If you’re one of the fortunate people working from home, adjusting to this new way of life could be challenging. When we’d usually be reporting to our desks, we’re now finding ourselves at our kitchen tables or on our couches, attempting to tackle our ever-growing to-do lists. The distractions are endless and inevitable, but you still have to perform your duties and meet whatever deadlines you have.
To help, we polled the team here at French Connection to get their personal tips and best practices on maximizing productivity while working from home.
Create a Morning Routine
Grabbing your computer right after opening your eyes might seem like you’re maximizing your time working, but in fact it’s doing the opposite. Getting ready in the morning gives you time to mentally prepare for the day and make that transition from home to work life the same way your commute would. This means making breakfast, putting on makeup (if that’s your thing), and wearing a cute outfit!
Get Dressed
We don’t mean put on “real clothes” just for that video conference call, but do it in general, do it for you! We all know the power of a killer outfit so why deny ourselves that? Feeling put together catapults you into a good mood that makes you more eager to get things done!
Look 1: a comfy chambray romper
Look 2: a happy, colorful dress with a drawstring waist
Look 3: loose fitted button-up with boyfriend jeans
Have a Dedicated Workspace
Now that you’re feeling like the best version of yourself it’s time to sit down and get some work done. Creating a space that’s “for work only” helps you zone in and concentrate on your tasks. Having a desk, ideally in a separate room, is optimal. But if space is tight like it is in NYC for instance, getting inventive and using your kitchen table or transforming your couch into a comfy office works just as well.
Make a Detailed To-Do List
If your to-do lists have thus far only consisted of overarching goals we suggest breaking them down into smaller steps so that at the end of the day when you look at all those crossed off items you feel more accomplished and with that, more motivated.
Get Rid of Internet Distractions
Without having the eyes of your coworkers on you the temptation to look at memes all day is real, so why not use some of those apps and browser extensions to play that role at home? Turning off the internet or leaving your phone far far away are also great options, but if you can’t work without them, Cold Turkey, Freedom, and others are the way to go!
Set Work Hours
And stick to them! If your hours at the office are 9am to 6pm that’s how it should be at home too. Knowing you have to “leave the building before they lock up” makes you prioritize better and work faster. The mindset that you have all day and night to finish a project will not only slow you down but doing so will actually burn you out quickly. An easy way to set these boundaries for yourself is to make plans to call a friend or arrange a Tiger King watch party with your household (yup, we’ve jumped on that bandwagon and it’s a wild ride).