How To Increase Productivity While Working From Home

Yes, it’s a mutual feeling — WFH gets frustrating and after a while. The productivity falls down, it’s 10x lazier environment and most employees hardly feel motivated to get up and work. Amidst a partial lockdown, maintaining a social isolation, it’s just getting so boring to stay at home all day.

But didn’t we wish to stay at home chilling in PJs all day and not having to attend socializing events? Then now that we are getting it, why are we frustrated?

Let’s begin to learn how to be more productive while WFH (Working From Home) by understanding why in the first place are we feeling so unproductive!

Our minds are accustomed to think of our homes as a place to chill and relax. Of course, there is a lot of efforts we make for keeping that home a HOME, it still is a place we come back to, to relax after a tiring day at work or outing. Now to bring office at home, meaning – bringing work stress and activity to a chill-mode place, the mind resists that. It doesn’t easily adapt with you bringing office to a place meant for relaxing. Adding to this, the environment at workplace is suitable for keeping you focused at working, at home, there is so much of distraction that it kills the drive to work. In my opinion, the mind resists working at a place meant for chilling, and it’s this resistance that we are calling ‘BORING’. And staying in four walls all day, for so many days feels like –> 

Because of the Covid-19 pandemic, our economy is seeing a major hit. It is our role to ensure we work with dedication to keep the money rolling, even if it is as minimal as it can be. And if we do not take ownership of our tasks, it will in turn hit us with its own effect. We employees are the unsung heroes who play a massive role in impacting the economy at times like these. Which is why, even if working from home can get super boring, here’s how we can trick the mind to accept WFH.

1. Where to NOT work:

Anywhere near a bed is a big NO NO let alone working on a bed! The bed is so inviting for a good sleep and no matter how many tasks you have at hand, you will feel like chucking everything and taking a nap (especially for the millennials). I suggest to keep yourself even from looking where others in your house are sleeping. Sleepiness can be damn contagious! Choose that spot at home where the network isn’t so bad that it keeps interrupting your work. Make the space of work so clearly distinguishable for your brain that when you enter it, it automatically switches on to work-mode.

2. How to NOT work:

Take a bath and breakfast before you begin to work! Working in nightdress will create the similar mood like working sitting on bed with AC on and blanket on your feet. How we feel at the moment determines how we act at that moment. So stay and feel fresh, maintain upright spine posture and get going!

3. Keep in touch with your teammates / colleagues:

A regular touch with your work-mates and exchanging updates around work matters will help staying focused. It’s like human version of sticky notes. Stay connected, keep motivating in crisis period like this.

4. Music helps, like it always does:

Ain’t there no mood that good beats can’t cheer up! Cheer up your space with some really great music. To me, the 90’s songs hits different! Do comment which ones works best for you?

5. Balancing house and office work:

With maids and cooks being on leave as well, both office work as well as house-hold chores ask seeking at the same time. To avoid the hassle, the travelling time can be substituted with cleaning up chores. Keep early two hours for household chores and get to work, for a clean and fresh house is calming and brightens up the space and avoids internal conflicts over chores. Take the required break for timely meals and healthy cooking: snacking junk all day will only make you lazier and passive.

6. When it’s easy to get distracted by phone:

Getting cellphone addicted due to boredom? It’s becoming a hindrance to your working focus? Constant scrolling on social media or gaming all day is easy to fall for during isolation times when boredom is what you feel for most part of the day. You can use apps that blocks unnecessary notifications and distractions during work hours. I use Appblock, pretty efficient and helps monitoring productive hours.

7. Be grateful at-least you got the privilege of WFH:

Love, respect and power to every single person serving the nation keeping self-safety at stake. It takes a different level of dedication to what these people are doing. Not all professions can have WFH clearly, a sense of gratitude can help you work with more dedication.

8. WFH ≠ Vacation:

We don’t know yet for how long we might have to avoid travelling. Not doubting professional ethics, but just to highlight that most of the companies are paying their employees for working from home. A fair trade is always appreciated from both ends. In my opinion, it’s a professional crime to treat WFh like it’s a vacation. Some will have to fight staying outside the house, some, staying indoors. We’re in this together, let’s lift our spirits and deal with this pandemic together.

– Madhvi Panchal