Many people in Britain work from home, such as the self-employed or those that are employed as remote workers for other companies (like virtual assistants or IT staff).
Whilst the vast majority of people would relish the opportunity of working from home, those that do will tell you that one of the downsides to working from home is losing their mojo – or to put it another way, not having much motivation to do the work they are supposed to be doing!
If you work from home and you are struggling to keep yourself motivated, then here are some top tips for you to get back into that work cycle and stay on top of things!
Stick to a set routine
The one stumbling block that many home workers face is having a set routine. When you work from home, you don’t need to be up and out the door by a certain time to get to work by 9am, for example, but you should still stick to a similar routine!
I do a lot of my work from home, and sometimes I am guilty of working really late on a project, having a lie-in the next morning and then repeating the cycle for the rest of the week.
These type of working hours may suit some people, but for others it’s not a good thing to make a habit of because you waste valuable hours during the day which you could effectively use to communicate with other people in relation to your work, and you also miss out on time with your family in the evening.
Therefore, you should stick to a set routine. For example, get up at 7:30am, make sure that you have your shower and breakfast soon after that, and be ready for work at 9am on the dot! Take a lunch break just as you would in the middle of the day, and then finish working at say 5pm or 6pm.
This routine will also help you to cut down on the amount of stress you have, as well as complaints from your family members that they never see enough of you anymore!
Visit the office once a week
If you work for a company that has a physical office somewhere, then you should make the pilgrimage to it once a week.
It helps you to get out of the house, interact with other humans, and catch up on any important work-related issues or project updates that are easier to explain in person than over the phone or via email, for example.
I get pretty cranky if I don’t set foot outside of my house after a couple of days, as it feels like I am virtually chained to my desk! So to avoid this sort of thing happening to you, get out of the house and see your colleagues every week!
Don’t overdo it
Finally, make sure that you don’t take on more work than you can handle. Doing so will raise your blood pressure, make you stressed, and annoy your boss or clients because you aren’t devoting as much time to their projects as you ought to be!
Chatting with a business coach may also help, as they can suggest ways for you to improve your home working environment and steps you can take to make everything more manageable.
There is a plethora of business coaches out there, but make sure you check out testimonials of past clients so that you can hire the right one for you (the ActionCOACH reviews website shows testimonials from their clients).
