Many of you have found yourselves working from home since COVID-19 turned the world upside down earlier this year. If you’re like most people who are new to working from home, you probably feel like days are disorganized. It’s hard to stay focused, and you’re not getting as much done as you should be.
When I started working from home in 2011, I went through the same struggles. My days felt like they had no structure, I was constantly distracted, and my productivity slipped. I had plenty of second thoughts about it when I first started, but I ultimately stuck with it. I wouldn’t trade the freedom and happiness it has given me in the long run for anything.
But let’s face it. Working from home takes a lot of self-discipline and is not for everyone. If you’re one of those people who has been forced to work from home during the pandemic, here are 10 proven ways I have maximized my productivity working from home and built a successful business around it.
1. Separate Your Home and Work Lives by Having a Designated Space, Preferably with a Door You Can Close, for Working
The common thread throughout this article is to separate your at-home life from your work life. Doing so not only keeps you much better focused and organized. When done properly it also prevents you from under-working or over-working yourself.
The ideal home office setup is to have a designated room for working with a door you can close. Closing the door prevents the “home life” distractions (pets, kids, spouses, significant others, etc) from seeping into your work environment. It allows you to focus on daily work tasks, conference calls, Zoom meetings, etc. Even if you leave the door open, the doorway creates a physical separation between your home and work lives.
If you don’t have a spare room to designate as a home office, set aside a corner of a quiet room, such as a master or guest bedroom. In addition to increasing productivity, you can get tax breaks for having a designated home office space that’s used exclusively for work. More on this below.
Don’t be afraid to think outside the box. I have seen people turn closets and bathrooms into temporary offices. Balconies and patios can work this time of year, too. The worst places you can set up your at-home workspace include the dining room table, the kitchen, and the family room.
2. Make sure people you live with know not to bother you when you’re in your at-home work space.
At-home distractions are the number one cause of reduced productivity working from home. I know a lot of you have kids, pets, and other dependents at home, so the goal here is to minimize the distractions, not eliminate them completely.
Make it clear to anyone who lives with you that when you’re in your workspace, they should not bother you. You will likely need to make a few exceptions if you have children at home. If you have a babysitter or a pet sitter, keep them coming on their normal schedule. You should be focusing on your work.
3. Stick to Set Work Hours Every Day
If your supervisor sets your schedule, this is taken care of for you. For the rest of us, everyone who sets their own hours struggles with scheduling at some point when they start working from home.
If you really struggle with scheduling, lay out your schedule for the week ahead of time. If you can work the same schedule every week, you’ll soon fall into a routine that is much easier to stick to. My clients know that I am in the office from 8 AM to 5 PM, Monday to Friday.
Many people who work from home also struggle with bosses, co-workers, and clients trying to reach them after-hours. I cannot stress this enough. When your work day ends, shut off your computers, phones, tablets, etc, exit your work environment and return to your at-home life. Unless there’s an emergency at work, it can be dealt with in the morning.
4. Follow Your Normal Daily Routine As Much As Possible
In any kind of disruption, we all crave normalcy. One of the easiest ways to give yourself at least some semblance of normalcy is to stick to your normal pre- and post-work routines that you do when you’re not working from home. The only difference is that you’re not driving to and from your place of work.
5. Dress the same way you would going into your workplace. Don’t work from home in sweatpants or pajamas.
Dress for success. It’s as simple as that. Save the sweatpants and pajamas for lounging around on the weekends.
6. Take Breaks Outside of Your Work Space
I know many people are glued to their desks throughout the day, but taking breaks throughout the day is important. Breaks should be a set length. It’s amazing how easily stepping out for 5 minutes can turn into 45 minutes if you leave the break open-ended. Try to stick to the break schedule you follow when you’re not working from home. I usually take a 5 or 10 minute break every hour or two.
I also find I stay much better focused if I get out my home office during the break. If the weather’s nice, grab a glass of water or a cup of coffee and sit out in the back yard. Throw a ball around for the dog for 5 minutes or go pet the cat. Taking your mind off of work, even if it’s just for 5 minutes, will help you focus when you resume work.
Take lunch breaks the same way you normally would when you’re commuting to your workplace. If you normally have a half-hour for lunch, take a 30-minute lunch break. If you normally have an hour-long lunch break, take the full hour.
Don’t eat lunch at your desk. I try to eat outdoors as much as I can. If the weather is not cooperating, I’ll eat at my dining table. When you’re done with lunch, put your dishes in the dishwasher. Don’t let them accumulate in the kitchen. Messes around the house are surprisingly good at killing motivation.
7. Take Care of Yourself…and Your Work Space
Don’t use working from home as an excuse for eating junk food all day. Stick to a healthy, balanced diet, and make sure you get exercise every day. Back when I lived in small apartments, I still found ways to get workouts in every day. If I can do it, so can you. Exercise makes you feel good, and when you feel good, your productivity will be higher. If you have access to a stand-up desk or somewhere you can work standing up, I find being able to stand for periods throughout the day improves my productivity.
While it’s important to take care of yourself, it’s equally important to take care of your work space. Keep your work space tidy, and if you make a mess, clean it up right away. Messy environments will sap your focus, motivation, and productivity. I tidy up my desk at the end of each day, and my home office gets a full cleaning on the weekend so I always know I’m starting the work week on Monday with a clean and organized work space.
8. Set Up Separate Phone and Email Lines for Work
Most everyone has a separate email for work these days. If you don’t, there are plenty of free email services (Gmail, Outlook, etc) available. If you’re self-employed, a freelancer, or an independent contractor, it is much more professional to purchase your own domain name and setting up an email account under that domain name. Everyone who works with me will get emails from me using my “at matthewgove.com” email address, not an “at gmail.com” email. I have a separate email address that I use for personal communications with family, friends, etc.
Establish an After-Hours Phone/Email Protocol
The main advantage of having a separate phone line for work purposes is that if you don’t want bosses, clients, co-workers, etc. contacting you after hours, simply shut the phone off when your work day is over. Set up a protocol for when it’s okay to call you should an after-hours emergency arise. I explain my emergency contact protocol to each of my new clients and have never had an issue with it.
Option #1: Use a Google Voice Number
If you’re only going to be working from home temporarily, sign up for a free Google Voice number. You can set up to forward calls from your Google Voice number to either your cell phone or landline, and more importantly, can set it up so that calls only get forwarded during business hours.
Option #2: Purchase a Second Phone Line
For those of you who are/will be working from home permanently, I highly recommend spending the money for a second phone line. Adding another line to your existing cell phone plan is often pretty cost-effective. As a bonus, the dedicated work line is 100% tax deductible, even if you’re working as a W2 employee.
I use a dual-SIM smartphone to keep my work line separate from my personal cell phone number. The dual-SIM phone allows calls to both my personal and business lines to go to the same phone. It gives me the ability to turn off each SIM card individually. I can turn off my work line, but leave my personal number on if I need to.
Dual-SIM phones are not widely available in the US and Canada because of the way cell phone contracts are written. I ordered mine from the UK, but I paid less than 2/3 of what the single-SIM version of the same phone cost at the time.
9. Keep Home Office Expenses Separate From Personal Expenses
Keeping separate books for home office and personal expenses not only preserves your sanity, it makes things much easier when tax season rolls around. If you’re self-employed, a freelancer, or an independent contractor, it can also offer legal protection in certain circumstances. I’m not a lawyer, so if you want more information about legal protection, please consult with an attorney.
If you’re only working from home temporarily during the pandemic, you can keep track of your home office expenses in an Excel spreadsheet. If you will be working from home permanently, you should open a separate bank account to keep track of home office expenses. Almost every bank offers small business accounts that are perfect for this situation. In addition to making it easier to manage and track your income and expenses, you may be missing out on tax breaks if you commingle your personal and business expenses. Which leads to my next point…
10. Take Advantage of Home Office Tax Deductions
While people who are self-employed generally get the best home office tax breaks, there are plenty of tax deductions W2 employees can take advantage of to reduce your tax bill next year. You need a designated home office space that’s used exclusively for work in order to take home office deductions.
Expenses that are exclusively used for work are 100% deductible. You can also deduct a percentage of rent/mortgage, electricity, internet, and other utilities. I’m not a tax expert and know nothing about tax laws outside of the United States. Please ask a CPA if you want more information.
Looking into the crystal ball, it would not surprise me at all if at least some working from home becomes permanent. If you will work from home permanently, invest the time and money into properly setting up your home office to maximize your productivity, and minimize your tax bill.
Top Photo: Yaquina Head Outstanding Natural Area
Newport, Oregon – August, 2017