How to Stay Focused and Motivated While Working Remotely, Pick the Brain

Remote work has been a boon to the global workforce, and there’s no doubt about it. However, it’s not all sunshine and rainbows. According to Glassdoor, 48% of employees reported feeling isolated during the pandemic, with 42% believing their careers have stalled.

It is obvious that the lack of human contact has a negative effect on overall productivity. So, what is the solution? Applying practical techniques to keep you going, of course. But if you really want to increase your performance and consistency, you have to dig below the surface

With that in mind, this article delves into lesser-known techniques like creating a personalized workspace, setting micro-goals, and leveraging time-blocking. By applying these approaches, you’ll learn to overcome common challenges and maintain high levels of motivation.

Despite what it seems, there is no magic trick to achieving this. Instead, you should rely on the following techniques:

Create a personalized workspace

Working from your bed or couch may be comfortable, but it will hinder your productivity and cause poor posture. To avoid this, you need to separate free time from work. If you have a spare room, turn it into a makeshift home office.

If you don’t have an extra room to convert, you can create a work arrangement in the living room, bedroom or attic. Ideally, your workspace should be a separate room or a quiet corner in your home. Once you start the conversion process, focus on these aspects:

1. Lighting

Make sure the room has enough natural light. If there is none, warm yellow LED lights are the best lighting to increase productivity. The lighting in your workplace significantly affects your mood and motivation when you work. In addition, adequate lighting prevents health problems such as headaches, fatigue and eye strain and creates a positive mood.

2. Ergonomics

When assembling your workspace, it’s important to consider ergonomics as it affects how long you can stay comfortable and focused. This includes setting up your office equipment in a way that minimizes muscle fatigue while working and improves comfort. Create a work environment that reduces or eliminates physical discomfort. In turn, you can increase your mental clarity and complete your tasks more efficiently. If you’re in the market for some comfort-oriented items, here’s what to look out for:

• Ergonomic desk
• Adjustable chairs with lumbar support
• Lightweight headphones or in-ear headphones
• keyboard trays
• Fruits / Gel Pads
• Adjustable sit/stand workstations

Set a schedule

Start your day by creating a schedule that is optimal for you. This does not mean 9-5, which is what everyone thinks of when they hear the word “schedule”. Sure, a classic 8-hour shift is the easiest to plan, but part-time and side gigs are a whole different beast.

Uber Eats and DoorDash are perfect examples of this. Despite not being remote per se, they are still non-traditional jobs and can be very taxing on your body and mind. Instead of going full throttle until burnout sets in, consider if it’s for real being a self-employed driver is worth it before you decide it’s the right path for you. If you’re determined to go this route, think about your peak productivity times and try to work during those times.

Likewise, you must be strict with the separation of leisure and work hours. Telecommuting carries the allure of potentially higher earnings, but don’t get carried away. Rest, spending time with your family, and other activities are necessary to continue and maintain good mental health.

Set tiny goals

When working remotely, one of the most powerful and effective ways to improve productivity is to break down big tasks into clear, tiny goals. So don’t buy into these organizational myths, which include the idea that success is only achieved through lofty goals. This is just a one-way ticket to Burnoutville.

Instead, think small, or even better – micro. Micro goals are small, specific, actionable steps that you can complete quickly. Taking on a big task at once can leave you feeling overwhelmed and confused, while tiny goals will keep you going and give you extra motivation.

While micro-targets are useful in situations with little accountability, they really shine in complex and sensitive areas like healthcare. Whether it’s patient support, documentation organization or maintaining HIPAA compliance;you are always one step away from ruining your reputation.

And HIPAA happens to be another good example of how the right goal setting can change things. Instead of searching endlessly for answers and putting pressure on other team members, you can break down the effort into tiny goals.

First, you should plan and conduct HIPAA training, followed by establishing secure communication channels. Only after that can you address things like limiting exposure to protected health information (PHI) and tracking.

Think about it. If remote teams in such sensitive industries can operate with the help of microtargets, so can you. Treat everything like you’re a doctor protecting patient information and you’ll see results eventually.

Leverage Time Block

Learning how to use your time is the secret to getting a lot done when working remotely. Enter time block. The best way to describe it would be as a time management strategy designed to maintaining and protecting focus. It involves dividing your day into several time segments. Each block will be dedicated to performing a specific task or group task. However, it is also important to properly allocate specific blocks of time, which is entirely possible if:

1. Identification of tasks

Start by brainstorming and listing the tasks you need to do for the next day or week. Then identify the times when you are most productive and allocate the most important tasks during that time. For medium and low priority tasks, you can compromise and do them when you are not at 100%.

2. Perform task grouping

Task grouping is the act of grouping several similar tasks together. It helps to focus on certain tasks within a period of time. For example, you can group filing and routine admin tasks at the end of the week so you can focus on client work. Think about your average work day and try to optimize the most “annoying” tasks by grouping them.

3. Plan your blocks of time in your calendar

Last but not least, you can use a calendar app to get a clear overview of each time block. That’s why it’s important to assign realistic time frames to batches of similar tasks in your calendar. For example, you can cram all the meetings into Monday while you focus on more complex things until the end of the week.

conclusion

Remote work offers many advantages, including flexibility and autonomy. However, the fact that team members are technically isolated creates a unique challenge. A challenge that can greatly affect productivity, drive and focus.

By implementing practical strategies, you can shield yourself from all the noise and increase productivity and motivation as a result. Always set clear goals, prioritize tasks, develop a schedule and be disciplined. It’s harder than it sounds, but it’s also straightforward and simple, making it the ideal route for any remote worker.

Nahla Davies is a software developer and technology writer. Before devoting her full-time job to technical writing, she managed—among other exciting things—to serve as lead developer at an experiential branding organization Inc. 5,000, whose clients include Samsung, Time Warner, Netflix and Sony