Many more employees and entrepreneurs are working from home nowadays as we go through the coronavirus pandemic, so I decided to share some of the tools I’ve learned in the last 5 years so the home office transition can be easier for you and you can be productive during these challenging times.
1- Set your Top Priorities the Night Before using a Post-it Note
One of the best ways I’ve found helps me have a productive day, is to have clear priorities from the start. An excellent way to do this is to make a short list at the end of your work day including the top 4 or 5 priorities you want to accomplish the next day. However, if they don’t fit inside a post it note, there are too many.
I learned this simple system from Tim Ferriss a while ago from his book “The 4-Hour Workweek” and it works remarkably well because it is easy to follow and it makes you think about what’s really important to move things forward.
This list does not have to include each and every activity or task you plan to perform, but it should focus on the most important items. I’m talking about the priorities you want to make sure get accomplished including things like making an important phone call, sending an important email or making a decision about a project. The important actions that will help you gain momentum as you keep going.
Here’s an insightful video where Tim Ferriss shares several ideas to be more productive:
2- Stick to a Healthy Morning Routine
When you first start working from home, you feel tempted to start working quickly after getting up in order to make the most of your day, but this is a big mistake that needs to be avoided.
Instead of getting up and starting work in your pajamas while having breakfast, make sure you follow a morning routine that includes drinking plenty of water, having a healthy breakfast as well as some form of physical activity even if it’s walking for 15 minutes around your block (or even inside your house or apartment during quarantine.)
Like this, you’ll allow your body to have some time to prepare for the day and “get activated.” Plus, you’ll allow it to continue doing something we all usually do without realizing it, doing a little exercise while commuting which allows us to become energized before a day at work.
Something I’ve found works great is taking a 30 or 45 minute walk while listening to motivating podcasts about topics I enjoy. Doing this, allows me to exercise, learn as well as accomplish what’s mentioned in the next item on this list…
3- Get at least a bit of Sunlight Early in the Day
Getting enough sunlight is often one of those things we don’t even notice or appreciate until you don’t have it for a while.
Most of us don’t notice it, but we often get at least a little sun while we commute, and if you no longer have the need to commute because you work from home, you’ll suddenly be at risk of not leaving your home during the day or getting out after sunset.
That can be problematic after a few weeks and can lead to depression among other health issues due to vitamin D deficiency which can cause mental health issues.
After struggling with this issue for a while, I’ve solved it by incorporating sunlight as part of my healthy morning ritual. During my morning walks I get about half an hour of sunlight.
During the COVID-19 quarantine, I’ve split the process to make things easier. I eat my breakfast outside to get 15 minutes of sunlight, and then walk inside my house for about 20 minutes while I listen to interesting podcasts related to entrepreneurship to get motivated before my workday begins.
Here’s a video with several interesting facts about the importance of getting enough sunlight:
4- Dress up a Little (comfortable and professional)
I’m not talking about wearing a suit and tie, or a cocktail dress everyday; I’m referring to avoiding the temptation of staying in your PJ’s all day long. Avoid this at all costs, it’s not a healthy habit and it’s not conducive to having a productive day.
How much should you dress up? The answer is: “It’s up to you” what’s important is that you keep it comfortable and professional.
If you plan to have an online meeting using video conference software (Zoom works great for this!) dress up enough with a look that’s compatible with the standard for your industry. If you’re a fancy business consultant, you could wear a nice dress shirt. If you’re a photographer, a colorful t.shirt would probably be enough.
A rule of thumb that works most of the time is wearing something you could bring to the office on a casual day, and that would allow you to answer the door without feeling embarrassed.
A pair of jeans and a decent t-shirt or dress shirt work well in most cases.
5- Have a Specific Place to work
If possible avoid working on the dinner table because you’ll have to move your computer before lunch and dinner. Not only is this dangerous for your equipment in case of a liquid-related accident, it’s terrible for your productivity and focus because you’ll lose momentum every time you need to move your computer, notebook and all your other belongings.
Instead, find a place that’s quiet where you can place your work related items so you can start working and take breaks without having to move everything. If the dinner table is your only option, try assigning a section of it for your work exclusively.
Here’s a short video to show you how much you can do with a space as small as a closet that may give you a few ideas:
6- Make Ergonomics a Priority
When you start working from home, you’ll probably start using the first chair you can find but you’ll soon realize that having a good chair does make a big difference when you spend a lot of time working.
I strongly suggest you invest in the best chair you can afford (within reason) because a good chair will last years, and it will end up saving much more money on physical therapy bills in the long run.
Here’s a short video on how to make your Workplace more Ergonomic:
5 Tips about Home Office Ergonomics:
Here’s an informative clip about how to Choose an Ergonomic Office Chair:
7- Don’t Sit All Day
Sitting down all day is very tempting when you work from home, but it’s not good for your health at all. In fact, it can lead to all sorts of health problems in the long term, so it is very important you get up, walk and stretch for a 1 or 3 minutes every hour.
On top of that, switching between a regular desk and a “standing desk” is one of the best ways to make sure you don’t end up sitting down for too long.
Although having a standing desk that allows you to switch heights during the day, they are not cheap and you may want to try something inexpensive before you commit to a bigger purchase.
There’s an easy middle ground solution you can explore so you can switch between a standing and a sitting desk during the day, and it works for desktop computers and laptops. Although your neck position will not be optimal with this set up, you’ll get a chance to experience the difference of switching between a sitting and a standing desk without having to spend too much initially.
Take a look at how much you can do with a few boxes:
And here are a few ideas to consider when you switch to a standing desk:
8- Make a Work Schedule (including breaks!)
One of the worst things you can do when working from home, is not having a clear schedule you actually follow. When you don’t have one, you end up working all day long and not having time to relax and recharge which ends up hurting your productivity.
An easy way to accomplish this is to set up calendar reminders for the start and end of your work day or setting up an alarm on your phone to remind you to turn your computer off so you can start your transition to end your work day and make your notes about the priorities for the next day.
9- Keep Track of Time
There are many ways to keep track of how many hours you work on certain projects. Although whiteboards and paper notebooks always work, leveraging digital tools can make things a lot easier.
The objective of this is to know how much time you spend working on certain activities. It’s like having a “digital timesheet” so you know how many hours you worked on a specific project by the end of the week.
Toggl is an excellent option to track the usage of your time. You can use the online time tracker on their website or install the desktop app for your computer. I use this all the time and it works remarkably well. You can get started with a free account and upgrade when you need it.
Here’s a short video that explains how to use Toggl:
10- Keep Track of your Productivity (and distractions too!)
It’s easy to remember tracking the projects you’re working on because they’re work related, but what about the time you spend reading the news? Do you know how much time you spend writing emails? How much time do you spend on Facebook or other social media platforms? How much time watching funny cats on Youtube or shopping on Amazon? That’s the bane of every home office worker’s existence. I’m talking about distractions!!
Also, do you know how many hours you spend using Zoom or Skype? How many hours do you spend writing on Word, Pages or Scrivener?
Having a tool that can track all this for you in the background while you work can be an eye opening experience that will help you notice you probably spend 10 times more time than you realize on distracting sites like Facebook, or browsing the news endlessly.
Using RescueTime is a great way to track all this and get a weekly report sent by email (which you can dissect online.) It’s an application you need to install on your computer and it works remarkably well.
Here’s a quick video that will give you an idea of how it works and type of information you can get when using RescueTime:
11- Distractions: If you can’t beat them, Block them!
Let’s face it, the internet can be VERY distracting and that’s not good for productivity. Sometimes, will power is enough, but if you keep finding your RescueTime reports keep telling you you’re spending too much time on Facebook or Youtube during your workday, there’s ways to avoid the temptation.
Just like it happens when you want to eat fewer cookies in order to lose weight. The best way is not to remember you should only have 2 cookies. The best way is to NOT have cookies available at home, and have healthy food lying around instead.
That’s what website blockers are designed to do. They focus on “locking away” the internet junk food, aka Facebook, Youtube, news sites or any other type of addictive online content you need to stay away from in order to be more productive during your work hours.
There are many out there, but one that I like because it’s easy to set up and get started is “Cold Turkey.” The free version allows you to block websites (you need to get an extension for some browsers) and the paid version allows you to block specific apps or programs, and includes other features like scheduling times when websites are blocked or protecting the internet access with a password.
If you want to be brutal about this, you could ask your spouse or roommate to set up the password for you, and not share it with you during work hours regardless of how much you beg.
Here’s a great video that will give you a quick overview of Cold turkey’s paid version:
12- Stay active using the pomodoro technique
Alternating between sessions of intense focus and relaxation is a proven way to get more things done. There are several pomodoro timers in the market, and the one I prefer is “Activity Timer – Interval Edition” for Mac.
Here’s another nice online pomodoro app you can try: Simple Pomodoro Timer
and you can learn more about the technique here:
13- Use Music Strategically
Having a silent work space is a blessing and it’s often one of the best ways to focus and be productive. However, if you find there’s some noise around you or you need a little extra help to focus, adding a little music to your day can be a great way to increase your productivity.
I prefer using a pair of headphones when I listen to music and there are 3 main options I use when it comes to music:
1- Whenever I feel like mixing things up and listening to something fun, I like using spotify to either find new music or review classic tracks I like.
2- When I want to do focused work, I listen to a small set of records I’ve listened to dozens of times, most of which don’t have lyrics.
3- When I really need to focus, I bring out the big guns and use “Focus at Will” (Desktop app or Phone App) which is an online music service with tracks designed to help you focus and be more productive. My favorite stations include: Alpha Chill, Water (which sounds like falling rain,) Cafe Focus (sounds like a busy coffee shop) as well as Uptempo.
In fact, I listened to Focus at Will while I was writing this article. I have a yearly subscription and it’s worth every penny.
I set up a 25-minute interval and the music stops after that time is over. Then I take a small break to walk and stretch a bit and repeat the process.
What’s most important is that you only use this tool while you’re working so your brain gets used to it.
You can learn more about how Focus at Will works over here:
14- Stay Hydrated (and go easy on the coffee)
Keeping a water bottle that can easily be closed to avoid computer accidents is one of the best ways to stay hydrated during the day. Something that works remarkably well is having a daily goal of refilling and drinking the entire bottle a few times per day (for example, maybe 3 or 4 times) to make sure you drink enough water to stay properly hydrated.
And then come “stimulant” drinks.
Although coffee is the classic “energy drink” I would suggest you pay close attention to how much coffee you drink in order to avoid drinking too much and messing up your sleep patterns.
If you do choose to drink coffee, try setting a limit to how late you allow yourself to drink it. For example, no later than 4 pm.
In my personal experience, I’ve stayed away from coffee for the last 4 months and it has helped me sleep better and avoid having the “morning coffee hangover” I couldn’t recover from unless I had my daily dose. Turns out, caffeine is addictive and you start building a tolerance level after some time and that’s why you often end up drinking more and more coffee which is not good for sleeping well.
I’ve replaced coffee with something that I think it’s even better and that’s “Yerba Mate,” a traditional South American herbal drink that’s gaining popularity around the world. Although it is traditionally consumed using a gourd and a metallic straw, I just use a regular metallic tea infuser to make things easier and it’s a delight. My stomach doesn’t hurt, I never feel jittery and never feel a morning coffee hangover. It’s a productive delight but, as with all stimulant drinks, moderation is the key and you should do your own research before making a decision.
You can learn more about the health benefits of Yerba Mate over here:
15- Stay connected and interact with others (even if you work alone)
Working by yourself can feel lonely quickly if you don’t find a way to stay connected with others around you. If you have a team of coworkers, using a shared chat is a great way to check-in during the day and feel the company and support of your team.
On the other hand, if you actually work by yourself; try calling a friend or family member at lunch, or setting up a video conference call with a friend you haven’t talked to in a while at the end of your work day.
Working from home has many advantages, but it can get lonely quick if you’re not careful. This is particularly problematic for introverts who usually don’t have a strong need to socialize. Along with getting enough sunlight, making sure you socialize enough is an important element of maintaining a healthy lifestyle that’s easy to neglect when you work from home, and because of this, it’s important you implement specific steps to make sure it happens.
This remarkable conversation between Tim Ferriss and Esther Perel includes some insightfully valuable ideas you can try on your next call:
16- Hold yourself Accountable by Making a Commitment with someone else
Having a weekly meeting with an Accountability Partner is one of the best ways to make sure you stay on track with your priorities.
In simple terms, you agree to have a 30-minute or 1-hour weekly meeting where you make a commitment to accomplish your most important goals for the upcoming week. Don’t go overboard, something between 5 and 10 important goals per week is a reasonable number.
The next week, you meet again and go over your list of goals one by one and explain if you accomplished each goal, and if you didn’t you explain why not, acknowledging you failed to keep your word. At the end of the meeting you establish the goals for the upcoming week and repeat the process.
It may not sound like much, but the discomfort of admitting you failed to accomplish something is surprisingly powerful and it works remarkably well to keep you focused and productive.
When choosing an accountability partner, look for someone who is supportive but firm and who will not hesitate to hold you accountable. Preferably someone who is down to earth and results oriented. If you choose someone who is exceedingly caring and polite, they’ll end up convincing you not to be so hard on yourself, and that’s not what works best. Someone who cares about the facts and who’s also supportive will usually be a great accountability partner. I strongly suggest you avoid choosing a romantic partner or family member as an accountability partner, in order to keep things simple and down to business.
Here’s a valuable insight by Simon Sinek about the importance of having Accountability Partners in your life:
Here’s an excellent video with tips on how to find an accountability partner (Success is a Team Sport!!):
17- Avoid Multitasking, like it’s Coronavirus!
One of the biggest lies about productivity you’ll ever hear is that multitasking is a good way to be productive. It’s not true!
By trying to do many things at once, you end up not finishing any of them, and you end up hurting your health and your mind along the process as explained here:
The negative effects of multitasking
There are many ways to do this using your will power. But if you need a little extra help, “MicroManager” was designed to only allow you to use the few specific tools you need to get a job done. For example, if you know you’re going to be writing an article during the day, you can tell the software to only allow you to use a word processor until your work day is over.
You can learn more about it here: What’s Cold Turkey?
18- Keep track of things to do using productivity software
There are SO many task management tools out there. I’ve tried several and what I’ve learnt over time is this: “Simple is better”
If a piece of software is too convoluted, you’ll somehow end up “forgetting” to use it. On the other hand, if it’s intuitive and easy to use, you’ll enjoy adding it to your day instead of seeing it as a hassle.
I’m a big fan of the Allen’s Getting Things Done method which uses buckets to group similar tasks together. When it comes to choosing a task management tool is this:
1- Find a place where you can write all the things you need to get done, and organize them in subgroups in a way that’s easy to understand. For example, “buying ketchup” and “sending invoice to client” go in different buckets.
2- Find a tool that allows you to bring your list of tasks with you.
3- Choose the tasks you want to focus on for the week, and for the next day.
As I’ve mentioned before, there are several project and task management apps in the market, and I’ve tried several including Asana, Basecamp and other fancy tools. If you’re managing big projects with many stakeholders and team members, you may need to find a robust tool like the ones I mentioned before. However, if you want something that’s practical, easy to use and you can bring with you wherever you go, here’s what I recommend:
1- Get a visual dashboard like Trello. Instead of keeping lots of post-it notes on your wall; you can keep them on your computer. It’s easy and intuitive. Set up a few columns with main categories like Things to do, in progress and done, along with a few columns for important projects. Like this, you can pull a “post it” from “Project 1” into the “in progress” column and assign it to a team member. It’s easy to use and you can start using it for free!
2- Get an additional task management application like “Todoist” which is multi-platform or even “Reminders” by Apple if you are in that ecosystem (I am, works great!) What’s important is that you have a clear list of weekly and daily priorities you know need to get done.
For the bigger picture, you can use the visual dashboard like Trello, and for your daily tasks, you can use a “task list” like “Todoist.”
Here’s a quick overview of “Trello”:
And this is what “Todoist” looks like:
19- Disconnect and relax at the end of your work day
This can be as easy as turning your computer off and playing some music, or changing into a different set of clothes so you can get out and go for a quick walk. What’s important is that you make the mental transition from “work mode” to “home mode” in order to relax.
20- Think of Sleep as the Start of your next work day
There’s a reason why most people prefer not to go out and get drunk in the middle of the week, right? Not that it’s ever a good idea, but most people don’t go out partying in the middle of the week because they have to work the next day, and they know they will not be able to focus and be productive if they are unable to sleep and end up feeling hungover.
However, for many people staying up late to watch a game or a movie or just browsing the internet, doesn’t seem like a big deal, and that’s a big mistake.
It is important you see a night of good sleep as a fundamental part of a productive work day and this is due to one simple reason. You cannot have a productive week at work without proper sleep.
Said differently, a productive work day starts the night before you go to bed.
Here’s an interesting video that talks about the importance of sleeping well and how it can impact your focus and decision making skills:
In the end, being productive while working from home comes down to setting up healthy routines and reducing distractions and I hope some of the things I’ve learned over the last 5 years help you make the transition to working from home a productive time you get to enjoy. If you found some of these ideas useful, please share this article with your friends on Facebook, Instagram or other social media sites so they can also make their transition more productive.