01. Deliberately
prepare for work.
Part of this preparation is to plan your work for each day well in advance and
to determine how long you will be working for that day. When the day arrives,
take deliberate steps, including dressing up to get ready for work as you will
normally do in a formal work environment. When you dress up for work, it
is easier to take yourself more seriously and to maintain a workplace attitude
while at work. You must work only in your designated work space within the
house by going there each day with a mindset to work.
02. Be organized. Even if you work at home, experts advise that you must have a work plan and you must make efforts to work this plan. The informality involved in working at home should not be an excuse for you not to plan your work for each day. The number of hours must be known and all the work you will do to fit into those hours must be in your work plan before you commence work for the day. A to-do list can help you to be more organized and less tempted to slack off or multi-task. That way, you can guarantee efficiency and effectiveness even though you are working informally.
03. Avoid distractions. Yes, no doubt, working at home can have a lot of
distractions. These distractions could emanate from your TV set, visitors,
spouses, kids and even pets. Doing some pressing household chores also
constitute a major distraction. You must be professional enough to know how to
keep all these distractions away when you settle down to work.
04. Take short breaks
at intervals. Taking short
breaks at regular intervals to stroll around or to grab a cup of tea/coffee is
one great way to fight fatigue. Short breaks also help you to take in some
fresh air, relax your eyes, stretch aching muscles and gather your thoughts. On
getting back to work after each short break, you are usually more focused, more
efficient and more productive.
05. Be focused. When the day’s work begins, you must do everything
possible to remain focused totally on the work to be done while taking all
necessary actions to get the work done as scheduled. You must avoid doing
personal and unproductive things during your work period. You should endeavor
to follow your to-do list one item at a time until you fully tick off
everything you have scheduled to be done in each period.
