If you’re one of the millions of people working from home, you might find it a bit harder to be productive than usual.

At least, that’s how it seems.

According to recent workplace productivity statistics, working from home is more productive than working from the office. The study found that workers who worked from home were more effective than those who worked from the office by about 3 hours per day.

If you’re adjusting to working from home after landing a remote job, you’re likely searching for practical tips for working from home.

The challenge is that there are many obstacles in the way, whether you work from home alone or with a partner in a shared home office. Our workspaces, distractions, and other people around the house or apartment can all limit productivity.

So that is why we chose to interview employees, company owners, freelancers, and bloggers regarding their work-from-home habits and productivity hacks.

Here are 25 hacks that will help you boost your productivity and get things done while working from home.

Tips For Becoming More Effective Working From Home

1. Ilija Sekulov 

Marketing Manager at Mailbutler

Don’t open your emails while you’re working on a task

Emails are the necessities of modern-day professionals, but they could also distract you if you continue to pay too much attention to them. You will receive dozens of emails daily throughout your career as a consultant. However, if you keep your inbox open in your browser and enable notifications, a task that should take you an hour will take you twice as long. Not to mention the stress and anxiety that being late will bring you. It is best to set a specific time to check your emails. For example, you might read them only once every three hours.

2. Daniel Jackson

Content Manager at Addicted2success

A decluttered space will help you focus and be more productive

If you’re one of the many people who have recently started working remotely from home, consider yourself lucky that you get to set up your home office space from scratch!

If your desk at home is constantly cluttered with paperwork, files, and other objects that distract you from work, you may have a problem.

A laptop on a laptop stand is the centre of this tiny home office, with an iPad set up as a sidecar. An Apple Magic Keyboard and Ikea desk chair complete the setup.

A great way to be productive is by decluttering your space. If it makes you feel better, get a small storage ottoman to put things like bills, mail, and other office supplies in so that your living area looks neater and more simplistic.

3. Leila Stavros

Marketing Manager at Paybis

Destroy the barriers that keep you from being productive

I often procrastinate by socializing on Instagram, wasting time reading non-essential online material, and deviating from my schedule. What derails you?

Please make a list of things that tend to make you veer off course, and put them on a post-it note. This will help clear your mind and create more space for productive thoughts.

4. Ola Hansen

CEO at KEO

Schedule time in advance using Google Calendar

I use Google Calendar more or less religiously, and it’s my favorite calendar.

A typical day for me includes webinars, face-to-face meetings, phone calls, reminders, and time set aside to complete specific projects.

I always add event invitations to my Google Calendar, even if it means doing it manually.

I’m more likely to forget an event if it’s outside my Google Calendar. 

Therefore, I set aside specific time each week to work on particular projects. I have a 45-minute break between my 1 pm meeting and 3:30 virtual coworking session, so I use that time to finish all my work.

5. Eliza Nimmich

COO of Learnt

Get up and move!

If you work at a desk, it is essential to get up and move regularly. Take breaks often. This doesn’t have to be anything meaningful. Fill a glass of water, walk up and down the stairs, or call a loved one.

Getting up and moving helps you clear your mind and return to the desk, ready to tackle the next task.

6. Aabhas Vijay

CEO at LIttle Little Steps 

Have an accountability partner

If you work remotely, it can be helpful to have an “accountability buddy.” This person (like a coworker or friend) can help guide you.

It’s ideal for catching up with and helping each other stay on track frequently when you have an accountability buddy, but there is no single right way to go about the relationship. You can check in with each other daily, weekly, or monthly according to what works best for you. It helps you stay on top of your work-from-home game.

7. Sakshi Baid

Product Associate at Refrens

Do repetitive tasks in batches

When it comes to remote work, batching is your best friend. Batching means tackling similar tasks simultaneously instead of switching between different tasks throughout the day. For example, if you need to make phone calls for customer service or take care of emails, try doing them at the same time. This will help you focus and be more productive.

For example:

When it comes to invoicing, I save 10 hours every week.

I write articles for 15 different companies as a content writer. Thanks to an invoice generator, I don’t need to create invoices every week. My work is made simpler and quicker by using a recurring invoice service. I don’t need to be reminded to create invoices because that is done automatically, and a notice is also given to the client when an invoice is past due or is about to expire.

8. Chad Montgomery

Founder of ParentIntel 

Switch Up Your Environment

Working from home doesn’t mean you have to work from home. Having a place to go, that isn’t your living room can help separate work time from personal life. 

Separating personal space and workspace – even in your home – will increase productivity. But for those of us living in a smaller place, it isn’t possible to section off a room of your apartment to make a dedicated workspace.

Working in a different place, like a coffee shop or library, can help your brain to know when it’s time to work and when it’s time to relax. Having that separate will result in increased productivity.”

9. Hasan Abir

Growth Marketer at Apploye

Sound and Clear Break Management

The best way to stay productive is always to remember to take a regular break regardless of how busy you are. A short break with the Pomodoro technique will help you to break work up into short periods. You can maintain your concentration on your work after this mental refreshment break.

It would help if you refrained from using social media during your break. By exposing you to negativity, using social media during the holiday can mentally disengage you. You can perform quick workouts like bodyweight squats and cardio while taking a break.

10. Maureen Dantes

Marketing Manager at BiblePortal

Stick to a schedule & create a routine

It’s a good idea to get ready as though you were going to the office to kick off your workday routine. So, tell your brain it’s time to begin the day and go to work, change out of your pajamas, clean your teeth, shower, read your daily bible, and get dressed. 

Create a timetable based on the types of projects you conduct and the locations of your clients or coworkers. Plan your workday around the hours of the company you work for if they are in your time zone. Instead of scheduling one long 8-hour block of time, you should schedule smaller blocks throughout the day if you are a freelancer working for clients in different time zones and nations.

11. Megan Santiago

Owner of Holistic Momma 

How to Stay Motivated 

Create a schedule for the day and know what you want to accomplish. A visual aid such as a scheduling app on your phone can help you see how realistic your expectations for the day are. If you put too many things on your plate, you can become overwhelmed and lose focus. Break your to-do list down into smaller achievable goals such as “spend 5 mins sending emails.” Reward yourself with something small such as a snack, a walk, a stretch break, or a game on your phone. Once you gain this momentum, it will increase your dopamine, making you want to get more and more done.

12. Erkki Muuga

Founder of Influno

Write down your TODAY list

Instead of writing a long TODO list, get more narrow and write down a TODAY list. The things you aim to accomplish that day. A long TODO list might seem intimidating and demotivating since it might seem endless and overwhelming. However, today’s list is something that you can realistically accomplish in just one day. As a bonus tip, it would be incredibly productive to block time slots in your calendar according to your TODAY list. Allocate specific time blocks to your daily goals. This also helps you prioritize more time-sensitive tasks and stay more motivated. Or at least avoid getting demotivated.

13. Maria Dimitropoulou

Founder of Triggeryourtrip 

Turn off social media notifications and sound

Did you know that employees can spend up to 32% of their workday on social media daily for personal reasons? Whether we like it or not, notifications are addictive. When we perform a tedious task, a notification that displays likes or comments to our pictures or texts from our crush, friends, or strangers can release dopamine, which is the antidote to boredom. When I stop my workflow to answer a text or check my socials, I enter a loop that can cost me five or ten productive minutes. 

Don’t fall into that trap. Put your phone away and in silent mode. It will be there waiting for you during your break.

14. Miles Anthony Smith

President of Loop King Laces

Schedule every minute of the day

Yes, I am suggesting scheduling your planned activities for days and weeks ahead of time on your calendar (Google for me), both personal and professional. And even into the evening. Then remain flexible each day to re-order priorities as things need to change. Just because things will change doesn’t mean we shouldn’t plan; quite the opposite. And remember to plan self-care (time off, working out, meditation, etc.); those should also go on your calendar. With this regimen, I’m way more productive + rested, energized, & ready to tackle another day. And I end up handling a more significant % of the more critical business and personal issues of the day.

15. Deepak Shukla

Founder at Deepak Shukla

If it takes less than 2 minutes, do it now

If you can do something in less than 2 minutes (I mean 2 minutes – set a clock against it)….then do it immediately. You’ll be blown away by the amount of work you can storm through if you apply the ‘less than 2’ rule. How did I get this tip in? How long do you think it took? Treat ALL of your work in the same way.

16. Gaurav Sharma

CEO at Attrock 

The Simple Checklist Method

One of the biggest challenges of working from home is time management. Poor time management can cause delays in completing tasks, which may lead to missed deadlines.

My go-to solution for that is making a checklist. 

Yes, a simple checklist can be extremely helpful in getting things done on time while avoiding mistakes.

The complexity of our work often demands us to multitask. The best way to be more efficient is to create a functional checklist for each task for the day and sort it in order of priority. 

This will ensure that you complete all your tasks and finish the most important ones first. It helps me stay organized, focused, and productive.

17. Stephan Stiris

CEO at Sjekkhelsen 

Use a timer app to focus at work.

“I discovered an app that works well for me. Tomato Timer is a way to time yourself and ensures you have uninterrupted time for specific tasks.

The timer goes off every 25 minutes, at which point you can give yourself a 5-minute break. I work on one task for that duration and note how much progress I make, which helps me gauge my productivity. If you have trouble staying focused, this method might be ideal.

There are a lot of different timer apps available, so find one you like and give it a try!”

18. Falls Shu

Marketing Manager at Giraffe Tools

Concentrate, be happy, and work for yourself

Being freelance is something I’d always love to do, but working from home or in a coffee shop can be less productive. I set an explicit schedule for everyday life: time to get up, write, and sleep. Following your own rules is better than following your bosses’ rules, right? Secondly, I exercise daily to stay happy and healthy; then, I become more productive. Last but not least, try to find some like-minded people to stick along. I met many wonderful guys in the freelance community and shared their productivity. I am currently writing for some e-commerce websites to stay productive too.

19. Iya Mendoza

Marketing Manager at Instant Logo Design

Take A 15-20 Mins Nap

We all know how cliché this sounds, but taking a quick nap – around 15-20 minutes, has proven to be an effective way to increase energy, focus, and productivity. 

Research done by Harvard Medical School states that a ‘midday’ nap has been more effective than sleeping more at night or drinking coffee in the afternoon.

Regardless of the hours you’ve slept at night, quick naps allow you to re-focus and re-energize to do more. It wasn’t called a “power nap” for nothing!

But a nap is a nap. So, make sure your sleep doesn’t reach more than an hour. It might even do more harm than good. After all, headaches are the worst!

20. Sonika Mehta

Product Director at Zonka Feedback

Utilize technology to its full potential

I believe in the power of technology to assist me in being productive in various ways. I make every effort to use technology to simplify my day-to-day operations, whether in my networking or introducing a WhatsApp chat box for Zonka Feedback to ensure a quick response time.

21. Sarah Michelle Cairo-Arjasepp

Co-Founder at Caasocio

Fill your cup first

While I like to get things done early in the morning, I usually start by filling my cup. 

It’s nice to get hugs and kisses from our kids, drink water, make our beds, and enjoy my morning coffee without reading emails.

And that gives me a better sense of productivity in getting things done while working from home.

22. Karolina Turowska

Community Manager at PhotoAiD

Get a dedicated workspace

A dedicated space is essential for productive remote workflow. When I started to work from home, I discovered that I couldn’t focus when sitting in a living room where people walked around. Also, I found it challenging to be productive while working beside my bed, calling me to rest. I decided to dedicate one room to my home office space, which changed my WFH experience. Now I enter my “office” room, sit at my desk, and my mind immediately turns into working mode, ensuring the complete focus on my job assignments.

23. Andrej Fedek

CEO at Intercoolstudio 

The key to productivity is not working harder but working smarter.

The key to being productive is not working harder but working smarter. Some many tricks and tools can help you get more done in less time. These include: establishing a focus by clarifying your goals, getting into a routine by setting a realistic schedule, and using more innovative methods of an organization like prioritizing your tasks, breaking large projects into smaller tasks, or using a to-do list.

24. Monthy Pedersen

CEO at Spa huset 

Utilize Trello’s lists to help you get a better overview

I started using Trello to be productive and track progress within teams. Trello is a platform that helps in-person or remote teams work on projects together, code them, add checklists, idea boards, and more.

Trello can be a great way to keep track of your work when you are working remotely. I use Trello to outline my work, set deadlines, and track ideas.  

Trello is highly recommended to people looking to be more organized and efficient with their work.

Trello is also great for giving an overview of your work to others. You can create lists in Trello that help you give a good overview of what needs to be done, what is being worked on, and what has been completed. This can be helpful for remote teams that need to keep track of their work.

25. Nikola Roza

Founder of Nikola Roza 

Exercise right in the morning, before work

My productivity hack is simple, exercise first thing in the morning. It’ll wake you up like nothing else, get the blood moving faster, and trigger the glymphatic system in the brain; it’ll make you primed and ready to rock that day on your business. 

That’s what I’ve been doing, and it’s working for me. I’m 3x more productive while working 20% less time.

Pro tip: drink coffee while exercising. It’s an added jolt of energy as coffee will temporarily speed up your metabolism, which will help you lose weight faster if losing weight is something you’re after.

Conclusion

Productivity is a mindset and a skill that can be learned by everyone willing to put in the work. You must first identify what causes you to waste time and then take steps to change those habits. 

By learning effective productivity hacks for working at home, you’ll become even more productive than ever, and your boss may give you a raise.

Examine your habits regarding how you plan and execute your day to figure out where you can become better and more efficient.

Write a daily to-do list that you follow religiously on yourself or your team to keep things on track and get things done.

Daily to-do lists are secret productivity opportunities that, when fixed, lead to a productive, fulfilling day, an increase in profits, and more time off for you and the business owners.

Finally, stay disciplined, focused, and organized, and you’ll be well on becoming more efficient.