How to Increase Your Productivity When You Work From Home

You wake up to an already full plate of tasks and it seems the list gets bigger and bigger as each hour passes by.

This is what happens to me. I’m an independent travel agent and I work from home.

It’s a toss up whether I’ll be able to fold that bucket of laundry that’s been sitting there from the night before or if I’ll have a chance to schedule that eye exam I’ve been meaning to get done for the last month.

I’ve been working from home for over 7 months now, and I’m finally finding my groove when it comes to maximizing my productivity. It’s not perfect !

I’ve developed a system to organise my work, which gives me time to be be more productive, believe it or not !

If you find it a struggle to get all your client work done and then get all your house chores done in a day, these tips that I’m about to share with you will increase your productivity.

It did for me and I’m sure it will for you !

1. Get Digitally Organized

Until just recently, my desktop was the dumping ground for every image or video I downloaded, every free eBook or upgrade I received.

You know the saying about having a messy house equals having a messy mind ? It’s the same with your laptop or computer.

Having a messy desktop just means you’re wasting time finding what you need. The best thing you can do is clean up your desktop and folders.

I have folders for each of my clients. Inside I have folders for preferred partners, best deals and anything else associated with travel.

For my clients I have a master folder for clients and then each client has their own folder. Within their folder is a location then the content.

Not only is it a good idea to organise your digital files, but it’s probably a good idea to name your files the same.

Using lower-case letters and using a dash in between words helps me find my files easier.

If your desktop is a mess, take an hour and clean it up ! You’ll end up saving time for more important tasks !

2. Work Smarter

I’m sure you’ve heard this right ? But, do you really follow it ? Do you find it takes you hours to create an image for your post ? Or, it takes your two hours to write a post ?

If so, you may not be working smarter. One thing I did to help me increase my productivity was practice my writing.

Another thing I did was increase my rate as an independent travel agent. My time is limited and if I was going to make a living doing this, I needed to make posting worthwhile.

Instead of working harder by slaving away writing for peanuts, I’m working smarter because now I’m being paid my worth as a writer.

Since a lot of my work requires research, screenshots, saving images, fact-checking and highly engaging copy, I need all my focus dedicated to my online business.

Stopping to check a text or to scroll through Facebook to see what that notification is on my phone just stops my flow of working

It’s an easy thing to do, but a hard thing to follow. Especially if you are addicted to email and social media.

3. Block Out Noise

My house can be noisy.

And just because it’s bed time, it doesn’t mean it’s always quiet.

My house mate in the room nextdoor talks to his family in Fiji for a good 45 minutes before he falls asleep, and I can hear them on the phone.

So, I have to block out the noise by listening to music on my headphones. And you know what ? I have found I was more focused, creative and was able to zip through my client work in no time.

And it’s not something that only works for me; studies have proven the effectiveness of using ambient music to spur creativeness.

It’s on real low and for some reason I’m able to get more work done, and before I thought I’d need complete silence to work !

4. Delegate Your Work

The plan to get all your work done before your child woke up from their daily nap didn’t happen.

Or, the report you write every week was late.

Things like this happen to me all the time. It isn’t detrimental to my business, but it slows me down and I end up working harder and not smarter.

That’s when delegating tasks or automating tasks is essential to helping you stay productive.

For me, if my girlfriend wants to help “fold” the laundry, I’ll let her. She can put her own socks and undies away herself or put the hand towels in the bathroom.

In my business, I often outsource writing and sometimes research. This frees up my time and helps me generate more income.

I’m also using Tailwind to automate my Pins and I’m finding that’s super helpful. I’ll have to start looking into Buffer or Hootsuite to schedule my other social media posts.

Working from home doesn’t have to be lonely. Involve your friends and family and enlist their help!

5. Pay Attention to Burnout

It’s super easy to burnout when you work for yourself.

Your brain doesn’t automatically shut off when work is done for the day.

It’s important to remember that it’s quite easy to burnout as an online business owner.

You have to pay attention to the tasks that are burning you out. It might be having to clean up the living room, put a load of laundry in and then prepare dinner.

You’re tired and every little thing is exhausting. I get you !

I still work several hours after I’ve eaten my dinner. For most people though, the best time to get most of your work done is in the morning.

We’re awake, refreshed from having a good night’s sleep and ready to take on the day.

Instead of starting off with a million things to do, the best thing I did was divide tasks up. I do some at night before bed and the rest in the morning after breakfast.

This usually works and frees up time to check my emails, get my tasks in order and start my day.

And finally, avoid burnout by taking time for yourself. If it’s watching TV or having a night, then schedule it in.

For me, my guilty pleasure is watching Sport. If I can, I would binge watch, but that’s just not being productive !

Treat Each Day Differently !

For me I need to remember that even though I have a schedule, not every day will turn out that way.

My client piece needs more quotes than what I had thought and now I have to write a whole new email complete with new images and supporting quotes/facts.

While it’s a good thing to have a plan for the day, treat it as a fluid plan. With travellers you have to be flexible.

Thanks for reading. Over to you ! Do you have any extra tips to help you increase your productivity ?

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