Important Tips for Working from Home During COVID19

like cardi b said, “cornovirus, shit is getting real!” the covid19 pandemic is getting worse and many americans are out of work. congress needs to get its ish together and pass a damn stimulus bill already!!!

you’re hashtag blessed if you can work from home right now. however, working from home can be a challenge if you’re new to it. for today’s blog post, i wanted to share some important tips to keep you sane and productive.

first, i consider myself a semi-pro at working from home. before quitting my office job, i worked from home at least two days a week. then after starting in luxury fashion, i pretty much maintained a similar schedule, maximizing my home office time.

READ: I Quit My Job as a Lawyer and You Won’t Believe What Happened Next

over the years, i’ve found these five tips to be the most important when working from home:

Make a Plan

it’s super easy to wake up, scroll through your phone for 30 minutes and pop on a netflix show before actually “starting” your day. no bueno beloved when you got things to get done. i highly recommend making a plan and sticking to it.

before going to bed determine what tasks you need to achieve the next day. i use my bullet journal for this and take some time each sunday to make my weekly spreads. mapping out my day helps keep track of tasks like important calls, writing and content creating.

Create a Schedule

don’t fall into the trap of allowing your work to creep into your relaxation time and vice versa. i highly recommend starting and ending your day at the same time. for example, if your previous hours were 9 am to 6 pm, monday to friday, then it may be easiest to keep that schedule.

i wake up at 8 am, make a cup of coffee, meditate/journal and eat breakfast. i’m seated at my computer by 9 am and work pretty steadily until around noon. i’m a content creator so part of my productivity is to jump on social media and post a few things during this time period.

if i have major work to produce like publishing a blog post or completing a consulting assignment, then i schedule those things before noon. my brainpower is definitely the strongest in the morning. i tend to use afternoons to catch up on emails and schedule for the upcoming day.

Get Dressed

you’re allowed to get cute just for yourself. i promise. this means take the time to get dressed when working from home. you may not need to wear business casual attire, but a cute top and stretch pants might be a place to start.

getting dressed helps flip a switch in our minds that it’s time to get to work. the goal here is to give working from home the same level of attention and priority that we would when heading into an office.

Eat Lunch

i shouldn’t have to say it, but let me say it: feed yo’self! water breaks, snack breaks, lunch breaks and more are necessary to your health and wellbeing. plus, it helps to sustain your focus.

if you really wanna fire on all cylinders, then pack your lunch. yep, get out your cute little lunchbox and actually make your meal for the day. this ensures that you actually take a lunch break and eat something healthy — not a bag of chips.

Take Breaks

most research says that our brains can’t focus for longer than 45 minutes. that means taking breaks is a super important component of our productivity. i can get ten times more work done if i work in small chunks of time versus trying to work for hours straight.

for example, it’s much easier to resist the urge to scroll through social media when you’re time chunking your work. it’s almost like running and seeing the finish line. you can maintain your focus longer when a break is in sight.

focus-to-do is a cool app to help keep you focused and schedule your breaks or you can use a good old-fashioned timer.

hopefully, these tips are helpful for developing a work from home schedule. a bonus tip is to make it fun by joining facetime or skype with friends while working. most importantly, stay safe during this difficult time!