While there are challenges to keeping yourself focused regardless of your work environment, so many of us are now faced with the same seemingly endless challenge: how do you keep your workday productive when you aren’t even leaving your home? Office environments are designed, for better or worse and with varying degrees of success, to be efficient workplaces. Things that distract us are minimized, while ways to refocus are just within reach. Our homes, even if you have a home office setup, are a different story. If office environments are some amalgamation of the results of research into human productivity and focus, then the same thought can be used to find what works best to keep you on track. So how can you create the best possible home environment for your work life?
1. Keep distractions at bay
Technology now allows knowledge workers to perform their jobs anytime, anywhere. It also allows us to perform so many other functions of our lives anytime, anywhere. Setting focus hours for certain tasks, and limiting them to only those times, is the first step to keeping work and home as separate as possible. It’s natural for the two to begin to blur together, to try to take care of chores while “at work.” What this can really do is introduce the possibility of more distractions. A 2018 report on distractions in more traditional workplaces shows that participants estimate that they’re able to refocus within half an hour, but other research suggests this to be an underestimation. An interruption of even a few seconds can necessitate the need to refocus, and people compensate by working faster, which can be its own stress.
In an environment that feels a lot less like work, focus could be even more difficult to achieve. Technology can also help alleviate these distractions, however. Any distraction will lead to about a 45 minutes warm-up back to your productivity groove. Things like website and app blockers, or even meditative apps designed to focus your mind, can help exert control over your own environment. Dedicate a portion of your time to email, then move on to a less rote and less distracting task. If Twitter or Facebook or Instagram or the news has a negative impact on your mindset, maybe it can wait until after work. Mindless scrolling shouldn’t count as an actual break—actually step away from your screens. These things are easier said than done, of course, and that’s why maybe your smartphone and its many applications can be used to help you regulate your schedule, becoming as much friend as foe.
2. Location
It’s not all bad news for the home office, though. Work location enjoyment has a positive effect on productivity, which has a significant effect on remote workers, so set yourself up as comfortably as possible. In fact, research dating back to 1991 indicates that remote workers can have higher productivity than traditional workers. One study conducted during the COVID-19 crisis showed a 13% rise in productivity. Four percent of that is actually attributed to decreased distractions; at home, your environment is wholly familiar, while at the office, the behaviors of your cubicle mates may be irksome. But this increase also came with caveats—successful participants had no children, worked in a room that was not their bedroom, and had quality broadband internet access. Parents working from those, or those otherwise crowded into small apartments face additional problems of creating boundaries.
3. Structure your day
You know yourself best, so structure your day in a way that makes sense for your environment, and take into account your health and comfort in ways a traditional office may not allow. Ultimately, how your desk should be configured in a way that works for you; things like standing desks have ultimately been shown to have little to no effect on work efficiency. One thing is sure: you should keep your space uncluttered. Our brains like order and constant visual reminders of disorganization can be draining—individuals overwhelmed by the sheer volume of “stuff” in their homes are more likely to procrastinate. Clutter can also trigger coping and avoidance strategies, making you seek out distractions or snack on junk. Even taking a few minutes every morning to put everything in its place can play a huge role in a productive workspace.
4. Hydration and hydrangeas
The truth is, your day might also be affected by something as small as how often you drink water. Peak productivity is reached only when the body is fully hydrated, and even a 3-4% drop in hydration can cut productivity in half. Even in your own home, making sure to have a glass or water bottle close at hand is crucial to being engaged. Small adjustments like this can truly go a long way—for instance, getting dressed in the morning can adjust your mindset and enable better focus. Or introducing plant life into your environment can improve air quality, reduce stress, and improve mental health, all leading to increased productivity. All of these factors play roles that compound on one another and are not too difficult to implement.
5. Lifeline
Similarly, easy to implement, consider introducing a social aspect into the home office. While work-from-home may mean you’re free of the more irritating aspects of workplace socialization, it can also be incredibly isolating. You could go as simple as recreating the type of white noise that a coffee shop or office would provide, or you might consider joining a virtual coworking space—one person as an accountability buddy, so you can just introduce the knowledge that someone is waiting on your to complete your tasks or a full-on virtual room such as Caveday that serves as a focused space.
6. Snacks on snacks
Just as important as your environment is what you eat. Water intake is important, yes, but some offices go further than water coolers and stock healthy snacks that promote focus. Take more than your lunch into account when shopping for your groceries and grab some fresh produce and healthy pantry goods. On the same note, consider how much caffeine you drink and when. While coffee and other caffeinated drinks provide a few advantages, they are not necessarily good for long-term productivity. The caffeine crash is real, and the adrenaline release it creates can actually tax your body’s resources. Some basic tips for focus over a full day are to limit caffeine consumption, end caffeine consumption earlier in the day, or switch to green tea or herbal teas.
7. Apps and conclusion
It may take some time to figure out what exactly works best for you, so you may even try out various time management methods to hack your productivity. The Pomodoro Technique, for instance, breaks time into intervals, making use of concentrated, highly focused 25-minute bursts interspersed with short breaks. In fact, this is one of the more popular intervals utilized by productivity apps; instead of wasting time setting your own timers, let your smartphone or computer do the work for you. This can help you feel less stressed about taking breaks or being distracted—after all, that’s part of the plan. Make sure your space is yours and that it is a dedicated workspace, do everything you can to put yourself in the right mindset in the morning, and try out different ways of scheduling your time. You may be surprised how much you accomplish with a little tweak in how you plan your day.
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