If you are still working from home, you know the struggle and while some things seem to get easier, others are still tough.
I received a Raise computer stand to facilitate this post.
It has been over seven months since my family and others have made drastic changes in the way they work and go to school. The Covid-19 pandemic has turned so many lives upside down and it does not seem like things are going to get better, any time soon. So many people, including myself and my husband, are still working from home. So many kids are attending school on a computer with way too many Google or Zoom meets. Then there are the parents who are trying to juggle working from home and homeschooling at the same time.
For some people, working from home is a dream come true and he enjoys not having the daily commute and being able to watch tv while working. My husband is able to get his work done efficiently from home. While others are still struggling with working from home, especially if you have kids. Trying to attend online meetings with the noise of kids in the background is not easy.
I used to be able to efficiently work from home, that was before the family invaded my space. Now I have kids making noise while I am trying to accomplish work from my computer. My kids are older so while they know not to bother me while I am in a conference but they still do with their many questions. The struggle is real but over the months, I have learned several tips to make work at home more efficient and manageable. These tips have helped me to be less stressed and have helped me get a better system in place so my family can all work in the same house. These tips have helped us all be more productive with our work.
The kids are home all day and they never leave
It has been so long since the kids attended school in person and while the kids are getting adjusted to virtual school, they still don't care for at-home school. When the kids started attending school, things were chaotic but these 10 Tips To Help Kids With Online School made things easier. Some of the kid school tips have even helped with my work. Another thing that really helps with the stress of everyone at home is the power of prayer. When I feel like I just can't do this anymore, I stop and pray for God to help me.
1. Make a dedicated space for work
Early on the thing that has helped most with working from home is making a dedicated space for everyone to do their work. I made sure that everyone's space was free from distractions and for the younger boys, not in their bedroom. When my college kid was home, we had five people working from home. My husband was in the living room, the college kid was in his bedroom, one kid was in my photo studio and the other was in the dining room. I set up my workspace in my master bathroom as it was the only quiet space that I could find. I was thankful that my bathroom was big and nice looking. We renovated the master bathroom a couple years earlier so it was not that bad to do my work in this space. My family would joke about my makeshift office in a bathroom but I was able to escape from the noise.
2. Work from a desk or table
Once you set up a dedicated space just for work, set up your laptop computer on a desk or a table so it feels like a real workspace. When you are at the office or the kids are at school, they do not sit on a couch. Doing your work from a couch tends to make your posture be misaligned which can make you feel tired. The couch does not make it easy for you to sit up straight and that can lower your oxygen intake which makes you feel tired. Not sitting up straight all day can lead to back and neck problems, not to mention awkward unprofessional Zoom calls.
3. Raise your computer
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4. Prevent eyestrain
Staring at a computer all day is not good for the eyes. So make sure to take regular breaks from staring at the computer screen. That break can be as simple as making sure to glance away for a couple of minutes every hour or better yet get some exercise and get up off your chair and take a walk around the house. This break is a perfect time to get a drink of water.
5. Get exercise
Exercise helps your brain think better. I like to exercise before work as Morning Exercise Is Good For The Body And The Mind. When I make the time to exercise, I not only feel amazing but I am more productive with my work. If you don't have time for fitness before work, find creative ways to work some movement into your day. Some people like to work at standing desks or pace the floor while talking on the phone. Now that my college kid is back at school, my office is in his bedroom. So I make a point to walk downstairs everyone. I do this mostly to see how my kids are doing with school. Even though my boys are in middle school and are self-sufficient, they like mom visiting them throughout the day.
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6. Eat a healthy lunch
Working from home makes it tempting to grab unhealthy snacks. The kitchen is right there calling your name and it is so easy to grab a handful of cookies instead of taking the time to make a nutritious meal. I get it that you are busy and don't have time to make a meal. So stock your fridge with grab and go healthy food that will fill you up. When you make meal prep easy with ready to eat meals, you will not reach for the junk food.
7. Get Dressed
Make an effort to get dressed every day before work. It will help you feel more motivated to work. When you stay in your pajamas all day, it tends to make you feel tired and lazy. So get dressed and make yourself look nice. You will find that your work production goes up as you will feel like you are ready for work. This will also be good for when you have those Zoom meetings. I saw this first hand in my husband. On the days that he gets dressed, he gets out of the house quicker and is happy to work. When my husband stays in the clothes that he slept in, he complains about working.
8. Make breakfast an important thing
Make an effort to eat a healthy breakfast before you sit down to work. Now that you are not leaving the house it is so simple to skip breakfast but don't as a healthy breakfast will help you be more productive. It will also help you from grabbing unhealthy snacks. We all know that once we start working, things can get busy and you won't have time to eat. So on the weekend meal prep some easy breakfast foods that you can heat up in the morning like these healthy chocolate protein pancakes or frozen fruit for adding to protein powder for smoothies. You can even premake breakfast burritos and freeze them to heat up in the microwave. I like to make these breakfast cookies as they store well in the fridge.
9. Eat plenty of fiber
Working from home can mess with your body and that can lead to problems in the bathroom. So make sure to include plenty of fiber in your meals like fruits and veggies. An easy way to increase your fiber intake is with a simple fiber supplement that you can stir into your coffee. When you select a tasteless fiber powder that dissolves in any liquid, you can make the going in the bathroom easy so you can get it done without a long bathroom break.
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10. Get plenty of sleep
Make sure you are placing importance on plenty of sleep. We all know that sleep is important to a healthy body and when we skimp on sleep, our work suffers. So force yourself to go to bed at night so you can get 6-8 hours of sleep. Turn off the devices and TV as those can interfere with your sleep. Check out these Twelve Tips To Get A Better Night Of Sleep.
11. Quit work
I don't mean quit your job but rather stop working at the time you would if you were at the office. When you work at home, it is all too easy to keep working after work hours. It can be hard to separate work life from home life and that can make for a stressful day. All work and no play is not a good thing. If you don't make time for yourself and the kids you will start resenting work. You will not be a good employee for your job. Even though you are working from home, you are still getting paid from an employer, even if they are not in your home office. So that means also that you are only getting paid to work the 9-5. So unless you are earning overtime pay, stop working when your workday is done.
