I know a lot of people are going to be working from home over the next few weeks because of COVID-19 shutdowns. This might seem weird if you’re used to working in a classroom or with teams. And you might find it hard to stay focused, especially if everyone else in your family is stuck at home, too.
I’ve been working from home for a few years both in my business and when I worked in the news industry. So I want to share some tips to help you get things done!
Remember, there is no wrong way to do this – unless you’re just gonna nap all day. You gotta find what works for you when you’re home. I asked friends, colleagues and fellow entrepreneurs for some of their best tips! You’ll see that people who work from home or run businesses from their couches all have their own methods that are all so varied. The key is figuring out what will work for you.
Create a work from home space
If you have an office, extra bedroom or dining room that you can take over, set up camp there. Make a sign if you need to. “Mom’s office – keep out!” Clean up before you start your day so you won’t be tempted to procrastinate.
Daniel Palmer, who works remotely for ViacomCBS as a web developer, likes to listen to music to keep things from getting too quiet, and he makes sure his workspace is clear of distractions. “I try to keep the house as clean as possible at night so I don’t get distracted constantly cleaning after my kids and stuck doing house chores all day.”
Keep your essentials ready. Water, coffee, or snacks that you have at work. I keep desk toys nearby to help me think.
Prep your computer, especially if it’s your own. Run some cleanup and diagnostics so your machine doesn’t lag. Test your internet service, too. Update your virus software.
Do you have backup or cloud service running? You don’t want to lose your work. If you’re working from a shared server or dropbox, save your work there so your co-workers can access your files if they need to. Communication and access are super important to make things work when you’re all scattered.
Set up some boundaries
About that sign again: boundaries are a serious thing. Let your family know this is your dance space. It’s tough if you’ve got littles, but maybe you can set them up in a play area or take turns with your partner keeping the kids busy.
Headphones can help. Or try my friend Toni Anne Lisante’s method for taking calls: “I lock myself in the bathroom and put the phone on mute while I’m not talking so no one hears “mom, mom, mom, mom, mom!”
Set some office hours and then stick to them. Post your hours online or on the wall if you need to so that your family, your colleagues and you know when it’s work time.
Be aware of distractions
One of the downfalls of staying home is all the stuff you love is there: your kids, your dog, your Netflix account! If you need to, go offline. Unplug the TV. Set your chat window to do not disturb. You can set up a snooze on your gmail. Make sure you let people like your boss know you’re going off the grid so they don’t send out a search party. Banish your phone to another room and try not to get sucked into social media debates.
Tricks to stay motivated when you’re working from home
Make a list of all the things you need to get done. (See this post to grab a free printable!) Highlight your top two or three items. And then get them done. Eat that frog as they say. Once that’s off your plate, you’re going to have lots of time for other things.
My friend Krista Mettler of Skye Media, has been working from home since forever, and loves lists as much as I do. They her get through her day as a music publicist. “I know everybody’s to-do lists are different, but I set calendar reminders on my Google calendar. Anything that’s due that day or that I need to take care of goes right on my calendar,” she says.
Do you know about the Pomodoro Technique? You set a timer – like those tomato-shaped kitchen ones – and work until it pings. Then, take a break. Using a timer or alerts on your phone or home assistant device will help you remember to not only take breaks, but keep you from getting so far into the flow that you forget to feed the pets.
Don’t spend all day on your butt!
Remember to take breaks! Especially if you’re stressed out about work and the news. Work in some time for rest or an episode of The Office. Or go hang out in your yard for a bit. Sunshine and fresh air are so rejuvenating – as long as you keep your social distance.
If you’re overwhelmed, put on some relaxing music and make some coffee. Have a one-minute dance party. Making a plan will help with the potential stress.
Get into a routine
One thing all of the people I asked had in common was routine. I’m all for working in pjs or comfy clothes, but if getting into some clothes you need to iron makes you feel more adult, keep up with that part of your routine.
My friend Anna Benjamin says getting dressed makes her more productive. “I treat my days as “real” work days. I get up, get showered, get dressed in “real” clothes, and then go to my office to work my day. If I stay in pajamas or pretend I can work anywhere in the house aside from my office I find that I wander and get far less done.”
Letita Stafford, a virtual assistant, makes accesories part of her routine. “My fun tip is: I put earrings on in the morning and generally take them off at the end of the work day (unless I’m going out!).”
You can also start some new habits that will get you into the groove from home. Have that dance party before you sit down. Organize your space. Go for a quick social distance-y walk around the block. And then get to it.
“Routine isn’t for everyone but it helps motivate me and kind of flip the switch in my head that it’s work time,“ says Kara Childs of Happy Place Virtual Assistance and Social Media Management.
My friend Grayleen Mandile says that working from home can be demanding, but worth it. “Routine helps me. Wake up, go to the gym, take a shower, get dressed, make coffee and go down to my office. I work and take lunch at noon and try to sign off at a reasonable time. I really don’t have the choice to be “distracted” or not disciplined because my job is very demanding so having routine works for me. I’ve been working from home part time for a few years now and wouldn’t have it any other way.”
It can take some time to get used to it all (especially if you have the kids, dogs, partners around), but you’ll be fine. Just about everyone else will be working from home, too.
Good tools for working from home
Here are some good tools for working at home. A lot of them are free.
Loom for recordings
Zoom, for conference calls
Google Docs/Drive, Dropbox for file sharing
Trello, Asana, Airtable for planning
Slack/Google Hangouts, Skype, Facetime for staying in touch
More pointers from pros who work from home
Rebecca Hallbach Paciorek (Blue Dot Digital Marketing): Set office hours for clients AND your family to respect work time.
Amanda Irwin (Graphic Designer): Lots of caffeine and I force myself to go to the library or somewhere with WiFi that isn’t my home. If I’m at home I’ll get distracted by a million other things.
Daniel Palmer, ViacomCBS: Also reserve time for yourself like for lunch and exercise. It’s all about making a routine and sticking to it. If you have close knit team member/manager you can message/email, giving them updates daily on progress and things you’ve completed will keep you in check too.
Sendi Dadic, pharmaceuticals: I need background noise to do my best work so I watch Netflix shows. The shows are my noisy coworkers in the background.
Krista Starzynski Mettler, publicist, Skye Media: For work pitching, I use Airtable to track everything, and I have Zapier tied in to that to automatically send deadlines to my Google calendar. That has been THE BEST THING EVER because it basically streamlined things for me in the biggest way possible. (Disclaimer: it took me a few months to get Airtable and Zapier set up in a way that I like, so it’s not a quick solution. But it’s great for managing outreach and tracking items, and it’s also my database.)
Matt Maglodi, SEO specialist: I’ve been doing this since 2012. We run a successful SEO company. I recommend having a defined space to work in, even if it’s a corner of your bedroom – that is your work zone. Take breaks, go on a daily walk … get friends on Skype and chit chat away.
Letitia Z Stafford, virtual assistant: My home office is situated in a corner or my living area so I must have good boundaries. For me I work set hours 8 am – 4 pm roughly. But I treat it like I am going to work. I have several ways to stay organized. I use my Google Cal to list clients I will be working on that day and then I use Microsoft Todo to drill down on each task I need to complete for my clients.
Amy Kant Ridenour, Northwoods Web Solutions: I work from home at least once a week, and now will be doing so for the foreseeable future. I think the key is really to make sure you’re focused when you’re working. Don’t have the TV on. If your kids or pets are distracting, go to another room. I usually spend part of the day with my laptop in the living room snuggled with my dogs, and part of the day in my home office at the desk.
Melanie Albright, business strategist, Bright Moments Online: Time blocking has been a huge success factor!! Every work day I put time on my calendar for: checking in with my team, checking in with clients, client work, sales, etc.
