Working remotely definitely has its benefits. Especially on days when you hear about certain train companies striking again, or when you’re already cold just looking out of the window. Working away from the office also means that when you’re having a bad day, you need to rely on yourself to motivate and cheer yourself up. Even for the most organized and motivated Productivity Ninja, remote working can sometimes drag down our mood, but we’ve got some tips on how to stay happy and productive.
1) Stay Connected
Although you might miss out on office chatter, make the most of this connected world we live in and start/participate in online conversations. Have a WhatsApp group for your team in which you don’t just talk about work but also about every day happenings. Our team of Productivity Ninjas, here at Think Productive, stay in touch through our Slack Channels. With working remotely, you have the benefit of being able to see lots of different views in a week – share your new productivity hot spots with your team – you never know, it might motivate them to come for a visit.
Even though technology helps us stay in touch without physically being there, make sure you pay a visit to your office every now and then. It’s nice to get some face – to – face time and catch up with everyone while being in the office.
2) Escape Work
It’s easy to fall into the habit of working longer hours and “just quickly checking your emails” if you don’t physically leave your office. Make sure you strictly divide work hours from your time off. This also works the other way around – avoid doing the dishes during your work hours. Rather take a break from work and walk around the block.
If you’re struggling with keeping to your work schedule while working remotely, try setting alarms for when you start and finish work and maybe also some reminders to take plenty of breaks throughout the day.
3) Keep Your Commute
As annoying as commutes can get, they also offer us the opportunity to clear our heads and fully switch off from work before we get home and focus our attention on making dinner, etc. Create a “mock commute” at the start and end of your work day – whether that’s reading a chapter of your book, taking the dog for a walk or just going down to the shops.
This won’t just help you clear your mind a little bit, but will also help you stick to your schedule and get your body moving at the beginning and end of the working day.
4) Move Around
Speaking of getting your body moving, don’t get all too comfortable sitting down all day. Try to stand up while taking care of certain tasks, for example phone calls, meetings and creative thinking tasks. Also make time to go for walks and exercise regularly. It won’t just help you stay fit and healthy but it will also help you boost your productivity.
Moving around doesn’t necessarily mean putting your running shoes on. Why not check out some coffee shops and co-working spaces in your area and change the environment you’re working in?
Do you work from home? What are your top tips to stay happy while working remotely? Share your tips with us in the comments below or @thinkproductive.
By Hannah Urbanek
Hannah is Think Productive’s Head of Outreach and the voice behind a lot of our blog posts and social media channels.
Try and have a seperate work area away from the rest of the house and possible distractions. You are then able to “shut the door” on your office at the end of your day as well. Always get dressed – don’t be tempted to stay in yur PJs and have that routine of preparing to go to work as you would normally. And ring other colleagues and make the whole conversation a catch up (no work) just as you would have a chat about someone’s holiday in the office. Builds rapport and then when you do need to call them on a work issue it wont feel like cold calling your own colleagues.
These are all brilliant tips, Colin. Thanks for sharing with us!
I have started spending the last 5 minutes in the hour walking on the spot or dancing around to some music. This is the best thing for starting each hour with energy and really helps to break up the day. This is something you could never do in the office with people watching you!
Love that idea! Yes, this one is definitely easier to do at home than in the office 🙂
I like the idea of keeping your commute – I try to do this with half an hour before after my hubby has taken the kids to nursery doing something reading/exercise related, and then after work I have to walk to nursery!
Working from home means all the home jobs are screaming at you too, and whilst it is helpful to be able to put the washing on whilst working from home it shouldn’t take over. I try to use what would be regular breaks in an office environment to do these tasks and not allow myself to do them at other times.
love these tips. i get up and move about at the end of every hour for 5 mins (normally just down the stairs and back up). I go with my mood. if im not in the kind of mood to concentrate i do something more creative!