All things considered, I’m a pretty focused person.  I enjoy my career as a freelance business content writer, and I take what I do very seriously.  And yet, working from home has tested my professionalism more than once.  The simple fact is that working from home (especially full time) is a huge challenge and I’m here to save you from the worst of it!

Tips for staying productive when working from home

While not a total list, these are the four tips that can usually help me stay on-task the easiest when working from home.

• Set up formal, non-negotiable work hours: These hours should work with your natural clock, too.  For instance, those who are night owls may find it easier to work in the evening and late into the night.  For early birds, work hours will be most productive from dawn to lunchtime.  Design a schedule that works for your needs as much as possible, that way.  Otherwise, you’ll just be fighting yourself!

• Have an accountability buddy: Whether it’s a roommate, a spouse, a co-worker, or an online friend, having someone checking in on you regularly to keep you on your task will go a long way to actually helping you get on task.  After all, who wants to disappoint a nag, right?
  
  Similarly, you can be someone else’s accountability buddy, too!  Knowing that you are responsible for keeping a coworker on task can do wonders for your own focus and need to be productive.  No reason that you can’t be both at the same time, either, especially if your coworker or buddy is working the same hours that you are!

• Get distracted?  Get back to it: Annnnnd you got distracted.  Whoops!  No worries.  Once you realize that you’re distracted or being unproductive, just simply get back at it.  No hassles or self-punishment needed. Kind of like meditation, just acknowledge that you got off-task, and then work hard to get back on it.

• Embrace noise cancellation: I fought noise-cancelling headphones for a long time.  I just thought they were unnecessary.  However, the combination of noise-dampening headphones in combination with a great work playlist for focus and concentration, you’ll find that the hours will simply melt away and you’re going to actually feel — gasp — motivated to keep on working!

Working productively at home is possible

Despite what it may feel like some days, being productive during your home-based workday is absolutely possible.  These tips usually help cut down on distractions and they also keep me focused on the task at hand.  One last point to remember is that there will be days where you just can’t be productive.  But then again, that’s a work thing, not an at-home thing!  After all, how many hours have you spent at work mindlessly staring at the wall of your cubicle?  Exactly.

Did any of these tips help?  Please let me know!  Do you have any of your own you’d like to share?  Please do!

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