Tips for Staying Organized While Working from Home
The number one thing I get asked is how I stay organized when working from home. Sure, it is a full-time job and I even have my side hustle, but working from home requires more discipline and organization than working outside of the home. You have to have a schedule, because if you don’t, it is very easy to get off track and do other things.
You typically don’t have anyone looking over your shoulder, so you have more freedom. You are unsupervised to say the least, so taking breaks and having a little freedom it much easier to do and those things can also get you off task and keep you from doing your job effectively. So let’s look at five different things I do to stay organized while working from home.
Plan each day out at the start of the week. Every Sunday night I go in and fill out my planner. My weekly work routine is pretty much the same each week, so I can put my typical weekly tasks in my planner each week. I go in and put everything into my planner, including anything social I have, standing appointments, workouts, etc. Now, I have another planner for my blog, so I also plan my week for that as well. I can go in and look at both of my planners and on the days I have a ton of real-world work to do, I can cut down on what I do for my blog. It helps me see what I have going on for that week. When I know what I have to do each day of the week, I can get my important tasks completed and not get off track. I can then go in on Mondays and add any meetings on my work calendars and anything else that comes up.
I invest in a good planner or two! I love my planners and I am able to mark things off as I do them, which of course gives my type-A self great satisfaction! If I did not have everything written down, there is no way I would stay organized. If you have a job that requires you to be in front of the computer for certain times, your schedule might look different and you might just make a list of daily tasks, but you know you have to be on the computer, so you pretty much stay glued to your desk all day, just like you would at a regular office. That is not as hard, however, you still need a schedule to stick to. Without someone looking over your shoulder or hopping into your office, between social media and doing household chores, there are plenty of distractions to get you off task.
Besides planning out my days, I like to schedule breaks in there as well. I know when I can get up and walk around and/or take the dog out. It helps to get out of your office and walk around. If you stay in your office all day long, it can get tiring and even depressing. It is hard when you work from home and don’t take the time to get out and you can find yourself isolated if you are not careful! You can also become married to your job if you don’t take breaks. And then there is the whole thing about leaving your work when it is done. It is hard to do this when your office is right down the hall!
Planning with a work-from-home job takes practice and the more you work, the easier it gets. If you have a side hustle, like a blog or some other part-time job, and a social life, it can be even harder, but not impossible! You just have to be super organized or else things will fall by the wayside and that is not what you want to happen!
I love working from home and would not go into a traditional work environment at all, however, I have learned what I need to do in order to succeed. All it takes is a little planning and working from home can be smooth sailing all the way!
Later!
Kara
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