Top 10 tips on how to stay motivated and focused at home

A change from a busy office environment to a quiet living room, could be a daunting thought for someone who hasn't done it before.

With many businesses allowing people to work from home, staying motivated and focused is the one thing people find most challenging. One of the biggest drawbacks from working remotely is how to stay productive when there could be so many distractions to draw you away from your work. With sufficient planning, you can very easily become extremely productive at home which could result in you working faster, and smarter.

Here are our top 10 tips on how to stay motivated and focused whilst at home :-

1. Wake up at normal time

Some people think that working at home means they can work any particular working pattern, quite the contrary! If you’re new to remote working, we would suggest to start by doing similar hours to what you normally do. Follow your standard routine; make your bed, get showered, have breakfast and then you are ready to start the day.

2. Have a dedicated workspace 

Having the right environment when you’re working at home is key to you being focused and motivated at work. Working where you sleep is not something we would suggest. If available, a spare room with a desk set up or a living room table where you can use a laptop, computer or tablet. Failing that, working on your sofa will also work.

3. Dress like you’re going to work

Wearing your pyjamas all day will not give you that motivation to get your work done. Mindset is so important. If your work attire is smart casual clothes, we would suggest wearing that for the first couple of days.

4. Plan out your day

Your day shouldn’t be any different to your working day in an office. Plan your day in two halves (the morning and the afternoon). We suggest that you have dedicated tasks to complete throughout the day to keep your mind busy. This will ensure that you are focused on the job in hand.

5. Work towards a goal each day

When working at home, it’s best to try and reach a goal for each day. You don’t need to have a project based role to achieve this. As mentioned above, if you break down your daily goals into easily manageable tasks, it’s much easier to see what is achievable for that day.

6. Minimise your distractions

Distractions are the number one pain point for anyone working remotely from home. Some cannot be helped, for example looking after children, but we suggest you try and minimise the chances of being distracted. If you are living alone, the number one distraction would be the TV. Listening to the radio instead to keep your mind busy will give you background noise and will help with the silence. If you do have children and you are lucky enough to have another room to work in, we suggest setting up your workstation there.

7. Interact using video

 We believe this will be the number one tactic to staying motivated and focused at home. Video platforms like Skype, Zoom, Google Hangouts and FaceTime gives everybody the option to virtually see their colleagues. This will still give you a sense of belonging and these calls can be scheduled just like meeting.

8. Speak to colleagues

Not only using video, but daily phone calls with colleagues is something you should be doing. This can also be done via Microsoft Teams, Whatsapp groups, Slack and other platforms. Keeping in touch regularly with colleagues will help your mental health and wellbeing.

9. Take regular breaks

When you are working from home and you are very focused, some people have the tendency to push through and work without any breaks. We suggest that you do take a break, grab some food, take a breather or even take a walk to recharge your mindset. If you are constantly sitting at a computer all day, screens can cause headaches and pain behind your eyes.

10. Reward yourself

Every element of your standard working day in an office can be replicated when working from home. This will boost your morale. If you have targets in place which means you would finish early, keep this in place. That glass of wine or beer at the end of the day will feel much more rewarding if you have completed all your tasks you set out to complete.

If you have any questions about any of these tips or would like to chat more about job opportunities, please get in touch and we will be happy to help you.