Working from home is like a holiday. You get to laze around in the morning in a bathrobe, like a British, suburban Hugh Heffner. You decide when, where and how you want to work, usually while sipping on a cocktail with a miniature umbrella in it.
Scrap that.
Working from home is hell. You feel the need to justify your productivity at every juncture, stay in contact with your office once an hour, and handcuff yourself to your desk while avoiding the distractions of your personal life. OK, we’re being a little dramatic, but working from home is harder than most people think.
For anyone who doesn’t work from home, the former paragraph seems more likely than the latter, but if you do you’ll know that someone slaving away in an office tends to adopt a ‘grass is greener’ mentality. Whether you prefer working from home or not, it’s no secret that productivity occurs at a different rate to the more regimented routine of office life. Sometimes, days will pass without having to talk to anyone, extend yourself physically or even get out of your PJs. It’s important, therefore, to keep your brain and body in shape. Here are 5 IDEAL ways to keep your mind and body active when working from home.
WORK A ‘NORMAL’ DAY
Yes, we know; the appeal of working from home was meant to be the bidding adieu to a nine-to-five mentality. But, it’s important to still stick to a schedule in some form or other, if you want to make the most of your time. So set an alarm and get up at the same time each day. Have a lunch break timetabled in, and when you ‘clock off’, leave the work alone until the next day. Having focused timings like this will help you focus and use your time more efficiently.
PUT OFF PROCRASTINATING
Procrastination, in its many sneaky guises, is the enemy of home office based productivity. Because of the many temptations that exist in the home, as well as having no superiors to warn you against giving in to it, working from home can be the enemy of productive output. Turn off those notifications, or better still, delete those apps; ask your partner to take the batteries from the remote to work with them; have a strict ‘no browsing’ regime between allotted hours; do anything, basically, to minimise the lure of all that tempting technology in the house.
Also, set targets and goals; and make lists to make sure you stick to them. You’ll get a sense of accomplishment that can sometimes otherwise be lacking in the insular world of the home office.
FIND A GYM BUDDY
Getting to the gym is a struggle for most people at the best of times, but the obstacle seems even larger when you work from home and don’t need to leave the house all day. So to help you get motivated to venture out and get active, find a fitness fanatic friend and partner up with them. If they’re bothering you for another bout at the gym, you’ll be more likely to move from your home office chair and get physical. Although peer pressure is generally viewed as a bad thing, this kind of motivation gets the thumbs up from us if it’s going to keep us fit and healthy.
IMPROVE YOUR PROSPECTS
Career development while working from home is possible, but the narrow amount of networking and interaction that occurs in the domestic space means that moving up the ladder is sometimes more of a game of chance.
By studying online and getting qualifications, training and perhaps a degree, you’re vastly improving your career prospects, all from your favourite place; the comfort of your own home. There are countless online courses from fully accredited universities, each of which can offer vocational degrees and other qualifications for a price that’s significantly cheaper than a bricks-and-mortar university. With the flexible schedule that being your own boss grants, you can pace yourself as you wish in terms of studying. Plus, if you ever get ‘writer’s block’, being able to work on another project, like an online course, can really help your creativity and help you be more productive with your paid work.
GET ZEN
Transcendental meditation is the ideal way to centre yourself during a busy day, and will provide you with some breathing space during the sometimes rudderless hours which entail working from home.
To start meditating you’ll need guidance, so find a meditation centre in your local area to learn more. Alternatively, David Lynch’s book Catching the Big Fish is a great read on the relationship between creativity and meditation, and will bring both enlightenment and motivation to your day.