How To Improve Your Work Productivity Without Even Trying

Everyone thinks there is some kind of magic formula or a secret method that will help increase your work productivity and ensure you get all your work done within a specific period of time, but *spoilers* really there isn’t one! Sorry! The key to being productive is simply taking better care of yourself, listening to your own body, working to your rhythms and most importantly when you’re not being productive walk away, reset and come back. You won’t do yourself any favours trying to power on through this won’t help.

What does being productive actually mean? I’m referring to workplace productivity, looking largely at how much work is accomplished in your home office, during your working day. We all know some days we are more productive than others and some days it can be harder to stay on track, yet other days we can fly through our to-do list. So what can we do to keep the momentum going every day?

How To Improve Your Work Productivity Without Even Trying

Over the past few years, many of us have shifted into a more flexible working pattern. So, if you need to stay home and wait in for the plumber, you no longer have to book time off or miss out on valuable hours in the office. However, while it’s perfectly possible to do your job from your laptop anywhere in the world, it is important to create a workspace that allows you to work more productively. Let’s take a look at how you can achieve this.

Designate A Working Area In Your Home

A big mistake that lots of people working from home are making is working anywhere and everywhere in their home. While that is absolutely one of the luxuries you can afford to take advantage of, it’s important to have a designated space in your home just for work. Not only can you make sure that everything is organised and pieces of work aren’t littered around your home, but you can also make sure that you’ve got a quiet area in your home to concentrate and improve your work productivity. And, at the end of your working day, you can leave your work in that space and properly relax.

Working To Your Own Rhythm and Time Schedule

Whether you are an early riser or a night owl, you should always work to your own personal rhythm and time schedule. Having a structure to your day, very much like you would when going into the office, helps to put you into a work mode mindset and improves your work productivity.  Every day write a to-do list, that you work your way through with the top tasks being the most important. Having a list also helps with motivation as you tick off each finished task.  If you struggle with finding a work/life balance or stress about time consider completing a Time Audit. What is a time audit? You simply write down and block all the activities you do over a period of several days in order to get a clearer picture of how you spend your time. It enables you to examine and analyse how you are actually spending your time versus how you really want to spend your time. This is where you find you spend a bazillion hours on social media instead of doing the tasks that earn you money! (True Story)

Being Warm and Comfortable 

I talk a lot about having some kind of proper office set-up as this helps give the illusion of “going to work”, your family knows you are at work AND if you are lucky enough to have a separate room you can shut the door at the end of the working day, providing a clear distinction between work and home life. It’s a bit of a joke on Twitter, freelancers wearing scarves and fingerless gloves whilst working from home but hey guys if you want to be productive you need to be warm and comfortable. An efficient boiler will not only save you money but also keep you warm while giving you peace of mind that you won’t suddenly have to cope with cold water or a freezing home. Bbright offers you a smarter way to heat your home, with next-day new boiler installation and instant quotes available.

Get The Right Furniture To Improve Your Work Productivity

You can probably do most of your job from a dinky laptop wherever you decide to work. However, there will be parts of your job that require you to have more focus and the need to be in a much more comfortable setting. That’s why you need to make sure you’ve got the right office equipment at home as well as in the office. You’ll need a desk and a comfortable chair to start with, but you might also consider getting a filing cabinet of some sorts to make sure all of your paper documents are organised efficiently and improve your work productivity.

Make Sure You’ve Got Enough Light

Working productively means you need to have a setting that you feel comfortable in. Sure, working on your sofa in front of the TV might seem more than comfortable, but do you have enough light to see your keyboard? Are you having to squint your eyes on a regular basis just to get the bare minimum done? Making sure the room you work in has sufficient light is important, so you might want to consider switching to Roman Blinds so that you can pull them up when you need more light in the room. Venetian blinds do let in light, but they can also restrict light too which will make it harder for you to get everything done to the best of your abilities.

Take Regular Breaks To Improve Your Work Productivity

It’s not rocket science, sorry. BUT having said that how many of you don’t take regular breaks? How many times have you sat desperate for the toilet but you don’t go because you NEED to finish something? If you aren’t meeting your most basic needs then how can you possibly be working at maximum productivity. Usually for me, if I’m unproductive; not completing tasks I NEED to do in order to get paid but rather scrolling through social media and pretending I’m productive because I’ve commented on three posts – true story.   Either set a timer or after you complete a task do the following;

• Get up from your desk.
• Go to the toilet.
• Get a drink.
• Go outside for 5 minutes (as it warms up it’s nice to sit outside and take a break).
• If it’s lunch DO NOT eat at your desk.
• Walk around and stretch your legs (or consider investing in a standing desk to stop sitting down for long periods of time.
• AND if you’re not being productive walk away, reset and come back.

Have The Right Tools Around You For Success

Finally, if you really want to be more productive when working from home, then you should consider adding some other tools to your home office. Things like a printer, external screens to connect your laptop to, and even a speaker set up to listen to your favourite podcast can help improve your productivity levels no end.

While working from home does come with its perks, remember to create a productive space where you can concentrate on work and make sure you’re delivering the best outcomes as possible.

What tips do you have to stay on top of your productivity?

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