Ep. 007: The Secrets to Staying Productive When You’re Working From Home

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Working from home...sounds amazing right? Well yeah, most of the time it is. But it can also be really challenging to stay focused and on task when you’re not in a traditional office setting.

There are dogs to be walked, laundry to be put away, and a whole kitchen of food waiting to be eaten. I have gone through phases where I have really struggled with productivity and focus and have learned lots of little tricks along the way. I’m sharing them all with you today, so get ready!

Get Dressed

My first tip? Get dressed. I knowwwwww it’s such a bummer. And a huge perk of working from home is that you really don’t have to get dressed if you don’t want to. But staying in your pajamas all day can have a huge affect on your mindset. Wearing pajamas tells your brain that it’s time to rest and relax. But girl, you’ve got stuff to do! I’m not saying you need to put on a fancy or even a professional outfit. Just make sure that you change out of the clothes you slept in, brush your hair, maybe put on a little bit of mascara and lip gloss. 

You’ll instantly feel refreshed, recharged, and ready to take on the day. 

This leads me to my next tip. Create a daily routine. I recently heard from a virtual assistant that the thing she misses most about actually going to an office is the drive because it helped her get her brain into work mode.

By creating a regular daily routine, you can get your brain into the mode even if you’re not leaving your house. By repeating the same types of tasks at the same times each day, you will find that it is easier to snap into focus.

You might remember that in episode 3 I talked about keeping a separate Google Calendar for my daily routine. I have it set up to send me notifications on my phone so that I know when to move into the different phases of my day. Here’s what it looks like:

5:45-6:30 Yoga and meditation. This is when I do a quick gratitude meditation and a 15-20 minute yoga flow to get focused and grounded for the day. Gaia and Yoga with Adriene are my favorite resources for these things. 

6:30-7:30 Getting ready and getting the kids ready. During this time, I get totally dressed, get the kids dressed, and prepare breakfast for all of us. 

7:30 - 7:45 Breakfast and Reading. I love to read a book while I eat breakfast. Usually something self-development or marketing related. I’m currently reading a book called Secrets of 6-Figure Women that has totally inspired me to take major action in my business this year!

7:45 - 8 Social Media Engagement. I always spend a dedicated 15 minutes in the morning checking in with my followers on Instagram and in my Facebook group. I absolutely love seeing what people are posting about their virtual assistant businesses. I make sure to read their posts and comment in a thoughtful way. And by doing this on a very regular basis, I’m able to build authentic relationships with my followers. 

8-10 Client Work - I focus on one client at a time, making sure to take care of high priority items first. 

10-10:30 Talk a walk - 2 hours of solid, focused work is about all my brain can handle. And there’s just no point in forcing yourself to work when your brain just isn’t there. So I like to schedule short breaks during the day when I can move my body and refresh my mind.

10:30-12  I come back from my walk refreshed and buckle down for another hour and a half of focused client work. 

12-1 Lunch/Household chores - I take an hour long break for lunch and also use this time to clean up the house, fold laundry, and do all of those little household chores. 

1 - 2:30 Another block of client work time.

2:30 - 3:00 I use this time to work on my own business. Creating content, sprucing up my website, writing a podcast episode, tracking my income and expenses. This is really important time to me. You should really make sure that you are taking focused time each day to keep things flowing in your business.

At 3 o’clock my daughter gets home from school and we move into homework, dinner, and all that nice family stuff.

I’ve found that having this routine gives a clear start and end to my day, and also gives me enough variety and breaks during the day that I can stay really productive during the times when I am focusing on client work. 

Change Your Environment

Another tip? If you’re having trouble focusing, change your environment! Grab your laptop and head out to a coffee shop. I find that working in a coffee shop provides just the right amount of background noise without being distracting, and I don’t feel the urge to do a load of laundry, clean the kitchen, watch tv, or any of those pesky little things that can get in the way when I work from home. 

Background Music

And speaking of background noise, it’s been proven that people are more productive with a little bit of music or noise in the background. Spotify has some amazing playlists that you can listen to for free. My favorites are Zen: Indie Folk for Focus, Deep Focus, and Brain Food. All of these feature instrumental, soothing music. It’s actually amazing how much of a difference it can make for me to have some ambient music playing. 

Turn Off Notifications

Another game-changer for me? TURNING OFF NOTIFICATIONS. When I am working, especially doing client work, I turn off notifications on my phone and on my desktop. Does it really matter who just liked my Instagram post. (I mean, it does, but it definitely is not an emergency.) How many times have you gotten a notification on your phone and been sucked into a rabbit-hole of Instagram scrolling? Turning off your notifications is a great way to cut down on those distractions so you’re not tempted to interrupt the more important work you’re doing!

On the same note, I also make sure that I don’t keep my email open. This won’t work if it’s your job to monitor an inbox that needs quick replies, but for the most part, emails can wait. Make it a habit to check email once every 2 hours, instead of constantly being distracted by new emails popping into your inbox.

Drink Plenty of Water

Okay, so y’all have heard me talk about drinking lots of water before, but I think it’s important for me to bring it up now that we’re talking about productivity. I recently read an article in the Washington Times that said that 77 percent of US workers are not getting enough water. And studies show that even slight dehydration can impair your cognitive functions, making it difficult for you to focus and complete tasks. I found a water bottle on Amazon that has little markers on it showing how much I should drink incrementally throughout the day. I am super diligent, because I’ve found that dehydration makes me extremely fuzzy and worse, irritable and grumpy. So get on that water intake, sister!

Unplug!

And my ultimate tip for productivity, the one that beats out all of the rest. If you find that you are staring at your screen, attempting to start the same task over and over again, looking for anything to distract yourself, scrolling on your phone. Unplug for 10 minutes. Move your body, drink water, or have a healthy snack. Sometimes our minds and bodies just need a break. 

Staying productive while working from home is not easy, my friends. But by putting systems in place that allow for focused times and break times, you will find the flow that works for you. And I would ALWAYS love to hear more ideas about how to stay focused. If there’s something that works great for you, make sure to share it with us The Support Squad Hangout Facebook Group. You never know what might help someone else! 

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