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Working from Home Tips to increase productivity

Working from home can be challenging: you might find yourself distracted by household tasks that need your attention, by your family or roommates, and you might even find you are working extra hours because you can’t focus during working hours.

If that sounds like you, it’s important that you find ways to stay productive and create a work-life balance that will positively affect your overall health. Read our tips on how to be productive when working at home:  

1. Develop a schedule that works with your productivity levels

Developing a working schedule that is unique to you will help you maintain that work-life balance that you always wanted. The key here is to work on a schedule that suits you and the way you work.

A lot of the time we see tips such as work as if you are in the office, however, we don’t agree with that. We all know things have changed, so working remotely should give employees the flexibility to work when they feel productive. Pay attention to the times you feel the most productive and develop a modern-day working schedule that will set guidelines for when to work and when to call it a day.

For example, you might have a Zoom meeting with someone overseas and your schedule might need to be adjusted. When that happens, be sure to wrap up earlier than usual or sleep in a bit the next morning to make up for it.

If you are not able to have that flexibility in your line of work, then try to create a schedule based on your working hours. Set clear objectives and add tasks to your schedule depending on your productivity levels. Again, the mission here is to notice how your brain likes to work.

For instance, if you have a 9 am Zoom call every morning, don’t set a hard task right after the call. Instead, add the small task of taking down notes based on the call you just had, and slowly that will get you in the zone. Notice how you feel every day and based on your energy levels, create a schedule for the day that is doable.

Pro tip: Share or talk about your schedule with your family. That way you set boundaries in your home and can make it clear that during the hours you are working, you are not to be disturbed.

2. As soon as work is finished, step away

One of the hardest issues to get over when working from home is inactivity. Working remotely involves a lot of sitting in front of your computer for hours and hours on end until tasks are done.

If you make sure you have something else to do after work, then that will give you a source of motivation to finish up and get going. A lot of people working from home have become used to work always being there, so making sure you have a reason to step away every evening is important.

We are suggesting making some kind of plans right after work to give you that initial push. So, once you get used to this routine, then you can make sure that as soon as work is finished you get up and step away from any screens.

Go take a shower, start cooking, go for a walk, or go outside in nature and enjoy the fresh air and the sounds of birds to help lower your stress levels and relax.

3. Have a realistic to-do list while working from home

 

Take a few minutes every day before you start work to write down a to-do list with tasks that you can accomplish that day. Start small and use these daily points to slowly build up to a larger goal.

When creating to-do lists, a lot of us simply write down a list of final goals, for example, Schedule this week’s Email campaigns. But what steps would you need to take to schedule the email campaigns? You would need to write the email copy, create graphics, check the audience, check analytics, and check the best times to schedule the email. These are the tasks you should be adding to your to-do list.

Pro tip: Enabling yourself to achieve small goals each day could help you complete your work tasks without even realising. The sense of completing these achievable tasks in your list will also keep you motivated.

4. Track your time

If you struggle with time management, tracking your time can be a great technique to get you to focus on one task at a time. It can be easy to lose track of time when working remotely – you might get up to make a cup of tea and lose half an hour, just like that.

So, get your cup of tea, water, and snacks ready and set a timer for yourself. For example, set a timer for one or two hours to complete a task and then also set time to take a 20-minute break.

Pro tip: If you feel like you need that extra push and feel of urgency, set a timer on a clock that is visible in your peripheral. We know this sounds like a stressful way to go about it but trust us, working under self-inflicted pressure and seeing the time pass so quickly will only motivate you and help you achieve your goals in no time.

5. Avoid all digital interruptions!

If you work from home and especially work from your computer and mobile, limiting digital distraction might seem nearly impossible. FocusMe was created by Jon, a master procrastinator who wanted to take matters into his own hands. He created an app that would not only help him focus while working remotely but also block or limit digital distractions.

Our website blocker is fully customisable to block, limit or ration the use of distracting websites and apps. That way you can continue working on your computer without getting notifications from other platforms or being distracted by incoming personal emails.

With just a push of a button, what seemed impossible can now be easily controlled. Reclaim your focus by downloading your free trial today.

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It’s easy to think of procrastination as something directly related to your IDENTITY especially when you are working on something and you are not in the mood to do it. 

“I’m a procrastinator.”

“I can’t stick with a schedule.”

“It’s just who I am.”

But procrastination is often more related to MOOD than personality. And if you struggle to stick to a schedule or find yourself losing the discipline to stick with a project before it’s done…

…Or even get it started at all…

…A Key Area To Look Is Your “Mood Management” Skillset.

We all have bad days.

We all have times where we don’t “feel like” working. 

But the high achievers, the most productive folks among us, get things done day in and day out. Rain or shine. No matter what’s going on in their lives or the greater world around them.

Think of it this way.

If your grandmother passed away this morning, how much work do you think you’d get done? How difficult would it be to stick with your schedule if you found out you had a chronic illness (even if there were no physical effects yet)?

Do you see how staying on task has a lot to do with how you FEEL?

Given that life will always have its ups and downs and our moods will go up and down with it…

Here Are Some Tips Entrepreneurs And Online Workers Can Use To Stay On Track Even When They “Don’t Feel Like It.”

Mood Cure #1: Master The Art Of State Change

Mastering your mind state is key to gaining more control over your mood swings, so bad days or bad moods don’t throw you off.

We all work with our own unique emotional landscape; however, there are many predictable ways to put yourself in a better mood instantly that work for most people Even when you don’t know what the source of your emotional sticking point is yet. 

For example:

• Listen to music that you love. You may want to keep a playlist on hand just for these moments.
• Take a break. Sometimes if you’re not feeling the work, all you need is a little time away. Come back when you’re “feeling it” more.
• Call a friend or accountability partner. Or call a client or colleague and talk about the project a bit. 
• Keep a file of motivational videos/audios on hand.
• Practice meditation, breathing exercises, or gratitude to get more control over your mind and emotions. You can then turn to these whenever you need to!
• Take a cold shower.
• Jump up and down, shout, act crazy. Yes, I’m serious. Tony Robbins emphasizes this type of state change, especially at his wildly popular seminars, where he gets thousands of attendees to do this at once.

Mood Cure #2: Establish Work Patterns To Create Unstoppable Momentum

Implementing work rituals that you go through every time you sit down to focus can help to create a mood-setting pattern that you can turn on even when you don’t feel like doing anything.

By putting your “work brain” on autopilot as much as possible, it’s easier to “tune out” of everyday noise and fire it up for action when enthusiasm for action is low.

There are a lot of tricks here to help you leverage rituals to “just get going.”

One little habit to kickstart momentum makes it easier to jump right into work (even when you don’t want to).

Sit down, open a file, set a clock for 5 minutes, and then just start… doing. Make it as mindless as possible. Again, the trick is to do it everyday so it becomes a ritual.

Once you do get going, you’re thinking about the work more than your worries and you sort of lose yourself.

I know one guy who only holds himself to doing 2 hours of work every day. He doesn’t even take one day off! 2 hours is a low enough bar that he can always motivate himself. And it establishes a momentum he never loses with a day off.

Some days  he puts in twice that time, or takes off on a work marathon. But either way, he puts in his two hours, and his pattern is a procrastination killer that very rarely lets him down.

Ritual in action!

Mood Cure #3: Find Other Ways To Invigorate Yourself With Movement

Tony’s method is about EXTREME movements…

..But moving on a more basic level deserves special mention too because it has such a powerful effect on your emotional landscape. Yes, move, move, move, and move some more!

I highly recommend just taking a break when you’re down sometimes and just doing something to get your blood pumping. Do some jumping jacks, a set of pushups, or put on your running shoes and go for a jog.

If your schedule is flexible, stop work and go to the gym. It can radically change your day!

And if physical exercise is a part of your daily routine, that will spill over into your daily mood as well.

Pick something simple and mindless and start there.

Simply sitting in front of a computer all day doesn’t exactly put you in peak state.

Mood Cure #4: Delegate Tasks You Don't Enjoy

Often “not being in the mood” is just about boredom.

And a low level of enthusiasm for the work.

Even if that’s not the source of your low enthusiasm on this particular day, well, it’s still MUCH easier to “break out of” a bad mood if you can get motivated enough to sit down and get the ball rolling. And that will happen a lot easier when you actually LIKE the work.

On the other hand, it can be pretty hard to motivate yourself if your day is bogged down with trivial tasks you hate.

In “The Four-Hour Workweek,” Tim Ferris popularized the idea of outsourcing lower level tasks online. Thanks to online technology, specialization, and geo-arbitrage it can be pretty cost-effective these days (even if you’re an employee yourself).

Check out platforms like Fiverr and Upwork to find quality help at an affordable rate.

Hand off your most uninspiring work. Focus only on what really invigorates and inspires you.

Setting yourself up for the most enjoyable work makes it easier to escape into a state of flow.

Mood Cure #5: Or Just Change Your Environment

Sometimes this can be as simple as packing up your bag and heading to another room, or a coffee shop down the road.

Just for the change of scenery. 

It might involve moving to a new house! Or hey, a new country! 

But you should also just control your current work environment as much as possible. Is anything in your environment creating emotional friction between you and your work? Is anything about your work environment irritating you?

People barging in? Put a lock on the door and set rules with family and friends about your work-time.

Traffic noises? Get some noise-canceling headphones.

Office feel stuffy? Open the windows, scatter plants across the room, and hang some beautiful pictures of scenes that inspire you.

Get a more comfortable office chair if that’s what it takes. Your comfort and satisfaction while working is paramount!

Mood Cure #6: Eat Some Ice Cream.

I mean, who can eat ice cream without ending up in a better mood, right?  

I’m half kidding here. 

And be careful… Because too much sugar can actually have a negative effect on mood and energy. 

But the point is sometimes a small treat is a great way to perk yourself up. You could even use it as a reward for finishing the first hour or two of work if you’re really struggling to start.

For some people a “treat” might be a massage. Or a spin down a country road in their car or motorcycle. 

You can even treat these mood-boosting “treats” as rewards by making yourself accomplish a little bit of work first.

Have fun with it. Work doesn’t always have to be so serious!

Mood Cure #7: But... Control Your Vices Too

People who struggle with low energy, poor mood, and chronic procrastination are often caught in negative cycles that are affecting their mood (maybe more than they’d care to acknowledge). 

For example, alcohol.

This one is really common because in our society we don’t really think of it as a drug.

But it certainly is one and even known to be a depressant. So, if you binge drink a lot, it might help to pay attention to how it’s affecting your mood and your energy levels. You may very well notice a strong correlation between the weekend highs and a low that stretches from Sunday, perhaps all the way to Tuesday or Wednesday, with some early week procrastination problems.

This doesn’t just apply to alcohol — it just makes a great example because it’s a very common vice.

Excess caffeine, tobacco, or sugar intake can also make you irritable. Even food, especially carbs or sugar, consumed in excess may leave you sluggish and down.

C’mon… We know this stuff ALREADY, right? I accept that.

However, if you’re finding yourself in lethargic, crabby moods, it might be time to ask yourself if you’ve been listening to the “things you know.”

Or just “knowing” them.

Mood Cure #8: Listen To What Your Body Tells You

As the alcohol example might suggest, your moods are often closely tied to your physiology.

If you find yourself irritable, tired, or depressed… Maybe your body is telling you something. And maybe you should listen?

Sometimes it’s not eating, for example. 

I’m a big believer in the powerful effects of fasting. But you may find that eating your first meal too late in the day results in you starting to get moody around noon. In a situation like this, you might find a decent meal is all it takes to brighten the day again. If so, reconsider your fasting hours or the breadth of your eating window.

Lack of sleep is another common culprit, especially in our hustle culture. Take a nap! A quick 30 minutes may be all it takes to get you up and at em’ again.

Monitor your sleep patterns over all. Modern society tells us that it’s natural to wake up early to an alarm every single day. And staying up late into the night, our houses lit up with artificial light.

Hint… it’s not!

If sleep seems to be a problem, try maintaining a more regular, earlier bedtime. If your schedule affords it, try doing away with the alarm completely and sleeping with your curtain open. Let the sun wake you instead of that blaring, unnatural alarm clock. 

I use this sunrise alarm clock to wake up naturally everyday by 6:15!

Exposing yourself to that natural sunlight during the day (and perhaps wearing blue-light blocking glasses at night) is another great way to normalize your sleep patterns. 

Mood Cure #9: Study Up On Stoic Philosophy

There’s a lot we can learn from the Stoics, but one of the most powerful lessons when it comes to working through life’s drearier moments is the acceptance that life doesn’t always need to be perfect.

As much as we like to think of ourselves as unique and “special,” no human is deserving of a “perfect life” that is somehow always comfortable and fun.

And it’s unreasonable to expect one.

Marcus Aurelius said:

“At dawn, when you have trouble getting out of bed, tell yourself: ‘I have to go to work — as a human being. What do I have to complain of, if I’m going to do what I was born for — the things I was brought into the world to do? Or is this what I was created for? To huddle under the blankets and stay warm?’”

Stoic philosophy teaches us that always expecting life to be amazing and thrilling is irrational and unrealistic. By accepting that sometimes things will be uncomfortable, and being willing to face that discomfort and work in spite of it, we build much healthier, more logical patterns of thought for work and life. 

Rational Emotive Therapy teaches very similar principles. Here’s an article we wrote about this idea here.

Mood Cure #10: Visualize Your Goals

One powerful way to work in spite of a bad mood is to think of the bigger picture.

WHY are you working?

What are you working TOWARDS? 

Is it money? A better lifestyle? More freedom? A greater cause?

Sit back and check in with your bigger goals and you can often tap back into that motivation to power through your darker moments.

Whatever you think about vision boards and their ability to create reality, it’s hard to deny they are a great mood lifter!

Mood Cure #11: Think Of Yourself As A Craftsman

If you’re always just working for the next payday and don’t really CARE about what you’re doing, it’s much less fulfilling. 

But by thinking of yourself as a craftsman you can make the work itself become a reward.

This isn’t about the end result of your goal. You may be a web designer, for example. But have you made it a mission to be THE BEST WEB DESIGNER POSSIBLE?

Do you love the CRAFT of web design? And if not, can you learn to?

If you constantly find yourself working for clients, you may find yourself uninspired by the work. But think of what THEY’RE trying to accomplish with the website you create. How does it SERVE the world? If it really just doesn’t, you might consider focusing on a different type of client…

How can you constantly IMPROVE on what you do?

The deeper you dig into any topic or skill set on earth, the more fascinating it becomes. So I encourage you to dig as deep into your work as you can. The better you get at something, the more you learn about it, the more INTERESTING it becomes.

And you create that dynamic with your work where you can get LOST in it…

Fall in love with “deep work.”

When you have that type of relationship with your craft, all it takes is sitting down and firing up your table saw, picking up your paintbrush, or in this scenario, opening up Photoshop…

…And the entire physical world (and all its concerns) fade away. You may have to face them again later, but your work can always be a place to disappear for a while. 

Mood Cure #12: Don’t Beat Up On Yourself!

Of course, one of the most vicious traps with procrastination is our tendency to be hard on yourself when you procrastinate…

…Thus making it even HARDER to work. And creating a self-perpetuating cycle.

Big trap!

So learning to forgive yourself and accept your own flaws and mistakes (as cheesy as it might sound) really is a big part of keeping yourself in a healthy enough state to get things done too.

Mood Cure #13: Make Sure To "Celebrate Your Wins"

One of the best things about learning to work when you’re “not in the mood” is this…

…Once you DO sit down and actually get something done, it’s a great little reward to yourself. And as you defy your procrastination, defy your mood, and defy the notion that life always has to be “comfortable”…

…You get small little wins.

And these wins build positive emotions. That build on themselves to eliminate the power procrastination holds on your life and your psyche.

In fact, I take a few minutes at the end of each day to write down my “wins” for that day.

And it’s amazing how much momentum this builds over the course of the week.

Of course, if I wait until the end of the week (or Monday morning) to try to remember what I accomplished, I only come up with a few items. But when I make it a point to write them down every single day, I usually end up with over 20 big wins per week…

Which drives up my confidence and boosts my motivation by allowing to start my day just a little more charged up!

Are You Ready To Work Your Way Into A Better Mood?

FocusMe is a great way to start building those small wins by creating “rules” for the way you work online.

 

Learn more about how you can use it to defeat procrastination and online distraction today.

The post How to Get Work Done (Even When You’re Not in the Mood) appeared first on FocusMe.

Many of us claim to work smarter not harder, but are we really practicing what we preach?

We’ve all done it – someone compliments us for completing a task in an simpler or less taxing way than the one they were aware of and we respond with something along the lines of “I prefer to work smarter not harder!”

But is that really the case?

Are you really doing everything you can to make your own life easier and ensure that your future is as bright as you like to imagine it?

If you can honestly answer that question in the affirmative, what are you doing reading an article like this one? Get out of here and go back to hanging out with the other perfect people in whatever alternate reality you came from.

For everybody else, here are some ideas about how to make work work for you:

1. Work less

It may sound too good to be true, but deciding to work less total hours each day, week or month is actually a viable strategy in the battle to work smarter not harder.

Concepts such as the four-day workweek, reduced office hours and other hybrid work models that allow employees greater flexibility are begging to gain traction. A cynic might conclude that any idea purporting to help people work less would obviously be popular, yet scientists are coming to the same conclusions. 

It turns out that people really do tend to be just as productive or even more so than usual when offered the opportunity to gain additional free time if they can complete tasks faster. Nor does the quality of the work suffer. In fact, it tends to improve.

In other words, the carrot really is better than the stick. Wow, who would have guessed?

If you doubt that your job could be done in less time than it currently takes, try to take take a leaf out of the book of the growing number of ‘overemployed’ white collar workers who have found a way to hold down two, three, and in some cases even four full-time jobs at the same time (normally without the knowledge of their employers, of course).

If they can handle that, you can probably do just one job in less time if you really set your mind to it. If that really is impossible, either because your boss is a jerk who starts sentences with phrases like “Those millennial snowflakes” and “Back when I started out in this industry” or because the type of work you do simply can’t be done faster then you’ll need to consider some other options.

2. Invest in yourself

Investing valuable time and money into further education may not sound like a way to work smarter not harder, especially if you already have a lot on your plate and are looking for ways to lessen your load and not increase it. But sometimes you need to play the long game.

If you’re serious about creating a truly comfortable and sustainable life for yourself and your family, you need either substantial financial resources or a heck of a lot of knowledge – more realistically, you’ll likely be aiming for solid mixture of both. 

To succeed in a hyper-competitive global economy you need an edge. Whether it’s mastering SEO, learning a new skill set that is in high demand or becoming a true expert in your current field, setting yourself apart from the crowd is the best way to shorten the otherwise long hard slog to rise above it. 

On the other end of the spectrum, you could save up enough cash to buy a piece of land in a remote location and become a master of permaculture, natural building and fungi identification. Sure, you’ll spend just as many hours or more of each day ‘working’ to support your needs, but the type of work you do, where you do it, who you do it with and most of all your perception of it all play a massive role in determining whether it enriches your life or drains your vital energy.

Similarly, investing in your health and personal/spiritual growth will lead to all kinds of improvements in your life, state of mind and even your bank balance. Unfortunately, health and personal development often end up below what we consider more pressing concerns. Yes, it’s true that you need to make sure the bills are paid and get the kids to soccer practice, but perhaps the next time you’re about to turn on Netflix, play a sneaky round of Candy Crush or manage your Fantasy Football team you might want to ask yourself if that time could be better spent?

Download this article as a PDF

3. Consider going freelance

Another increasingly popular option among those determined to work smarter not harder is to switch to freelancing. While leaving the security of contracted full-time employment behind may be daunting, what you give up in certainty you gain back in opportunity. You know, nothing ventured nothing gained, no risk no reward, and all that jazz.

There are more and more fields where this is becoming possible or even the norm, while there are no shortage of websites offering to connect freelancers of all levels with an entire world of employers.

It can take time to establish yourself as a freelancer if you’re not already well-connected within your industry and there can be ups and downs, especially in the beginning. Yet this way of life also allows you the kind of flexibility that single-employer jobs cannot. Better yet, if you can deliver results for your clients, your income and reputation will grow exponentially quicker than if you were stuck in long-term contract with a single company.

Download this article as a PDF

4. Improve your time management

While the idea of switching to a four-day workweek, going freelance or retraining to become a data scientist or get a future-proof job in the green economy may sound great in theory, these strategies are not always achievable in practice or can take some time to pay dividends. If you need solutions RIGHT NOW, one of the best places to start is with good old-fashioned time management. 

This route is neither glamorous nor particularly easy, but it works.

The first step to improving your time management is to do an honest assessment of your current habits. This will allow you to identify areas of your life where time could be saved and/or efficiency could be increased. This requires brutal honesty and maybe even some consultation with those who know you best.

Once you’ve identified areas that can be improved you’ll be better able to decide on viable solutions. Maybe it’s making better use of your calendar, or perhaps you need to get creative to solve issues unique to you. Here are some time-management skills you can work on and improve if you’re serious about working smarter not harder.

5. Streamline your life using technology

Technology is by definition “the application of scientific knowledge for practical purposes”. In its purest form, it makes our lives easier by allowing us to do things that would either be impossible using the human body alone or would require many hands, much time and backbreaking labor. It’s our species’ #1 strategy for working smarter not harder.

Of course, you already know all that because you’re reading this on a device that even many alive now wouldn’t have dreamed possible a few decades ago, connected to a world-wide-web of other devices that allow people to send unimaginable amounts of data and communicate in real-time using signals that are invisible to the human eye.

 Machine learning and Artificial Intelligence promise to make our jobs so much easier that we are no longer required to do them. Although thankfully we’re still a ways away from that eventuality. For now, they seem to be best at augmenting human work and increasing our creativity.

Like it’s creators technology also has a dark side. With one hand it offers us the promise of unimaginable productivity, while with the other it attempts to steal every moment of our attention by harvesting enough data points to know us better than our loved ones.

That’s where a productivity app like FocusMe comes in. If you struggle to maintain your concentration while working in front of a screen, this is the guardrail you need. It’s simple, really, the app employs powerful code that forces you to stay within the digital boundaries you set for yourself.

 

If you’re serious about improving your productivity, this is the tool that will help you to do it. Don’t take our word for it though. Check out reliable third-party reviews by our many satisfied users to see what FocusMe can do for you. If you’re ready to get serious about making your tech work for you rather than against you, simply click the big shiny button below and we’ll guide you every step of the way!

GET STARTED NOW

The post 5 Ways To Truly Work Smarter Not Harder appeared first on FocusMe.

But staying focused and productive while at home in your pajamas brings its own unique challenges. We’ve worked with many thousands of remote workers, digital entrepreneurs, and students – the pattern is very clear:

People expect a home working environment to liberate them. Instead, a lack of oversight and team cohesion – not to mention a world of digital distraction at their fingertips – leads to well-intentioned work sessions slipping like through their fingers like sand.

Just like that, weeks, months, even years can disappear.

Download this article as a PDF

The Key to Cracking the Whip on Your Mind for Better Home-Based Results?

Getting productive is about setting up mental frameworks that make productivity easy. And that condition your mind to thrive in any environment. Essentially, you have to “outsmart” your subconscious mind if you want it to behave.

Here are 27 proven mind hacks for doing just that.

Mind Hack #1:

Create An “Unschedule”

It’s common for procrastinators to move the fun things in life to “later” because they always have work to catch up on…

Then they don’t do the work anyways. And so they put off the fun again too.

This creates a demoralizing situation where they’re constantly in work mode but never actually get anything done. And since they never catch up to leisure, life becomes one long tedious chore of non-accomplishment…

The Unschedule is a concept popularized by the book, “The Now Habit.” The core premise is to fill your planner with recreation FIRST. Wall off your weekend. Plan time off and activities for rest and recreation throughout the week (and the day).

Remember Parkinson’s Law. Work tends to swell or shrink to the time you give it. So staking off free time first forces you to get work done in tighter windows…you know, so you actually have to do it.

And it gives the brain rewards to look forward to while providing the downtime it needs to be most productive.

Mind Hack #2:

But Don’t Identify with Procrastination

It’s difficult to write an article about productivity without talking about “procrastinators”…

But we have to be cautious about the mental labels we give ourselves.

When you accept an identity, you subconsciously tell yourself that’s just the way things are. Labeling yourself creates an easy excuse for not changing. Worse yet, it can make you feel like changing is impossible.

Don’t breathe more life into this challenge than it deserves.

Everyone procrastinates. And there are proven ways to get better at managing your time, focus, and energy.

You are NOT a procrastinator.

You are someone who procrastinates sometimes. And getting more focused is a skillset that CAN be learned.

That starts with…

Mind Hack #3:

Create Accountability

Often, the true source of procrastination is perfectionism.

In our heart of hearts, we often don’t begin something because we’re afraid of not getting it right or looking stupid, or even being seen as an “imposter.”

The best pressure release valve?

Give yourself the permission to be flawed.

Before beginning work, remind yourself that getting it wrong (or at least wrong on the first go) is okay. You are imperfect. And mistakes are lessons you can redeem with trying again.

Open your computer, close your eyes for a moment, and create a silent intention to begin the work session with “beginner’s mind.”

You’re there to learn and grow through your work.

Liberate yourself (and your results) through this mindset shift and you might tap into your best source of creativity yet.

Mind Hack #4:

Embracing Beginner’s Mind

One of the simplest accountability hacks is putting a whiteboard on the wall and standing up to mark a tally for each hour completed. You could also just use a notepad beside your computer.

Of course, this only makes you accountable to yourself, but those tallies function as a “proof of progress” that is very powerful for your brain – and a hit of accomplishment with every hour that you log.

You could even create a system of rewards and punishments for yourself based on your tally accumulation in a certain time frame.

Of course, making yourself accountable to friends can make this more powerful – partner up with someone and jump on a call every morning or evening to discuss goals, challenges, and progress. Share your daily tally if you like.

There are even websites where you can obligate yourself to donate cash to a cause you hate if you don’t follow through.

Even just filling your spouse in on what you intend to do, and then having them check in at a certain time to make sure you’re doing it, can help keep you on track.

Mind Hack #5:

The Power of the “Next Task”

A helpful metaphor for work and life is to imagine yourself on a dark flight of stairs. You don’t know where it’s going, but you can see just that first step in front of you.

And once you step onto it, the next step reveals itself.

Keep doing that and step after step reveals itself in turn…eventually you arrive at your destination.

Work (and life itself) is like that. We often don’t know where a project will take us, but it seems we always know the first small step to go there. So focusing just on just the first thing you need to do creates momentum and widens your perspective as you go.

Even if you don’t know how you’re going to do something, or don’t have a bigger picture of the project, don’t let it intimidate you. Choose the first small task you do know and start.

The rest will unfold in time.

And by doing this you create an invaluable habit of always starting.

Mind Hack #6:

Designate a Dedicated Office Area

Sleep doctors often say you should only use your bed for sleeping or getting intimate – never laying around watching TV. Why?

Well, the brain likes to compartmentalize things. Once it categorizes the bed as the sleeping place, you lay down in it and your mental and biological systems immediately start to relax and drift off.

If possible, set aside an entire room for your office, commit to using that room for work and study only, and honor that commitment. Same thing happens. You step in the room and your brain slips into work mode.

Some people’s dream is to have a beautiful view from the home office, but don’t let that hold you back. You may actually find it to be a distraction – for me, putting my desk in front of a blank wall forces me to either work or, well, stare at the wall.

It’s also a lot easier to shut other people out when you have a designated work room.

Which brings up another important point…

Mind Hack #7:

Train Your Brain to Train People Not to Bother You

People who haven’t worked remotely won’t understand how important it is to preserve your mental focus. And may not realize how demanding knowledge work can be. After all, what could possibly be so challenging about looking up from the computer to answer a quick question, right?

A lot, actually.

All it takes a microsecond of getting pulled out of the zone and you may have to spend 10, 20, 30 minutes, an hour working on getting back in that mental sweet spot again. If you can get back there at all.

And a well-meaning family member can easily interrupt you several times an hour with a “harmless” question. There goes the day.

But here’s the real danger. If you fall into the habit of indulging these small interruptions to be polite, you train YOUR OWN brain to accept them (instead of staking off work off as the sacred mental construct it must become).

Warning: you WILL get pushback when you start setting your foot down.

But it’s imperative you get the point across; you are NOT to be bothered while working. Make it a rule, and protect that rule (or no one else will).

Again, work time is sacred.

Turn off phones and other notifications. Lock the door to your home and put in your headphones. Lock the door to your office if you live with others, and put up a custom-made sign letting people know interruption is only allowed in an emergency.

One idea is to leave the door open when doing less demanding stuff but close it during deep work sessions.

This creates an expectation pattern for yourself and others – the door open means come on in, and door closed means enter at your own risk.

Mind Hack #8:

Move Around the House Too (Sometimes)

A designated office is crucial, but at times you do need to move around to avoid mental stagnation.

For example, in more normal times I often hit a coffee shop or restaurant for changes of scenery if I’m in a slump. It’s often the only creative injection I need to get running again.

If you’re stuck at home right now, you don’t have that option. Try moving around your house instead.

Do less demanding work, like fielding emails with clients or making social media posts, at the kitchen table. Or bring the computer out to the balcony or back yard and do some work there if you have the luxury.

Of course, it’s trickier to keep people from bothering you when playing musical rooms, but it can be worth it to keep the mind fresh.

Just choose your battles wisely.

Mind Hack #9:

Hold Yourself to A Rigid Work Schedule

Just because you “can” make your own hours doesn’t mean you shouldn’t have set hours to work by.  Keeping a strict schedule leaves you with a lot less choices to contend with and potentially pull you off track.

It also conditions your routine-loving brain to gear up for work at the same time every day.

“Clock in” every morning at a specific hour, put in your time, and then “clock out.”

You don’t necessarily have to work in 8-hour blocks, though. Once you get productive at home, you may find a lack of office distraction means doing more with less time.

You could also break your day in two.

For example, get up in the morning and put in your five good hours between 8 a.m. and 1 p.m. Take some hours off to enjoy the day. And then finish your remaining hours in the afternoon or early evening.

Figure out the best schedule for you, but then stick with it most days.

Mind Hack #10:

Get Dressed for Work

Getting dressed for success has a similar effect.

Sure, you can lounge around in your pajamas all day if you want…

But there’s no pride in that. Act like a slob and you will feel, and work, like one.

Try getting up to take a shower, make yourself look put-together, and put on at least casual business clothes. It just gives your morning routine a serious air and leaves you feeling like a professional.

Rituals like this have a profound effect on how you take on the day…

And the results you get over time.

Mind Hack #11:

Put Yourself in the Right Headspace on Command

Speaking of rituals…

A technique for getting yourself primed for work fast is to use the same exact set up of steps, or ritual, every time you sit down in front of your computer.

Here’s an example.

1. Set out your coffee or tea, so you don’t have to get up again.
2. Lock doors, or set out a “hard at work” sign if needed.
3. Place a notepad beside your computer (see Hack #16).
4. Sit down.
5. Write down 5 things you intend to accomplish when you open your computer. So there’s no question what you’ll be focused on.
6. Open your computer.
7. Log in to any programs you’ll be using. Open any docs.
8. Put in your headphones and start your “work music” – for me it’s usually binaural beats, meditation music, or smooth jazz. It probably doesn’t matter as long as it’s consistent.
9. Mark down your starting time or start your timer.
10. Start working.

Again, it’s all about training your brain. You want your subconscious mind to recognize this as a primer to switching on the right gear.

Follow the same steps every time, like a pilot enacting a launch sequence.

Eventually that mode switch comes faster and faster.

Mind Hack #12:

Track Your Time

Track your time or work to a timer to train your brain for focused sprints with no getting off task.

You can keep your work blocks short at first and make them longer as the habit normalizes.

Tracking what you’re actually doing with your time, or where you might be wasting time, also creates opportunities to improve your metrics. You can’t know what you’re doing wrong if you don’t record what you’re actually doing.

You can use a simple spreadsheet for work tracking. Or a notepad.

Record date, time started, time finished, and what tasks you worked on.

If you want to create accountability here, pair up with a friend to share work tracking in the same spreadsheet on Google Drive.

Or track actual computer use, work-related or not, with FocusMe’s handy tracking tool, which presents a colored graph of where your online time goes.

Great trick for spotting problem areas with very little effort.

Mind Hack #13:

Batch Multitasking

In general, multitasking is a bad idea.

It really bogs down your brain and makes you far less effective.

However, reality often doesn’t give a choice, and we’ve all got a handful of bite-sized tasks that we need to address eventually.

Give your brain a break on this one – but don’t let them creep into work blocks!

The best way is to reserve multi-tasking time specifically for these tasks. Keep a list of small things you need to do, hit a timer, and just start knocking them off.

Do it once a day or a few times a week.

Valuable deep work time should always be protected just for deep work.

Mind Hack #14:

Schedule (and Limit) Your Email

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Don’t ever let email checking become a reactive activity!

If you do, the part of your brain that craves being told what to do will have you checking into email a few times per hour to see if anything important comes in. This leaves you chasing unimportant but urgent tasks and allows way too many potential digital distractions in.

Email is a simple one to solve, thankfully.

Just give yourself 30 minutes, twice a day – less times or more, depending on your industry needs, but it SHOULD be set in stone.

No emails outside that time. Period.

Face it: for most of us, the world will NOT stop if an email sits half a day waiting for an answer.

You can also use web blocking software to set email limits using technology that will lock you out if you keep getting carried away. Our productivity software comes with a Launch Limit feature perfect for focus-friendly email management.

Mind Hack #15:

Put a Dial on Your Social Media Time Too

If email is a dangerous foe, social media is the “boss battle” for freelancers and online workers everywhere.

And make no mistake, social media has a massive impact on your brain and the way you think.

Studies show that too much social media time actually trains your brain for obsessive, info-snacking behavior that has radical implications for your focus time even when you’re logged out.

Fortunately, there’s a simple way to stop letting social media take over without opting out completely.

How much social media do you actually need? Probably not that much.

Just designate a social media hour at night to touch bases, make a couple posts, and check your messages. Include One QUICK check in the morning if you really feel it’s crucial.

But you DO need to set rules on this.

You can even use a web blocker to cut yourself off social media during the day when you’re supposed to be working.

Mind Hack #16:

Keep a “Distraction Release Valve” Beside Your Computer

If you’ll be researching during online work time, you need a proven way to avoid following distraction rabbits down their bottomless holes.

After all, who hasn’t innocently clicked a tempting link – just for a sec, mind you – only to end up spending the rest of the day reading up on some wild conspiracy theory or collecting silly cat photos?

Even if you aren’t surfing the web, those little to-dos that pop into your mind can really dilute your focus.

A great way to deal with these potential detours and mind burps is keep a small notepad beside your computer. I call this the distraction release valve.

Use it to jot down topics you want to research later, ideas you want to explore, or little quick to-dos. Anything that would otherwise drag you off track.

Then you can come back later when you’re done working and take care of them.

You’ll often find that after a bit of time passes, they don’t seem all that pressing anymore.

Let Future You be the judge of that, though.

Mind Hack #17:

Get Real with People You Talk to Online

I’m talking about real interaction – video and voice calls.

It might seem counterintuitive to get more productive by jumping on a call…But there are plenty of reasons it keeps your brain on a tightly focused track.

For one, thing, email and chatting grinds up a lot of unnecessary time simply because we talk faster than we write – not to mention all the nuances that get missed in text-based communication and require clarification.

Sometimes it’s easier to just pick up the phone for a quick 5-minute call to get the point across.

Also, voice and video communication just feel more “real.” So you feel less alone and keep your work at home grounded in the real world.

Overall great for your emotional health.

Mind Hack #18:

Stop Work and Get Your Blood Flowing

Want to keep the engines of your mind burning clean?

Rev up the engines in your body.

The human animal was born to move!

Do a set of pushups or jumping jacks if you find yourself getting bored, burnt out, or uncreative. Split your day in half with a workout or quick run.

Even long slow walks (for those of us who can get out of the house that long) can be great for giving the mind a relief from the screen. Take in the scenery and give your subconscious a chance to chew on things.

I can’t tell you how many times just setting down a difficult problem and going for a walk allowed my subconscious to hit me with the answer out of the blue.

Some of history’s greatest creative minds swore by this trick.

Mind Hack #19:

Don’t Put in That Over-Time

More hours do not always equal more results!

Far from it, in fact, when you’re dealing with the brain. Because there’s definitely a point of diminishing returns with quality cerebral output.

And don’t forget the lessons of the Unschedule from Mind Hack #1.

Constantly moving forward to tackle all the things you meant to do earlier can create a demoralizing cycle that robs life from you with little reward.

So if it’s getting late and you still haven’t finished what you wanted, sign off for the day and try to do better next time. At some point just beating your head against the computer more will NOT make anything better come out of it…

Mind Hack #20:

Create Artificial Deadlines

A deadline is a powerful way to get a lot more work done in a less time, and many remote workers find it’s the only way to keep moving.

If you went to college, you probably remember how Parkinson’s law dictated your life. Professors would give you way too much time to finish things, thinking it was all you could take. But you’d wait all month and get it done in one or two nerve-wracked days.

They would have served you better by teaching you and your brain the focusing power of a tight deadline.

Don’t just have a project deadline either – break projects down into small, manageable chunks and set artificial deadlines throughout. Put them right on the edge of your comfort zone to find out what you can really do.

Some people just function at their best by forcing themselves to stop the brainstorming and jump into the doing.

And finishing early leaves an emergency cushion in case you need to make big changes before the actual due date.

Mind Hack #21:

Perfect the Art of Always Starting

Struggling to find your motivation to start?

Constantly putting things off for later?

Often what causes this is your subconscious associates too much pain with what needs to be done or perceives the project as too big.

Trick your brain by setting a timer for “just 10 minutes.”

Anyone can find the motivation for 10 short minutes.

And the real power of this technique is that once you start you’ll often fall right into your flow and end up working for hours.

As you get used to this habit, longer periods of time, like “just 25 minutes,” will kickstart things just as easily. The more time you spend in the flow, the more your brain wants to be there and the easier it gets.

Mind Hack #22:

Allow Yourself a Little Morning Indulgence

If it really just drives you crazy to wait all day before checking social media, playing a game, or reading emails…

Okay, go ahead – check it when you first get online.

5-10 minutes max and then get back off.

This allows you to “get your fix” and catch any important messages – but get off fast so you don’t lose the whole day to it.  No nagging feeling in the back of your mind that you might have missed something.

After a week of this your subconscious might accept that there’s rarely anything pressing and you won’t need to do this anymore.

Mind Hack #23:

Use Pomodoro for Regular Work Blocks and Breaks

A lot of people swear by the Pomodoro technique, a time management strategy that separates work into (usually) 25-minute blocks separated by 5-minute breaks.

There are different ways to approach this, but a common method is:

• 25-minute work block
• 5-minute rest
• 25-minute work block
• 5-minute rest
• And so on…

After about 4 pomodoro intervals, you’re encouraged to take a 15-20-minute break.

FocusMe Productivity software has Pomodoro Features built right into the program, and it’s all automated based on your settings.

The power in Pomodoro is it keeps work blocks small and digestible while putting breaks on a time limit too, so you can’t wander off and get caught up in something else.

And the 30-minute intervals (25-minute work bloc + 5-minute break) fit nicely into an hourly workday.

Mind Hack #24:

How to Always Make Time for the Biggest Rocks in Your Bucket

Dr. Stephen Covey (author of “The 7 Habits of Highly-effective People”) advocated always putting “the big rocks first.”

Covey’s metaphor is filling a bucket with rocks, pebbles, and sand. What’s the best way to do it?

Well, if you filled the bucket with sand first, you’d leave no room for pebbles or rocks.

But if you put the big rocks in first, the pebbles can fill in the spaces between the rocks, and the sand can fill the spaces in between.

The  “big rocks” are your most important goal-related projects. Pebbles are small, less important tasks. And sand is the “filler” tasks that often leave no time for the things that matter.

It’s an apt metaphor for why you should always tackle high priority actions first.

You just have to ask yourself – does filling your time with tasks ever pay if it crowds out the space that would have accommodated your biggest rocks?

Probably not.

Mind Hack #25:

Give Your Mind the Bait to Keep Moving Forward

Rewarding yourself for reaching small milestones and completing projects to dangle a carrot in front of yourself.

A simple way to do this?

Write out a list of things you’ve been wanting to do or buy (even if you intend to do or buy them already). And then indulge your desires as you put in a certain number of hours or hit a particular milestone.

Your brain quickly learns that it gets rewards for working.

If you find this technique falling flat, though, because you don’t ever actually get to reward yourself, you may need to adjust.  Again, remember the lesson of the Unschedule: Depriving yourself completely can be self-defeating.

Here’s how you can counteract that. Reward yourself for smaller achievements early on, so you’re not running a marathon to hit your first finish line.

Sometimes your brain just needs to learn what goal achievement actually feels like.

After you build up a bank of small wins to whet your appetite, then start demanding more of yourself.

Mind Hack #26:

Give Yourself a Computer “Curfew”

Not only are computer screens disruptive to healthy sleep, but spending half your night in the digital world after work can be disruptive to happy living. Not to mention make you feel like you never checked out of work at all.

Give yourself a “computer curfew.”

For example, force yourself to shut down all computers and devices at 8:30 pm. So you can wind down and listen to music, read, or just spend time with family.

If you’re using FocusMe, you can set these rules in virtual stone, making it impossible to open your apps or browsers. You can even retain access to certain programs, like Spotify for music, while keeping yourself out of everything else.

Keeping your nights completely free not just of work but any digital activity is one of the quickest and easiest productivity hacks anyone can implement starting tonight.

Mind Hack #27:

Inject Your Work with Purpose

It’s so much easier to get passionate and engaged with what you’re doing if you have a bigger why.

If you don’t have one, hey, money isn’t a horrible place to start.

List out all the things you plan to do with your money – and that you couldn’t do without it. Reading over this in the morning can instantly remind you why working hard is important, perhaps even mandatory.

But the most powerful why will be bigger than you.

Think about the bigger picture. How does your work CONTRIBUTE to the world?

How does your product or service genuinely make people more satisfied, make them safer, or help them live better lives.?

Maybe at this moment, you just can’t get excited about the impact your work has on the world. Hey, we all have to pay the bills. But often even the most mundane work in the world has an important purpose.

Imagine a world without clean floors and unclogged toilets, for instance. Most things matter, or they wouldn’t exist.

So try to connect with what makes YOUR work matter.

If that still doesn’t work, can you think of your job as a chance to master a skill that will take you where you want to go? How would seeing your work as being paid to learn change your approach?

The simple question of why can completely transform a day of work.

Perhaps even an entire career.

Bottom Line: You Don’t Need A Drill Sergeant Standing Over Your Shoulder To Conquer Worlds At Home

Disciplining the brain is like leash-training an over-eager puppy.

What happens when you try to walk an untrained dog? It constantly runs circles around your feet, right? It’s wriggling little nose yanking it (and often you) this way and that.

How do you get it to settle down and follow, then? Kick it in the ribs? Scream at it and tell it what an unproductive loser it is?

Of course not!

Yet so many people take the “kick in the ribs” approach to getting their brain to behave. Is it any wonder it fails?

No, you give clear and simple commands. Reinforce them by gently but consistently guiding it back on track again and again. Maybe even the occasional treat.

Just like with the puppy, your mind needs the right guidance and conditioning.

This list of mind hacks can help you do it.

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