9 Tips to Stay Productive When Working from Home in Quarantine

By Abhinav Girdhar | Last Updated on January 28th, 2023 9:43 am | 3-min read

COVID-19 has paralyzed the world. It has spared no one and as we run for shelter to our homes, we’ve carried our work with us. The working world has had a knee jerk reaction to this pandemic when it comes to working from home. We are still in the crosshairs of the virus and this work-from-home culture is likely to continue for a few months. There is a possibility that smaller businesses continue to implement work-from-home schedules even after the virus passes.

COVID-19 has brought a challenge for corporate employees. A challenge more difficult than previously imagined. The challenge of maintaining productivity. Ever since I started working from home around 3 weeks ago, I’ve had problems maintaining my productivity. In the second week, my productivity was borderline zero. However, I’ve been on a recovery streak this week. So today I sit, still sipping some nice ginger ale and give you 9 of these productivity tips to help you through the quarantine.

9 Tips to Increase Productivity While Working from Home:

Here are my tips to increase your productivity during this pandemic.

Relax

Yes, that is my first tip. Chill out. You see, when you’re working from home don’t let the boss get on your nerves. The greatest advantage of working from home is that you can split away from the work pressure from the office.

Unfortunately, this lack of pressure drops productivity. And then you start worrying about productivity which drops it further. Keeping that in mind, my first tip to you is to just relax.

Get into those loose pajamas and bring out some munchies. Sit in a comfortable place, introspect and get your favorite beverage with you.

Once you’re truly relaxed, start working.

Develop a routine

The reason working remotely is difficult for normal employees is due to the sudden change in routine. I mean, you’re accustomed to waking up at a set time, preparing for the day, leaving at a set time and returning as per the schedule. Doing this every day makes you accustomed to what to expect from a day.

Going remote suddenly can offset this trend and make you lose your way. We humans are designed to observe and love the routines we have. Working from home cuts down on most activities that we do during the day. We’re not traveling to our workplace anymore, we’re no longer drinking a cup of tea in the office cafeteria. We wake up, barely groom ourselves and start working.

Develop a new routine while you’re working from home. Specifically, for this time period. For example, my new routine involves more sleeping, less eating and a lot of beverages. Since I don’t leave the house, I’m also trying a new exercise routine to keep myself active. Develop a new routine slowly and steadily. You’ll start implementing it soon enough.

Create a Daily To-Do list

Make a to-do list every day. When you wake, make an outline of what you’re going to do all over the day. Daily to-do lists make it easier to maintain the productivity of an average day.

To-do lists are excellent even when not working from home. It may be a good time to develop an affinity for daily to-do lists.

Don’t move around too much

One recommendation is to find a comfortable working spot in your house and not move from there. Work from a dedicated place. I have a corner on my sofa which serves this purpose.

Don’t take or make morning calls

Don’t talk to anybody in the morning. Avoid morning calls as much as you can. Trust me, the morning breath makes it through phones. And anyway, talking to someone at home in the mornings is a nightmare. Use the mornings to get your affairs in order. Not only calls, move meetings and appointments to the afternoon too.

Take proper breaks

Have a nice lunch. Play a game of solitaire or word games where you can unscramble words. Watch some YouTube. Keep a proper break schedule during your shift. I would suggest keeping the same break schedule as your workplace. I have a one-hour break at my workplace. I take the same breaks at home.

Don’t overwork

One thing to avoid is overworking. Work only as much as you need to. Working from home gives bosses the idea to pressure an employee into working more. Avoid it at all costs. Only work your hours. It might feel productive to achieve more tasks in a day by spending an hour or two more.

However, this takes away productivity from the days ahead. Eventually, you’ll start underworking. Create a balance and finish tasks as you do on your normal days.

Avoid social media

Avoid social media at all costs. It is addictive and breaks your focus. Focus on your work and do whatever you can to avoid surfing through the Internet.

Social media is a major distraction that has significantly destroyed my productivity while working from home. I have started disconnecting the wifi from my phone to maintain productivity during this time.

Declutter your surroundings

This is my most important tip. I’ve seen a productivity boost every time I work after cleaning my surroundings. It is becoming a daily routine for me to clean before I start working for the day. And guess what? It increases productivity every time.

I found it curious, so I snooped around on the Internet. Turns out cleaning out your surroundings can significantly boost your creativity and productivity. Dust those cabinets, wash those vessels, and take out the trash in the morning itself. Any activity that involves cleaning will boost your productivity.

Bonus tip: Music

Listen to some nice music. I would recommend some Lo-fi Hip hop backgrounds. You can find a lot of it on YouTube. I can also recommend most classical adagios since they’re usually very calming and help you focus. Having the music act as ‘white noise’ can affect your productivity over the day.

Conclusion

Those were my tips to increase productivity while working from home. I hope some of these help you out in the coming days. I would also say that it is an excellent time to learn some new skills. Why don’t you head out to Appy Pie Academy? We have various courses there which you can use to learn new skills. Good luck!

Also remember to wash your hands and clean your laptops, phones, and electronics with mild disinfectants.