Working at home

Video: Work at Home | Beautiful Chill Mix

Content

To step
Method 1 of 4: Set up your home office
Method 3 of 4: Stay active and healthy
Method 4 of 4: Finding work you can do at home
Tips

Since the emergence of the digital age, more and more companies are realizing how useful it can be to let people work from home. The employer saves costs by using your home office, and you can work without leaving the house! If that seems like a good idea to you, figure out how to find a job that you can do from home, and then figure out how to put the work from home system into practice. Working at home can be a great luxury, but if you are not very disciplined, it is not always easy. You will need to organize your time and work space carefully, maintain a professional attitude to work, and pay close attention to your physical and mental health.

To step

Method 1 of 4: Set up your home office

Reserve a place in the house where you can work. If you work from home, it is important that you make a clear separation between your work and your private life at home. Whether it's a desk in your home office or a corner at the kitchen table, reserve a space that you can use specifically for all work-related activities.
- Choose a place that is quiet, well lit, comfortable, and where you have enough space to spread out whatever equipment you might need for your work.
- Avoid working in places where you normally sleep or rest, such as your bed or the couch. You may fall asleep!
- If possible, reserve a separate room for your work. Unless urgent, ask the rest of the family or your roommates if they don't want to disturb you while you are at work.
Tidy up your workplace. Remove everything you don't need for your job. A few family photos and other decorations are fine, but everything else is better in another room (or at least somewhere where they won't get in the way). You have to create a clean, tidy workplace without distractions. Leave your workplace tidy at the end of each day, keep your system organized and neatly store all work-related material. That way you avoid having to start in a messy office the next morning.
- If your workplace quickly becomes cluttered or overcrowded, take 15 minutes every day to put things in order.
Keep the supplies you need for work close at hand. Organize your workplace with all the office supplies you normally use, such as your printer, your computer and any paper documents you work on. Put everything at your fingertips so you can find the things you need right away.
- If you find yourself often having to get up to find something (such as scissors or a pen), give that item a permanent place in your workplace. Make sure everything you regularly need is within reach and put everything back in its place afterwards.
- Other things that can be useful include a power strip, chargers for your electronic devices, a stack of paper and a pen to take notes, water to drink, and snacks.
Set up a work schedule for each day and stick to it. Even if you can determine your working hours yourself, it is important that you keep a fixed schedule in order to be able to work from home successfully. Decide for yourself what your working hours will be and agree with yourself that you will only work during those hours.
- Try to choose the working hours that work best for you. For example, if you are a morning person, you might choose to start early in the day so that you can start doing your most important tasks when you are most energetic.
- To maintain a good work-life balance, you can also set aside times for other commitments, such as household chores, meals, and having fun with your friends and family.
Tip: When you work from home, you will inevitably be interrupted from time to time, especially if you have a family. Try to make those interruptions part of your routine; For example, if you have kids coming out of school in the afternoon, set aside 20 minutes to make them a drink and chat.
Reserve half an hour to make a priority list for that day. Take half an hour at the start of each working day to make a plan. Write down all the tasks you need to complete, putting the most important things at the top of the list. Every time you have finished something, cross out that task or put a check mark or an asterisk in front of it to indicate that the job is done. This will help you stay motivated throughout the day.
- For example, you could put a time-consuming job like writing the first draft of an article at the top of your list, while a small job like ordering new office supplies could be somewhere at the bottom.
- Try to set a specific time for each task. This will make you feel like you are in better control of everything.
- You can also break larger tasks into smaller pieces. For example, instead of simply putting "Write a blog post" on your list, you could divide it into "Do your research," "Create a draft," "Write the first draft" and "Review the text."
Try to maintain a regular routine outside of work hours as well. In addition to fixed working hours, it can be helpful to keep a regular schedule for the rest of your activities. Try to find a rhythm that works for you and set aside time every day to eat, take breaks, and for specific activities or rituals that will keep you energized and maintain your work rhythm (such as having a coffee first thing in the morning, or having a drink in between. take a 15 minute break to read the newspaper).
- For example, you can reserve half an hour in the morning to drink coffee or have breakfast, and then another half hour to plan your day. A regular morning ritual can energize you and help put you in the right mood for work.
Avoid social media and other forms of distraction. Home distractions can be disastrous for your productivity. Make sure you stay productive by putting your phone away and avoiding time-consuming websites like Facebook and YouTube at work. Also, don't work near other sources of distraction, such as the television or radio.
- If necessary, install an app or a browser extension on your smartphone or on your computer to avoid opening time-consuming apps and websites. Apps like StayFocusd and Strict Workflow are great tools to keep you working.
- If you have roommates, ask them to leave you alone while you are at work. Ask your friends if they want to call or text you as little as possible during your working hours.
EXPERT TIP
Dress as if you were going to work. It can be tempting to just go to work in your pajamas every day, but taking the time to get dressed will help you get in the right mood for work. Even when you don't have to go anywhere and have no video meetings scheduled, get dressed so you don't subconsciously keep feeling that you are in relaxation mode.
- That's not to say you have to wear a suit or tie, but if it helps you get in the right mood, you can. In any case, put on clean clothes that are suitable for the day.
- Also spend time on the rest of your physical care. Take a shower, brush your teeth, comb your hair, and do all the other things you normally would to get ready for a workday.
Keep a professional tone with your colleagues and your customers. Even if you do not work in an office building but at home, it is important that you also approach your work as work. When you interact with your employers, your colleagues and your clients, talk to them the same way you would if you were working in an office. Always be polite, warm and collegial. Check your emails and other written messages carefully for any spelling and grammar errors.
- Always answer phone calls, e-mail and chat messages on time. That way you let your employers, colleagues and customers know that you take their work and their needs seriously.
Regularly contact your employer and your colleagues. If you work from home, it is important that you stay involved and make the best use of the means of communication you have. If you don't run your own business from home, but work for an employer, get in touch now and then. Let your employer know how things are going, ask questions and try to find out if there have been any developments that you should keep up to date with.
- Take advantage of the many means of communication that exist, such as e-mail, chat programs like Slack, your telephone, and use video conferencing programs such as Skype or Zoom.
- Keeping in touch will also make you feel less lonely and isolated as a home worker.
Don't try to keep busy with your work outside of working hours. Try to ensure that the boundaries between work time and free time don't blur by turning off your "work mode" at the end of the day. Close the chat program you use for work, stop checking your business email address, and enable voicemail for calls from work. Use your free time to relax, spend time with your family, and do chores that have nothing to do with your job.
- At the same time, make sure that your private life does not slip into your working time. Don't chat with friends or family or do time-consuming household chores when you should be working.

Method 3 of 4: Stay active and healthy

If possible, go outside for longer periods. If you've spent all day at home, working or not, you'll soon get tired of it. Therefore, try to spend your free time outdoors as much as possible. Go to restaurants, go to the movies, go to the theater, exercise outdoors, go to concerts, or do other things outdoors or in the open.
- You can also try to go out during working hours. If you'd like to work in a different environment, take your laptop to a nice cafe, or try a quiet corner in the public library.
Tip: If you have children at home, it can be a good idea to work in an indoor playground. Your children will have fun while you are in a different environment for a while!
Include some exercise in your daily schedule. Exercise is important for both your physical and mental health. If you spend hours in your workplace day after day, you will eventually suffer from fatigue and a lack of interest and motivation. Make sure you stay healthy by making time to move, even if it's no more than a 15-minute walk after lunch.
- Exercising during the day can improve your mood and give you more energy, which will make you more productive.
- Even if you don't have time to go to the gym or to exercise extensively every day, try walking or jogging at least on most of the days.
Take short breaks to move around during work hours. Try to get up at least once every hour and get some exercise. Do some light stretching exercises, walk up and down the room, or go outside for a short walk.
- Regular exercise gives you more energy and improves your circulation, which is beneficial for both your mood and your productivity.
- You can even use your breaks to do small chores, such as taking out the trash bag or emptying the letterbox.
Make time for healthy meals and snacks. When you're completely absorbed in your work, it can be quite easy to forget to eat and drink, but giving your body what it needs will help you stay healthy and give you more energy. Before you go to work, have a healthy breakfast, and never skip your lunch break.
- Always keep a supply of healthy snacks and meals at home so you don't have to struggle to find something good to eat.
- Don't forget to drink water during the day. If your body becomes dehydrated, you may feel tired and you will be less able to concentrate.

Method 4 of 4: Finding work you can do at home

Beware of offers that seem too good to be true. If you see an ad that says, "Make thousands of dollars at home on the couch," "Do you want to work in your pijma too?" Or "Set your own times by working from home," be careful. If it seems too good to be true, it probably is. Before you apply, do some research into the company to see if it really exists. Other signs that could indicate bogus work include:
- Claims that the job does not require any special experience or skills
- High amounts of money offered for little work
- Requests for advance payment from you in exchange for onboarding procedures, certificates or work materials
Search for job openings on reliable news and job websites. Many digital newspapers and career pages compile lists of reliable sources that offer opportunities for home workers. Most of those websites can be found through a simple search, but beware of pages of services or companies that you have never heard of before.
- For information about reliable work from home vacancies, take a look at the websites of FlexJobs, Indeed and Glassdoor, and at https://www.thuiswerkvacatures.nl/, for example.
Think of ways you can use specific skills to help you work from home. Working from home might immediately make you think of freelance writing or web design, but the range of jobs you can do from home could be much more extensive and varied than you think. Study as many different options as possible based on your specific knowledge, skills and experience. For instance:
- Work that requires a lot of typing or checking can be ideal for home workers. For example, you could become a medical or legal transcription specialist. Also jobs in which you provide assistance in creating rosters, such as personal assistant or desk work, can often be done online or by phone. As a virtual assistant you can earn between € 15 and € 100 per hour.
- Do you speak some foreign languages? There are many websites with multi-language versions. They often look for people who can edit and correct their multilingual content.
- Are you good with people and do you know a thing or two about traveling? Then consider becoming a travel agent from your own home. There are many travel agents and airlines that hire home workers to answer the phone calls and work with customers online.
Show potential employers what special skills you have. Think about the skills you need to be able to work from home. As you would in any job, emphasize the skills listed in the ad that most apply to you. Then focus on the qualities that an efficient home worker must have. Emphasize your organizational skills and your ability to motivate yourself. Also list the aspects of your home that will help you succeed in the position. For instance:
- Do you have a special space from which you can work at home?
- Do you have a telephone or internet connection?
- Do you have no problem working under pressure and meeting deadlines?
- Can you work well without too much supervision?