Home Office Tips
If you find yourself suddenly working from home, and don’t know how to manage it, we’ve got you covered.
Check out the list below for tips on how to make working from home a productive, comfortable experience. Enjoy less time commuting and more time being productive and hanging out with your loved ones.
Add an Extra Monitor
According to some studies, adding an extra monitor can increase productivity by as much as 30%. Stop switching between tabs and give yourself more “desktop space” to do the tasks you need to do.
Take Frequent Breaks
When you’re working from home, it’s easy to get caught up in tasks and to stay seated for long periods of time. Remember to get up and stretch, drink water, and spend some time away from your phone or computer. If needed, you can even set a timer to remind yourself to take breaks.
Don’t Work From Bed
While wearing pajamas are a perfectly acceptable work-from-home practice (provided you’re not on video camera), working from your bed shouldn’t be. Working surrounded by fluffy pillows isn’t conducive to productivity.
Make Lists. Keep Logs.
While employers have visibility into what you’re doing when you’re in the office; they lose that visibility when you work from home. Make sure to keep track of your tasks and assignments when you’re working from home.
Make Sure Your Setup is Ergonomic
Whether you’re working in the office or at home, it’s important to make sure your setup is ergonomic so you’re not hunching your back to type or craning your neck to look at the screen. Make sure you can comfortably type with a straight back and see the screen without leaning forward.
Don’t Overwork
When you’re working from home, it’s easy to feel like you’re on call 24/7. When you’re done with work and it’s time to clock out, make sure to disconnect and spend time with your loved ones.
Get Noise-Cancelling Headphones
If your kids are home from school and you need to concentrate, consider investing in some noise-cancelling headphones. Trust us on this one.
Create a Dedicated Space
Your brain is good at creating patterns. Create a dedicated space for your home office so your brain will recognize it as a place for work and work only.
Over-Communicate
When teams are separated, communication tends to break down. Make sure to over-communicate so that everyone is on the same page.
Plan Against Distractions
Distractions will happen. Plan against them by blocking out time for concentrating where you can’t be disturbed. Let your loved ones know that “working from home” means you need to be at work and not doing laundry or picking up the kids from school.