When you run a small business, it can feel like you're always on call, even when you aren't in the office. Combat that by setting up a way to work from home.
While you might think a home office is only for someone with lots of space, that's not true. You don't need nearly as much as you think. Just set it up the right way from the start.
Ready to learn how you can start working from home? Here are our best tips to help you make it happen.
Define Your Workspace
Not everyone is lucky enough to have room for a separate office in their house. But that doesn't mean you can't work from home when the need arises. It's all about creating a defined workspace that has the tools you need. That could be your kitchen table or your back deck.
So here's how you start: set up an area that is away from the noisiest or traffic-heavy areas of your home. Have the essentials, such as reliable WiFi, close and designate that area as your workspace. Know when you enter that zone, you're all about getting things done.
Create a Schedule
For lots of small business owners, working from the comforts of home can get daunting. There are plenty of distractions. Want to combat them? Create a dedicated schedule that keeps you locked in during your best hours and helps avoid procrastination.
Plan to do your best work during the hours where you're naturally most productive. Everyone has a "zone." But all too often, people ignore it. That's not effective. Instead, create a schedule that capitalizes on your most productive hours. That's the key to hacking productivity.
Use a Productivity Stack
Today, you can find to-do list apps and cloud-based tools for every imaginable need. All you need to do is find the handful of these tools that will help form the core of your organizational success out of the office. Then start using them. Get your productivity stack up and running on your laptop, tablet or home computer and you'll have everything you need.
Now that you have the tools you need, you've got to use them effectively. Make a list of exactly what you need to accomplish by the time you log off. Use this time to tackle these first. And then, take care of some of those tasks that always seem to end up on the back burner.
Set Boundaries
Most people don't work from home. They associate being home with time off or relaxing. That's not the case for you. When you're set up in your home office space, it's all about ticking off that to-do list and making progress.
Avoid any potential conflicts by setting boundaries with family, roommates and friends before you start. Let them know when you'll be working and not disturbed and when it's fine to interact. This can help keep you focused when you need to hone in on work.
Stay Connected
If you were at work you wouldn't lock yourself in your office and not speak to anyone all day, right? No way. Then you shouldn't do the same at home. Yet, all too many people fall into this trap. Instead, say connected.
Skype, Slack and Google Hangouts make it easy to communicate with your team. In a few clicks, you can have a video call or a chat with anyone from anywhere. In fact, companies that encourage frequent chats between remote employees improve team performance and productivity.
Can't Wait to Set Up Your Home Office?
Great. Once you've set a plan, you'll find that getting your home office set up is not nearly as complicated as you might think. And, it could help pave the way for others to work remotely too. Read more about how to build a remote culture in your office here.
Just remember, no matter where your remote employees work from, they'll need workers' compensation coverage. Learn more about it and get a workers' comp quote from Cake in just 5 minutes.
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