How to make your remote work productive than ever

I have struggled with finding ways to work in a productive way at home for years. I’m working as a UX designer for a vehicle manufacturer and I’m still very new to my current job. However, I’ve worked from home a year before covid hit in 2020, so I managed to find ways to make myself comfortable working from home.

What follows are 3 habit that will help your remote work life easier.

1. Keep your desk tidy and clean

This is definitely the easiest thing I can think of to stay productive and make me feel good.

A study shows people who work in a clean and organized environment are up to 15% more productive than those who work in a cluttered and messy environment.

At the end of work, I tidy up my desk and prepare for the next day.

2. Take time to be physically away from your phone and laptop

This might be hard for some people, but digital detoxing has really helped me reduce stress and be more focused.

A study shows the average screen time is nearly 7 hours a day. This isn’t so surprising because I use my phone and laptop for my work, but realizing I spend most of my life for those devices isn’t so pleasing, to be honest.

My recommended time to be away from the devices is at least 30 mins. What I usually do during my lunch break or whenever I have free timeslot is to get out of my apartment and talk a walk or jog without taking my iPhone.

I sometimes want to listen podcasts or music when I go out, but I try to enjoy a moment of watching people and things I don’t get to see or listening sounds I don’t hear while paying attention on using my phone. I live close to the beach, so I enjoy listening to the sound of waves when I walk along the beach and watching dogs run or play with their owners.

3. Make your own checklist and really stick to it

Making rules and keeping it as a promise to myself is a key to have full ownership of my own action in work. This might be hard for those who just landed on first job, but here is how you can make one.

• Write down what it is preventing you from working in a productive/comfortable way and why i.e. If I have more than four meetings in a row, I get stressed and cannot concentrate on the topics since my brain doesn’t function well.
• Write down potential solution and act on it i.e. Pre-book my outlook calendar for taking a walk
• Stick to it – never deprioritize your own promises

In my case, I book my morning calendar between 9am and 10:30 am for me and show it as busy to proceed “not urgent but important tasks” such as brainstorming and ideation since they are usually the ones I need to concentrate without distraction so I avoid early morning meetings. I also have a rule of me not working after 7 pm since I’ve never felt working at night could produce any good outcome for me in the past years.

Here are other rules I created for career. I usually keep notes like this in Notion after brainstorming my ideas on paper or post it.

“Done is better than perfect. “

-Mark Zuckerburg