If you have recently been asked to work from home you are by now probably a couple of weeks in and possibly starting to feel a little unmotivated now that the novelty of rolling out of bed and onto your office chair has worn off. Being a web-based business, ShiftMatch employees have been working remotely for many years. We asked ShiftMatch employees for their top tips on working productively and staying motivated when working from home and this is what they came up with:

1. Set a schedule and stick to it

When working from home it is easy to sleep until the start of work time and/or work late into the night. The top tip our staff mentioned was sticking to a schedule for your workday to ensure it is as productive as can be. Our staff said that without regularly scheduled breaks they find that they get distracted and find it hard to focus. So set a schedule for your whole day, including wake up time, breaks, lunch and most importantly what time you will finish!

2. Get dressed 

A sure-fire way to feel unmotivated when working at home is to stay in your pajamas until 3pm while trying to work. Many of our staff say they make sure when working from home they get dressed as if they were going to work. For us, there is no uniform but it still means having a shower, picking out an outfit, doing our hair and most importantly putting shoes on. This helps your subconscious know that it’s time to work and you will find it easier to settle into your day.

3. Set up your environment 

It is important to designate a working area when you are working from home. Whether its a kitchen table, office set up in your are room or a desk in your living area make sure you have ONE work area. Next, make it appealing, some of our staff like to put on candles or have plants decorating their office area so it is a nice place to sit and work. Trying to work from your lounge or bed will make you feel unmotivated and will make that 3pm slump possibly slip right into a nap!

4. Stay connected 

Dubbed in ShiftMatch world as “water cooler time”, a throwback to when offices in the 80’s and 90’s had water coolers and people would congregate and have a chat during the day. We make sure we stay connected as a team and catch up daily via internal chat applications or video chat. This means we feel like a team and get to have a bit of a social outlet, something we are all craving at the moment. Keeping connected socially makes us work together better as a team and stay motivated.

5. Make sure you get some fresh air

Feeling bored, unfocused or jittery? Just go for a quick walk! Whether it’s in your yard or around the block or just sitting on a balcony. Remove yourself from your work environment for 5-10 minutes and you will see this does wonder for your concentration, focus, and motivation.