7 Simple and Effective Productivity Tips for Entrepreneurs Working From Home

One of the most amazing things about being an entrepreneur is having the ability to create your own schedule and work from home when you want to! Although.. This can also be a huge threat to the success of your small business. Especially if you quit your corporate job to become an entrepreneur or even if you are trying to balance the two. You may find yourself constantly distracted, scrolling on social media, then procrastinating on busy work but not actually getting work done and this may even include a few too many stops to the pantry for snacks out of boredom. 

My assumption is that at this point, you have probably tried to create a schedule for yourself but that amongst other things are just not helping you effectively work through your day. So I am going to lay out for you 7 simple but very effective tips that are actually going to help you be productive as a work from home entrepreneur. 

DESIGNATE A SPACE IN YOUR HOME SPECIFICALLY FOR WORK

Does this mean you need to have a whole bedroom made into an office space now that you work from home? Absolutely not! Although it is very important that when you are working from home that you have a space  that is designated to be your workspace. This will allow for you to reprogram your brain to be in “work mode” vs relaxation. 

It will be easier for you to subconsciously differentiate what areas  you need focused thinking or diffused thinking. Another benefit to doing this is that you will also reduce the potential of burnout as an entrepreneur. This is because when you decide to per say work from your bed all day; not only are you feeling cozy in bed which can actually reduce your productivity, you also will eventually associate your bed as a workspace. Which is a problem because now when you go to actually sleep or relax in your bed, your brain will not fully go into rest mode.. Leaving you feeling like you are always working.

So designate a space in your home that you specifically go to to work in. This doesn’t have to be an office or bedroom.. This can be a table top, your patio, a desk space behind or in the corner of your living room. Just choose a space that you will work from home in and make it that.

HAVE A MORNING ROUTINE AND STICK TO IT

One major way to increase your productivity as an entrepreneur is to have an effective morning routine. You are managing your own work day now so it is very important that you set yourself up for success early on in the day. It is true that you are not always going to feel motivated to start your work day even as an entrepreneur. Which is why you need to create a morning routine that will put you in the position to be motivated.

So how do I create a morning routine to be more productive? Well, this isn’t the time to add on a whole bunch of new habits all at once. Let’s avoid you giving up in a week and instead implementing effective ways to be more productive today. You likely already have some form of a routine.. Maybe a natural wake hour, making your coffee in the morning, showering and getting dressed,  listening to music or a podcast. 

Write out the list of things you already do in a typical morning that make you feel good and ready for the day. Then I want you to add only 1 habit that you will begin implementing to be more productive. Once you have mastered that one habit and it feels natural to do daily, you can then add on another and repeat until you have built a productive morning routine. A great place to start is waking up earlier or getting physical activity every morning. Whatever you choose, stay focused and commit to sticking to that habit.

SCHEDULE PERIODIC BREAKS THROUGHOUT THE WORK DAY

We know there is alot to get done and only 24 hours in a day, being productive is crucial. Although if you want to consistently stay productive and avoid burnout, you are going to need to allow yourself time for rest. Even machines need rest to perform well. 

It is easy to be in work or creative mode and just keep going and going until it is done. Giving yourself breaks throughout the day will allow for you to come back rejuvenated and even more mentally prepared to work effectively. Keep in mind there is a balance between too many breaks and not enough breaks. You may need to experiment what works best for you. 

There are many variances of what your breaks can look like but determine what the lengths and frequencies are going to be and then schedule it in your calendar or set an alarm to make sure you stick to it.

SET DAILY TARGETS AND USE THE ‘EAT THE FROG’ METHOD

On a daily basis you should be setting targets for what you are going to complete that day. As a small business owner you probably have a running list of to do’s, so you need to be able to manage what you are going to get done and when. The first part to productively achieving your to do list is choosing 2-5 tasks that you would like to get done that day. You should be setting this target first thing in the morning or the night before, so you already know what needs to get done and avoid any unnecessary busy work. 

Then a great method to tackle your tasks is using the ‘Eat the Frog’ method to boost your productivity. The core concept is that you are going to complete the most important/most impactful task you have to complete first. Oftentimes we dread this task because it usually requires the most work or time. We then begin procrastinating or distract ourselves with other tasks constantly pushing the task to the next day, Making us feel unaccomplished and keeping us busy but no closer to our goal.

You can determine which task is your “frog” by asking yourself what would get you closest to achieving your goals. So to boost your productivity, each day evaluate what you would like to get done that day and then determine your one “frog” and complete it first.

TURN ON ‘DO NOT DISTURB’ OR TURN OFF NON-BUSINESS RELATED NOTIFICATIONS

I am going to take a wild guess that your number one distraction is your phone. In this day and age our lives and likely your business operates on our phone, which makes sense because we use phones daily to function. Although, our phones and the applications we use on them are also created for us to constantly be consumers. As business owners we need to be proactive rather than reactive in the way we go about our day, so eliminating distractions is crucial.

During the time that you would call your business hours or the times you are working, you should turn on your ‘do not disturb’ feature. That way you can simply focus on what’s in front of you and the rest can wait until you take a break or you are available. Now for some of us this method just doesn’t work and in that case go through your phone and turn off all notifications that are not business related or you know will distract you from working. 

Once you do this, you will certainly feel relieved from the unnecessary pings on your phone and you will be able to stay focused throughout your work day. 

GET AT LEAST 15 MINUTES OUTSIDE IN FRESH AIR DAILY

You need fresh air and sunlight daily! Getting outside every day is very important when you work from home. You will be able to get new scenery, allow nature to relax you and truly press the reset button in the middle of your day. The sun is also your best source of vitamin D, which has been proven to positively affect your mood.

You may not be able to spend your time outside all day but if you can fit in just 15 minutes a day, you will definitely feel a difference in your mood and in turn your productivity.

GET READY AND DRESSED FOR THE DAY.. EVEN IF THAT MEANS LOUNGE CLOTHES

Working from home means wearing whatever you feel like. Saying goodbye to a corporate job also means that you don’t have a dress code or work attire you have to abide by. Although, we wouldn’t recommend getting carried away! While it is nice to wear pajamas all day, it certainly does not boost your productivity levels. This doesn’t mean you have to say goodbye to the comfort that puts you in a good mood either. 

Getting ready and dressed for the day promotes feelings of purpose and intention. How this looks to you is completely up to you. Even just making sure that you wash up, do your hair and change your clothes in well put together lounge clothes will make a difference. Just ask yourself what makes you feel energized and ready to take on the day and go with it. 

CONCLUSION

Go and implement one or even all of these and you will be able to see a boost in productivity while being an entrepreneur who works from home. 

Tell us in the comments, do you already use any of these productivity tips? Or do you have any to share?