In today’s business world there are plenty of people that work from home due to advances in technology. Working from home can be the perfect opportunity for a mother that wants a career but also does not want to miss out on her children growing up. The tough part for many mothers is staying productive with all of the distractions that having a family can bring. It is essential to stay productive as most companies will revoke the work from home perk or terminate employment if they feel an employee is taking advantage of this opportunity. Setting yourself up for success will take a few tweaks in your current routine as most people do not need an overhaul just to be a little more productive. The following are tips for those mothers working remotely so they can stay productive and continue to work from home long term.
Start The Day Early
The temptation to stay in bed until you absolutely have to get up can be tough to turn down. Starting the day early allows a mother to get work done before the kids get up for school. This also allows a mother to stop working earlier in the day so she can spend more time with the family. Start with doing something that you do not like so this is finished for the day and you do not keep putting it off. Clearing emails from the night before is a popular thing to do in the morning as you want to address urgent emails that were sent overnight. Wake up at the time you would if you were going into the office and start working with a cup of coffee to get a head start on the day.
Complete Errands After Dropping Kids Off At School
Errands are a part of life for a parent that works from home as you have more time than a person that goes into an office daily. Dropping the kids off at school can be the perfect opportunity to get errands done for the day. Lingering errands can be a distraction that sidelines productivity for hours. Lunch can be another opportunity to get out of the home as you should still give yourself adequate breaks throughout the day. A teenager can also be a huge help with errands as they can use the car if they complete a few tasks like grocery shopping or driving their sibling to a practice.
Set Up A Home Office
The idea that you can get all of your work done in the kitchen and do not need a separate office space is a rookie mistake made by many just starting to work at home. Peter Goldberg of Bouclair notes “Creating a comfortable office space in the home can be done in an affordable manner and can impact quality of work immensely.” The office that you create should have a solid door as kids of all ages can be loud when they are just having fun. Setting times where you should not be bothered can be a great way to get important things done. Even putting a note on the door letting the family know when you will be done can be an effective tactic.
Track Your Time To Set Daily Agendas
Considering a day of work a failure due to setting goals that cannot be accomplished can hurt your professional morale. Take the time to track how long it takes to do an expense report or other daily activity so you can create an agenda that is realistic. Many people find that they get a certain task done during a particular portion of the day versus another. One tip is to check email once hourly as an email from a panicked or angry client/manager can throw off productivity for the day. Most emails can wait the hour as you can always be direct messaged, texted, or called if it is that pressing.
Meal Prep
The dread of having to cook an entire meal in addition to getting a copious amount of work done can be daunting to say the least. Meal prepping is common among a variety of people that understand that on certain days you simply will not want to cook. This also reduces the amount of time you eat out or have food delivered instead of cooking. Being able to look into the fridge then throw something into the microwave, oven, or put dressing on it is extremely convenient. Doing this also allows the kids to eat without needing help which can be a productivity killer as you are not going to let your kids go hungry. Your significant other can help out with this and prep meals that they love for the entire family to enjoy. Teamwork could not be more important as running a household can be far too much for one person to handle alone.
Assess which areas of your job you could be doing more efficiently and start being more productive than ever. Improving productivity on a consistent basis can change your career for the better. Companies are always looking for people that try to find new ways to improve and are never satisfied!