In the US alone, an incredible 42% of the labor force works full-time from home.
Working from home has become a new normal after the COVID-19 pandemic, and millions of people are looking to make it permanent. There’s just something about working from home that makes it seem so appealing. You get to work at your convenience, and you don’t have to commute.
However, it’s not all sugar and spice. Focusing tips are necessary because working from home also means dealing with distractions left, right, and center.
Walking the dog, getting some chores done, Netflix, anyone? How about catching that last video game before you finally get to work until you realize how late it is ten games later.
Your productivity could plummet completely as you procrastinate through the day. You may find that you’re just dragging yourself through work without much motivation, getting less and less done.
The question is, how do you focus and keep your productivity and motivation as high as it was in the office or higher? In this guide, we’ll take you through the best focusing tips. You can use them to minimize distractions and increase your focus when working from home.
1. Create Your Dedicated Work Area
Creating a dedicated work area is one of the most important things you have to do when working from home. It may seem easier to sit on the couch with your laptop, but you can’t be productive in front of the TV. These are obvious distractions.
Even worse, your health will be at risk because your ergonomics and posture will be all wrong. Maintaining the wrong posture results in backache, digestion problems, and a plethora of other health issues.
Create your dedicated work area and find an ergonomic desk and chair. You’ll be comfortable throughout the day.
2. Create a Working Schedule
If you want to know how to focus while working from home, understand that having a schedule goes a long way.
It’s one of the best focusing tips because you know exactly what you should be doing every hour of the day. You’ll minimize wasted time and get a lot of work done at the end of the day.
If you work well with a to-do list, then arrange everything that needs to be done and cross them off as you achieve them. Write everything down from your morning routine to your working hours.
One important thing you can do is make sure your schedule reflects your natural energy. As a result, you can get more done without exhausting yourself. If you’re more creative in the morning, set that time for brainstorming and other critical tasks.
You can also schedule your conference calls before your lunch break. Later on, set afternoon hours to close up your projects. Train all your work colleagues and team members to respect your time and productivity.
3. Set Your Workplace Boundaries
Now that you have a work area, you need to set boundaries. Tell your family members that your work area is off-limits. They should only come to you when absolutely necessary.
Many people also feel that remote work simply means you’re not doing anything. This means that they will come over and expect you to host them. Make everybody understand that you have a business to run or a job to keep even if you’re at home.
4. Dress for Work
The last thing you want to do is spend your day in your pajamas because this will not put you in a business mindset. The most significant part of working from home involves putting your mind into it. If there are any focusing tips you’ll adhere to when working from home, this one should be among them.
While it may not be necessary for you to wear a three-piece suit, you most certainly need to dress up like you’re going to work. One thing you need to understand about human beings is that we are creatures of habit. You need to develop good working habits if you’re going to stay focused and productive when working from home.
As comfortable as pajamas may be, dressing up puts you in a professional mindset, which means you’ll get more work done by the end of the day. Go through a regular morning routine like you did while going to the office. Make your bed, change your pajamas, brush your teeth and hair, and do everything else you deem necessary.
Then dress up as if you were stepping out and step into your designated work area.
This tip also applies to students studying from home. One of the most effective virtual school study tips is to dress up like you’re actually going to school.
5. Keep Off Social Media
Social media is in the leagues of Netflix. There’s that reality TV show you just can’t seem to get enough of. Once you get in, it’s like a vortex you can’t escape.
For this reason alone, you need to keep off social media completely during working hours.
This focusing tip is one of the best. There are so many ways for you to avoid the temptation of being sucked into social media.
There are numerous apps out there that can help you restrict the amount of time you spend on social media. Some will lock you out entirely for a designated amount of time.
You can also utilize Google Chrome extensions. They allow you to set specific time restrictions on different websites.
Selected sites won’t be accessible for as much time as you’ve set. You’ll have no option but to stay away. It is also one of the best home school study tips because it helps zone in the focus.
6. Beat Procrastination
Procrastination can destroy your life. It does a lot more harm than most people think, apart from just losing time.
Losing time in itself is one of the worst things you can do because it’s never recovered. However, there is more to it that should motivate you to beat procrastination.
It’s a bit tempting to procrastinate when you’re at the office. However, it gets a lot worse when working from home because they’re more distractions. It’s easy for you to put things off for later or for the following day.
No supervisor is looking down on you, and you’re not bound by office hours. So you take advantage. The thing is, this will cause you stress in the long run.
You see, at one point, you will have to meet deadlines. You’ll push yourself against time to get everything done all at once. More so if missing deadlines may have grave consequences for your business or job.
You can’t afford to take this risk. The best thing you can do is beat procrastination and get everything done on time.
7. Enjoy Breaks as Much as Possible
Figure out how many breaks you should take and how long they should be. It can be quite tricky because if you make them too long, they will throw you off track. You really won’t feel like going back.
Making them too short, however, can be counterproductive. You may exhaust yourself before the day ends. One of the most important breaks you should take is a lunch break.
Research what to eat for focus and avoid eating while you work. It gives your brain a break a well, and you’ll have time to concentrate on your food. You’re able to enjoy your meals more when you’re mindful, and you can avoid overeating.
As much as you want to minimize distractions, if it gets to a point where you’re daydreaming. Your kids may also be asking for your attention, so take a break. It may spark your creativity, and when you get back, you’ll have better focus.
A break can actually be incredibly beneficial when you’re stuck on a problem.
For instance, you may be dealing with code that just doesn’t make sense. You could have data that doesn’t seem to add up or content that doesn’t seem to flow. Taking a break will be good.
Hydrate, get some fresh air, or just do something different for a while. You may see where the problem was when you get back, as you’ll have a clearer mind. You can also boost your energy and focus by using certain products, such as Delta-8, which you can click to read more about here.
8. Schedule House Chores for Later
House chores can be a complete distraction and could take up a good part of your day if you’re not careful.
As tempting as it is to run your dishwasher as you work, it may interrupt your focus and workflow. It’s important that you set aside some time for your chores on your schedule, whether in the morning or evening.
9. Automate What You Can
Technology has made many things in life so much easier, and you can make it your administrative assistant. Schedule all important tasks that you need to do during the day. Filter out unimportant emails during business hours and pre-schedule emails or social media posts.
Set up automatic billing for your customers. Use a different ringing tone for business matters on your phone to help you know when to accept calls.
10. Know When to Stop
Now that you’re working from home, you’re likely to mix business with personal life. Everybody who lives in your home can see you, so you don’t need to make time for them anyway.
However, work is work regardless of where you’re working from. If you set a working schedule, you need to set personal time with your family as well. You also need to set some time for self-care.
You may not have a physical barrier between your business and personal life. Still, avoid working too many hours and leaving less time for family and friends. It may be very tempting to get a little more work done after dinner or during weekends.
However, it can easily lead to burnout and missing valuable time with your family. Try as much as you can to separate your business from your personal life and find a balance between the two.
11. Get Out and Work From a Different Place
Sometimes you find that working from a coffee shop or a co-working space results in higher productivity than working from home. These places may be noisier and have the potential for a lot more distractions. Still, you may be able to find your focus and get more done at the end of the day.
It’s also very important for you to have regular people-time because isolation can have a toll on you. Even if you happen to be an introvert, being alone all day, every day may have an impact on your emotional health and social life. This makes it important for you to build regular in-person relationships.
You can attend gatherings, seminars, and coffee dates with friends. Alternatively, create a co-working space with some of your colleagues and other remote workers. The trick here is to have regular human interaction.
You can also schedule face-timing with your team members or colleagues. Catch up on your projects on video instead of just calling them on your phone.
Focusing Tips: Maintaining Productivity and Focus While Working From Home
There are tons of benefits that come with working from home. However, without self-control and discipline, you can lose focus and be less productive. These focusing tips are designed to help you create a working environment in your home.
This way, you can get work done and still maintain a healthy personal life. Start by creating a schedule, creating a working area, and maintaining boundaries so that everything else will fall in place.
Now that you know how to stay focused when working from home, please check our website for more informative and interactive posts.
Laila Azzahra is a professional writer and blogger that loves to write about technology, business, entertainment, science, and health.