Working from home can be a great way to make more time for yourself and spend more time with your loved ones. But the biggest challenge of working from home is that it can easily devolve into day after day of sitting on the couch with no plan! Either plan out your day or else you’ll have another lazy day!
Let’s See How These 9 Things Can Help You Plan when Working From Home
1. Start by setting your morning plan
Example plan:
- Wake up at 7AM, get ready for work.
- Make breakfast and eat it while you plan your day.
- Block out 1-2 hours to work on your most important task.
- Write down 1 or 2 other tasks that are less urgent so you don’t forget them during the day.
- Do some personal care activities, like brushing teeth, flossing, etc.
Don’t spend your morning checking email or reading Twitter! It’s too easy to get distracted by social media or emails when you should be working on your most important tasks. Save those distractions for breaks from working on your plan!
2. Figure out what you need to do for the day, and plan it accordingly
A plan of your day might look something like this:
- 9 am – 11 am – plan social media posts
- 11 am – 11.15 am – break for coffee
- 11.15 am – 1.15 pm – plan and research content
- 1.15 pm – 2 pm – Lunch
- 2 pm – 4 pm – Create your content. Video, blog post or whatever you are concentrating on that day.
- 4 pm – 4.15 pm – Break for Coffee
- 4.15 pm – 5 pm – Publish content and share
You will be more successful in completing tasks if they are one after another instead of scattered throughout the day. Arrange them in order of priority or urgency so that you know which ones are more important than others. It’s also helpful to put long tasks (over 2 hours) on a separate list. If you plan to work for 3-4 hours straight, make sure there are no distractions!
You will need to find some time to connect with new prospects during your week, but the above example can be streamlined and added to when you get more proficient.
3. Make a list of tasks with deadlines, so that you know what needs to be done when.
This is very important because you will have important tasks with deadlines. It’s best if you get these done first and follow up with the less important ones later. This will be a lot more important if you have imminent deadlines.
4. Identify one task per day that can be completed in less than an hour or two – these are quick wins!
Plan to do really important tasks during one 2-hour block and less important tasks later on in the day after taking a break (i.e., checking email or social media). The more important tasks require less distraction and more focus.
Look for a focus timer program so you can focus completely on your task. Turn off social media, TV, radio and anything else that could distract you and get on with the task at hand.
If possible, break down those bigger tasks into mini-tasks that will take less than an hour to complete!
This means nothing gets put off and you get more done in less time, and it’s easier on your psyche too. No one wants to plan for 4 hours of work! That seems like way too much!
If we plan for 2 or 3 quick tasks first, we may find we have enough time to do the longer task after all if we’re efficient with our time. This is so important when working from home.
Break down those big tasks by sorting them into smaller chunks (i.e., plan blog posts for this week; research keywords; write intro; write supporting paragraphs; edit content etc)
5. Keep track of your progress throughout the week, and reward yourself with something small after completing five days in a row!
Track your progress, and if you have done well this week, reward yourself for a job well done!
- Reward yourself with a coffee from the fancier coffee place down the street.
- Reward yourself with a bubble bath after a long day of work. Or
- Reward yourself by spending an hour on Netflix at night instead of working.
Whatever floats your boat! Just don’t forget about rewarding and plan accordingly so that you’re taken care of both mentally and physically!
6. Do not work more than eight hours per day – this will make you feel burnt out quickly!
As with most things, there are benefits and drawbacks to working from home.
It’s too easy to keep working when you really should finish. If you do this on a regular basis, you may experience burn out! Be prepared to stop when you need to stop, especially if your most important work has been completed.
7. Set aside time for breaks during the day – plan on taking at least one break every four hours (either for 5 minutes or 30 minutes)
It’s important to plan on taking breaks during the day. You should plan for a break every 2 – 4 hours maximum. This may also prove difficult when working from home, but it’s really important for your own well being.
You could plan for 5-minute or 30-minute breaks, but it’s up to you. The time might vary depending on what your task is, and how important it is.
8. Don’t plan too tightly – leave some extra time in case something unexpected comes up.
It’s good to plan ahead, but plan loosely, too. There are always unexpected things that come up in life, whether it’s an illness or a family issue. Allow some time in the plan for these unforeseen occurrences.
9. Relax at the end of the day, and plan for tomorrow before going to bed
At the end of each day, plan for tomorrow’s tasks and reward yourself with something small and relax. In this way, you’ll be able to plan your week more efficiently and make sure that you don’t forget to schedule activities for your social life!
As you can see, there are simple ways to plan your day. The most important thing to avoid is distraction and focusing on the most important tasks first. The sooner you create your plan, the sooner you will get into a great routine.
Working from home is very rewarding when you are successful. I hope this post has helped you to see the possibilities of achieving that success with the best plan.
