10 Tips to Make Working From Home More Productive

With the global spread of the coronavirus, many workplaces worldwide have moved their work environments to homes. The practice of performing work, which occupies a significant part of our lives, not in the office but at home, naturally brought along some question marks; is working from home efficient? How can we make working from home more efficient?

For those who have never freelanced or worked from home before, home office can create a difficult-to-adjust situation. Distractions in the home environment and the blurring line between home life and work life can make the concept of working from home inefficient.

So how can you cope with this situation? Here are 10 tips to make working from home more efficient prepared by us, Doğtaş, the address for furniture that beautifies your home…

1. Create an Ideal Work Environment

Those who say "I want to work from home" and dream of working from home due to comfort may find that, if not careful, working from home can reduce productivity and performance.

To avoid these problems, if possible, we recommend preparing a separate work environment for yourself. Here are some tips and things to consider to create an ideal work environment:

Do Not Work in Your Bedroom

When working from home, working from bed should not come to mind because working in the bedroom can make you sleepy and disperse your attention, preventing effective work. Bedrooms are places where you can relax and rest, which allows you to fall asleep smoothly.

However, if you work in your bed, your brain will likely associate work stress with the bedroom. As a result, when you lay down to sleep, you will think about the tasks you need to complete the next day, causing sleep disturbances. As you can see, working in the bedroom is not a wise idea.

Living Room Is Distracting

Now, let's move on to another place that comes to mind when talking about working from home; the living room. Living rooms are inherently filled with distractions. Although comfortable furniture selection is a must in living rooms, it is not suitable for working from home. Working on the couch can make you as sleepy as working in bed.

Moreover, focusing on work can become quite challenging when there are distractions like televisions or decorative products in the living room.

Get Comfortable Home Office Furniture

One of the main ways to increase the productivity of working from home is to acquire comfortable home office furniture. It is crucial to create a separate workspace that is only yours for your job or a designated work area within a room.

• Just as you would regularly wake up every morning and go to your workplace, working at the same time each morning in the designated work area in your home will help you work more focused.
• To ensure a comfortable working environment at home, you should find the best work desk for yourself. You can find various work desk models on Doğtaş, such as wooden work desks, modern work desks, white work desks, and functional work desks that suit all tastes and needs.

For work desk ideas that boost work efficiency, you can check our article titled "Work Desk Recommendations for Workaholics Who Can't Stop Working at Home."

• Because you will be sitting in the same place for long hours, it is important to choose a comfortable chair that will not cause pain.

Working from home can be quite distracting, so you can remove unnecessary or distracting items from your workspace.

Choosing the right desk lamp is also a detail not to be overlooked.

2. Make a Plan for Your Tasks

Being organized ensures efficiency while working. This is also relevant regarding working from home. Write down your daily tasks or use web platforms or apps designed for this. Keeping track of tasks will help increase your efficiency while working.

3. Do Not Forget to Take Short Breaks

Although you may not notice it while working in the office, you actually take short breaks regularly. Whether it be chatting with colleagues, having tea, coffee, or a cigarette break, it gives your brain the opportunity to recharge.

The human brain cannot maintain focus for very long periods without interruption. Therefore, while working from home, you shouldn't get so caught up that you work for hours without taking breaks. This will decrease efficiency and exhaust you substantially. According to the ideal working-break time, a routine could be working for about 1 hour and resting for 15 minutes.

4. Be Mindful of Communication with Other Household Members

The presence of other individuals in the home environment can significantly distract you. When working from home, you should limit your communication with household members during work hours; otherwise, you might find yourself having an unproductive day without realizing how time has passed.

Additionally, you can ask them to reduce noise as much as possible during your working hours.

5. Review Your Morning Routine

The opportunity to work from home also means not having to wake up early, shower, have breakfast, get ready, and rush out of the house. However, you shouldn’t let this situation disrupt your morning routine.

• If you wake up on time, have breakfast, take a shower, and drink coffee as if you are going to the workplace, you can work more focused.
• Furthermore, be sure not to do household chores during your working hours. A messy environment might scatter your attention, or you might have piled-up dishes, but during work hours, focus on your tasks, putting them out of your mind.
• Under normal circumstances, since you will have the time you usually spend commuting to work, you can comfortably handle such household chores outside of working hours.

6. Don't Work in Your Pajamas

The comfort of pajamas is undeniable. However, do pajamas evoke a serious and productive work session in you? Pajamas may make you sleepy, reducing your focus.

While working from home doesn’t mean you have to wear shirts or suits, you should avoid sitting at the desk in pajamas, as you need to get out of sleep mode. To grasp the seriousness of your work and feel like you are going to the office, don’t sit down to work in pajamas.

7. Set Multiple Alarms If You Find It Hard to Wake Up

Even if you don’t need to wake up early to go to the office, setting an alarm before your working hours and completing your morning tasks is essential. If you can’t wake up with just one alarm, there is a simple solution; set multiple alarms. The key is to convince your mind that you'll be working and have a productive work-from-home experience.

8. Pay Attention to Your Sitting Position

Experts mention that prolonged sitting poses health risks such as obesity, heart disease, and muscle and bone problems. Thus, taking breaks for your body is as necessary as for your mind. Additionally, a bad sitting position can lead to back, neck, and leg pain.

• Always keep your back straight.
• Ensure that your computer monitor is at eye level.
• Place support behind your back.
• Work with the laptop on the desk, not on your lap.

9. Stay Away from Social Media During Work Hours

While working from home, it might be tempting to scroll through your phone, but even a small visit to social media can cause you to waste hours of your work time without realizing it. To avoid this situation, try to keep your phone out of sight and even turn off the internet connection to focus on your work.

10. Go Outside Sometimes After Work Hours

In these days when offices have taken a central place in our home lives, not confusing home life with work life is critical for a healthy mind and home harmony. Working from home can eventually create a feeling of "living at work." If you find yourself in such a situation:

• Try not to dwell on work outside of work hours and avoid excessively reflecting work problems or load onto household members,
• If you are not under quarantine and can go outside, try to take small walks outside to give your brain some rest, leading to a more productive and healthy home office process.