater anxiety, and you never do any one thing properly. Focus on doing things methodically and thoroughly. As you finish one task, move onto the next.

5. Control all the incoming data

We talk about being available 247 and the 24-hour news cycle, but there is only one person who can control that. You. You can choose to switch off your computer, smartphone, and tv and control the amount of data your brain is trying to process.

Decluttering your mind will pay off in all sorts of ways you hadnt imagined. You will be more productive, less stressed and more motivated.

The 3-Step Process to Stop Thinking and Start Doing

You want a fulfilling career, a home of your own, and better health. Or perhaps you have smaller goals, such as learning a new language or traveling more often. However, you never find the time or the perfect opportunity to get started.

The truth is that most people fail to achieve their goals not because they lack talent or have bad ideas, but because they quit. They get caught up in ruminating over what they might do and never take action.

If you fall into this category, it’s time to make a change. Follow these three steps to stop thinking and start doing!

Set Your Priorities Straight

Start by defining your priorities. What do you want to achieve the most? Set short-term and long-term goals, such as getting a promotion, acquiring new clients, or buying a home. Give yourself due dates for each of these goals. Even if you don’t meet the deadline, it should be just enough to get you started.

Eliminate any distractions that are wasting your time and focus on your end goal – to acquire new leads and boost your revenue.

Stop Overanalyzing and Go for It

Do you spend hours or days thinking and planning? Do you always focus on the worst-case scenario? Are you constantly trying to read between the lines? These signs indicate that you tend to overanalyze everything.

Like it or not, your thoughts are not reality. Just because you’re thinking of the worst-case scenario, it doesn’t mean it will happen. Don’t believe everything you feel or think. Sometimes, the best thing you can do is to go with the flow and take action. Overanalyzing situations, events, or actions rarely leads to a productive outcome.

Focus on the Positive

Psychologists advise us to stay positive for a good reason. A negative attitude fuels fear and anxiety, keeping you from reaching your goals. You always think of what could go wrong instead of keeping an open mind.

Keeping a positive attitude is good for your health too. It boosts your motivation and inner drive, helps you stay strong when times get tough and gives you a fresh perspective on the world around you.

Try meditation, positive affirmation, yoga, or whatever it takes to ward off negative thoughts. Focus on the good in your life and hope for the best. Negativity leads nowhere it’s neither productive nor helpful.