With so many employees physical distancing and working from home amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, there are bound to be productivity issues within businesses. Productivity issues often arise when employees are unfamiliar with being professionally productive at home and getting their work done in a usually relaxing and comforting environment. Below are a few tips to help you as an employee keep motivated and work quality up when working from home.
Allocate a space within your home for work:
Do your best to find a space in your home which you can allocate as your workspace. By designating a space in your home specific to work purposes, you are more likely to concentrate and get into a productive mindset when working there.
Make sure to never use this space outside of working hours so as to keep your personal and professional life as separate as you can while still at home. Also, try to make your space a stress-free zone for quiet and minimise external noises such as traffic flow or fellow household members in order to help you focus better.
Arrange your work schedule around when you are most productive:
If your workplace is allowing you to be flexible with your work schedule, be sure to make the most of your peak productivity times. Whether this means working early in the morning right after you wake up or dead in the night before you go to sleep, schedule your working hours around when you are most motivated and clear-headed to maximise productivity.
Working from home saves you the time and effort of physically going to work so take advantage of your extra time to rest and instead, pour your energy into working during your most productive times of the day.
Replicate your usual work environment as best as you can:
In accordance with the first tip, not only should the workspace in your home be a designated area specific to only working, having it replicate your desk at the office may also boost productivity levels. If possible, use the same equipment and systems you use for work at home (e.g. stationery, laptop/computer) so that it is easier for you to get into a work mindset even when staying inside your house.
Another way to get you into a productive mood could be wearing your usual work clothes when working indoors to simulate your usual work environment and practices. For collaborative work, replicate your usual meetings by holding online conference calls. All such strategies can help keep you in a productive mindset when working as they are similar to your usual productive working culture in the workplace.
