If you work from home, you may suffer from
un-productive-itis. You’re not alone in that affliction. Many people who
telecommute, run a business from home or freelance find that they are not as
productive in their home offices as they hoped to be. Fortunately, there is
hope for the unproductive home office. These five tips will help you upgrade
your office into a productivity hub.
Keep your desk clear of
everything you’re not working on
It’s easy for a desk to become a repository
for everything from your previous project to your son’s hockey helmet to empty
soda cans you haven’t had a chance to discard. Keeping your desk clean helps
productivity in three ways. It makes you feel like you’re “really at work.” It
helps you stay organized. And it saves time, because you don’t have to look for
that paper you just had or spend time cleaning your desk so you can get some
work done.
Play music or use a fan or an ambient noise generator
Not everyone works well with music, but very
few people work well with silence. The thing is that silence is not really
silent. There’s the traffic noise from the street, the faucet dripping in the
kitchen, and the dog barking next door. Those noises distract you from the work
you’re trying to focus on. If you work well with music, find something that you
can focus against. That may be classical, new age, or something you’ve listened
to a million times and won’t pay attention to while you’re working. If music
isn’t your best environment for working, run a fan or try one of the white
noise or ambient noise generators that covers up background sounds.
Close your door
Even if no one else is home, closing your door
makes your office feel more like a workplace and reduces your inclination to
get up and go do something, such as a load of laundry. If your house does have
other people in it during the day, the closed door is a signal that you’re
working and shouldn’t be interrupted.
Keep your files and
reference materials close at hand
You should be able to reach anything you need
for your current project. It’s great to get up and stretch or take a break, but
you don’t want to have to get up in the middle of your work. Keep everything
where you can reach it and schedule your stretch breaks. You’ll get more done
with fewer interruptions to get up and get something.
Let your calls roll to voicemail or your answering machine
Work
when you’re at work. If you’re expecting an important call, certainly watch the
Caller ID for it. Other than that, let people know you don’t answer the phone
when you’re working and you will return their call as soon as possible. Most
people will respect you for your dedication to your work. Your home office
becomes more productive when you place more emphasis on the home part and less
on the office part. These tips will help you do that.
Author Bio:
Sarah writes on behalf of Fluid Branding a promotional products specialist. Fluid Branding have thousands of promotional product from promotional mugs to calculators, from promotional pens to umbrellas. Fluid Branding have something for everyone.
Sarah writes on behalf of Fluid Branding a promotional products specialist. Fluid Branding have thousands of promotional product from promotional mugs to calculators, from promotional pens to umbrellas. Fluid Branding have something for everyone.