Get Organized to Work From Home and Be Productive
Need to get some work done at home?
Working from home requires one to get organized. Homes aren’t generally that conducive to work life.
Our homes can be full of distractions because they are usually set up for relaxing, entertaining and resting, but not for work.
If you are planning to work from home, then you need to take a few moments to think things through. A little bit of organization can go a long way toward keeping you productive.
3 Quick Tips to Get Organized to Work From Home
I worked from home for about eight years before I started my present position. Therefore, I’m familiar with the pros and cons of the arrangement.
Fortunately, working from home is a lot more common than it used to be so there is a lot of great advice out there that can really help make it a good experience.
Here are 3 quick tips to get organized to help keep you productive:
1. Create a Specific Space to Call Your Office
You need a place to work that is comfortable, quiet and specifically setup for the work you need to do. You don’t need a lot of space and your home office doesn’t need to cost a fortune, but it needs to be your space. I really like The Ultimate Frugal Home Office that Jason over at FrugalDad set up. He could have spent $400 per month for an office outside his home, but instead he did the smart thing and improvised. Be creative and find yourself the perfect look nook to call your own!
2. Remember You Are Working
As I said earlier, we are used to doing other things at home like watching television, doing our household chores and generally living our personal lives. However, once you literally bring work home, you’ve got to really discipline yourself. I’m a firm believer in turning off the T.V. and home phone as Meredith suggests in her 5 Tips for Working at Home that appeared as a guest post over at Organizing Your Way. You’ve got to create a mental buffer in your mind between work hours and personal time to remain productive. Distractions are plentiful so be sure to watch yourself closely so you don’t stray too far off the work path!
3. Make a Specific Plan of What to Accomplish
Do you ever have those days when you were incredibly busy, but don’t feel like you accomplished a thing? In my experience, that can happen a lot working from home. The antidote is to have a specific plan for what you want to accomplish and to mark things off the list as you get them done. Ron at the Wisdom Journal offers some excellent advice in How To Plan Your Week In 20 Minutes. Having a specific plan always helped to keep me focused and organized.
Be Productive Working From Home
Just a little forethought can transform working from home from a boondoggle to a very pleasant, productive experience. These tips will help get you started in the right direction. As you gain some experience, you are sure to find even more ways to get organized. It takes a little time and effort, but for many, working from home is the ultimate arrangement!
How do you stay productive working at home? Leave me a comment and let me know!
Photo by blupics
I haven’t conquered this one yet. I know I should act like I’m going to work. Get up, get dressed, go into my home office and WORK, only coming out for restroom breaks and lunch. I’d be so much more productive were I to do that. Unfortunately my home office is pristine because I work on the couch in front of the TV, sigh. One of these days…
SimplyForties´s last blog ..Operation Nicaragua, A Plea for Help
SimplyForties – It is definitely tough to be disciplined when working from home. I struggled with it too when that was my situation. It is just too easy to find other things to do sometimes. It was a lot easier for me to procrastinate back then. I could always find something ‘more important’ to do around the house. I guess this is why some employers still struggle with the idea of letting people work out of their houses.
great tips. I’m still working on getting a good place going for me. The only way I can stay productive is if I don’t have a ton of distractions! So I write late at night once my boy is in bed
Samantha @ Mama Notes´s last blog ..Rain Gutter Bookshelves
Samantha – I know what you mean. I need quiet, uninterrupted time to write or to do any significant task. Sometimes this is a challenge even though I have a dedicated office. There are so many things competing for my attention like children, co-workers, e-mail, phone calls, text messages, Twitter, the list goes on and on. All of these things are good, but they nevertheless draw me away from the task at hand sometimes.
Hey Jeff! Great post as always. Being a student means that at the moment my bedroom is my office and vice versa. I have read a couple of articles about what you said in step 1 – keeping a specific space. They all tend to agree that if you work near where you sleep you’ll have trouble concentrating because of feeling tired AND sleeping because your mind will be too full with thoughts about work.
I totally agree with you that a separate space is much needed!
I also wanted to let you know that I received ‘Young Guns’ today, and I’ve already started reading it!
It’s brilliant so far, I’ll let you know how it goes.
Thank you so much for your fantastic blog, keep writing! Jess.
Jessica – My workspace was in my bedroom in college too. I don’t know if it messed me up or not, but it certainly seems reasonable that it would. It is tough sometimes to find the ‘perfect’ place when you are working out of your house.
I’m glad to hear that you received ‘Young Guns’ and that you are enjoying it. It was my pleasure to get to send it to you.
I used to rent an office space where I do some of my work. But I end up either going to Starbucks or going home.
So I just made a small corner of my bedroom as my small office. Then I go out for coffee to continue what I am doing in middle of the day or when I need to meet with someone.
In this way, I get more things done. I also enjoy being mobile and flexible. Can’t really stay in a room with four walls that long.
ProductiveJohn´s last blog ..REASONS WHY PEOPLE BUY FROM YOU
Great tips here and I know because I work from home. Without a plan, it is SOOOO easy to get caught up into home stuff rather than work stuff.