Working remotely or in a hybrid work environment is a reality for the current business ecosystem. Employees prefer the independence to work from home for a few days a week to maintain a strong work-life balance and avoid spending hours in traffic to reach the workplace.
According to a survey by ConnectSolution, 77% of employees that work from home a few days a week report increased productivity. Similarly, there is a study by FlexJobs that claims that remote employees are healthier and less stressed. Another survey claims that companies that offer remote work opportunities to employees register a 25% lower employee turnover rate.
For employers, it is critical to provide the right ecosystem to employees that help them improve productivity in a remote or hybrid environment. Similarly, for employees, it is important to take the right steps that can help them enhance productivity levels while working from home.
How to improve productivity while working remotely?
1. Opt for a proper setup
Rather than working on a makeshift arrangement or your bed, it is better to get a proper setup for your remote working productivity. You can set aside a corner in your home as your workspace. Usually, companies support employees to create an appropriate setup for their WFH setup.
Without a proper setup, it becomes difficult to manage your work responsibilities efficiently. Your workspace will provide the right motivation and inspiration to work on your projects. You can get the basics right in the form of a table and chair to work on your desktop or laptop.
Also read: Remote Work – How to Access Your Business Growth and Development
2. Get up. Dress up. Show up
The last thing you should do to boost productivity while working remotely is to work in your pyjamas or just not care about the clothes you wear as you work from home. The tendency to work in your nightwear or casual clothes would not take you far. It is important to be in the right apparel as you work from home.
You should aim to get up a bit early from your work schedule and get into the work clothes. This would help you get into the active mode even before you get into the daily tasks.
3. Prefer set working hours when working remotely
It is important to set up the working hours even as you work from home. Your remote work productivity would depend on the hours you set across for your daily tasks. You should mix your daily chores with your working hours as you work from home.
This would help you to get into a proper routine of working, rather than working on ad hoc hours. which do not help you or your employer. Set a strict work schedule for yourself that would help you to stay focused on the tasks at hand and does not give an impression to your boss that you take your work lightly.
4. Get proper systems in place
One of the best steps that will help you boost remote working productivity is to get proper systems in place. For instance, apart from having a proper desk and chair, you also need the right tools to do your work efficiently. You need fast-speed internet along with other solutions like a video conferencing tool, KM tools, and other solutions that help you stay on top of your priorities.
You should either ask your employer to provide the right solutions or get the basic subscriptions in place that help you do your work efficiently in a work-from-home setup. Either way, it is important to have the right solutions at your disposal to do your work efficiently to boost WFH productivity.
5. Manage the blurring lines between work and life
One of the biggest advantages while working remotely is better work-life balance for remote employees. However, it is better to not mix work and life too much as you focus on WFH productivity. Instead, keep the two as separate as possible even as you work from home.
The biggest challenge that you may face in your work-from-home ecosystem is too much overlap between work and life. You should aim toward maintaining a strong balance between work and life. As you create a set schedule for work, it would help you set the right boundaries between work and personal time.
6. Realize the importance of taking breaks
Loneliness and isolation are two of the biggest challenges in maintaining productivity while working remotely. Rather than working endless hours on your project in a work-from-home setup, you should take breaks between your work schedule. There is no set formula on what will work the best, but it is suggested that you should set time for regular breaks between your work schedule in a day.
As you take regular breaks, you would be able to notice a significant boost in your productivity as compared to a scenario where you are continuously working on your tasks. As someone said, life is a marathon of short sprints. This is truly applicable to a work-from-home setup.
Also read: 6 Tools That will Help to Boost Your Startup Productivity
7. Everyone needs a fresh breath of air
As you are working remotely, it is important to set some time apart from your daily schedule to catch a fresh breath of air. It not only changes your surroundings but also helps in working with a better mindset.
One of the biggest mistakes some employees make is that they confine themselves to the home and do not move out at all. It is not only detrimental but is one of the biggest barriers to your WFH productivity. Rather, you should set some time apart to move out of the home and change the environment.
To sum up
These are some important tips that can help you improve productivity while working from home. Organizing and working in a conducive environment from home are the most critical steps in this journey. You should have access to the right set of tools to help you work at high efficiency and productivity.
There are various aspects like a practical setup and various tools for connecting, collaborating, and sharing knowledge with colleagues that are critical in this ecosystem.
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