3 Tried and Tested Ways to Beat Procrastination while Working from Home
While everyone embraced the work from home trend initially, it was basically because everyone was tired of the long hours of commute and missed their homes. Working from home meant flexibility while working, working from your bed and saving on a lot of time. People initially welcomed the work from home trend with maximum productivity- they enjoyed video call meetings, they worked out before work, made coffee and breakfast to go along with it. It all seemed rosy and fun, while it lasted.
But it was not long before the work from home fatigue began to set in. Being at home with your laptop meant that you were always working, chores started increasing, plates in the sink started piling up. Meetings don’t end and task lists just keep getting bigger. To top it all, the will to work just reduces because there’s no work life balance. Since you’re working from your bed, you don’t know when it is okay to rest and when to get back to work. If you feel like this is exactly what is happening to you, don’t fret. It is happening to so many people across the globe!
While some people invariably enjoy remote working more than others, almost everyone reaches a plateau where procrastination gets the better of them and they are unable to focus on the task at hand. The first step here is to understand that you’re human and this is normal. Take some time off and try to set some boundaries. Then, try to use tips and methods that will help boost your productivity, that will help you create a good amount of output without spending your entire day in front of a screen. It’s important to learn how to stop procrastinating, if you want to be productive.
Here are 3 quick and easy ways to stop procrastinating while working from home:
- Practice the Pomodoro technique:
The Pomodoro technique is a widely-used practice that helps you focus and work productively. According to the technique, you should work in short intervals of 25 minutes each. After 25 minutes, you can take a short break for 5 minutes and then resume working for another 25 minutes. This helps you stay focused and gives you space at regular intervals to take a break.
2. Make realistic task lists and set goals for each task:
Make task lists that are actually achievable and try to make your task list quantifiable. If you plan on working for 7 hours a day, break your tasks down and put down a number next to each hour to estimate how long each task will take. This will help you utilize time more effectively in order to beat procrastination.
3. Reduce screen time when you are not working:
We often don’t realize it, but scrolling on our phones, binge-watching a show or listening to music on loop, but a lot of our energy is being consumed when we indulge in mindless screen-time. This leads to more procrastination when we actually have work to finish. By reducing our screen time, we are saving our energy for more important tasks, leading to more optimal usage of time and less procrastination.
Ultimately, the first step towards beating procrastination is to recognize that you are procrastinating. When you admit that you want to change, is when you can actually work towards it.
