Just a couple of years ago, it was unimaginable to think that the majority of UK workers would no longer be commuting into an office but instead, working entirely from home.\u00a0 It\u2019s a shift that should have taken years, but in the context of a global health pandemic and country-specific lockdowns, we\u2019ve done it \u2013 we\u2019ve fundamentally changed the way we work.<\/p>\n
Working from home brings with it many benefits, not least the time we gain through not commuting.\u00a0 There\u2019s also the flexibility on offer, especially as we navigate through school closures, focus on our own health and wellbeing despite health centres and gyms being closed, and maintain the day-to-day life-admin and chores necessary for ourselves and the spaces we live in.<\/p>\n
But it can also be all-consuming, with blurred boundaries between work and home life and a lack of social interaction that just isn\u2019t the same across a Zoom call or other video-meeting platforms.<\/p>\n
With so much going on, and for many in such an alien environment for working, it\u2019s understandable to question whether time is being spent as well as it could be, or if we should be organising ourselves better.<\/p>\n
By investing just a little time in understanding your own personal effectiveness triggers, you can unlock a whole new world of productivity and potentially create more time for yourself in the process.<\/p>\n
It all starts with being honest<\/strong><\/p>\n Do you start each morning staring at your computer thinking \u2018I don\u2019t know where to start\u2019?\u00a0 You\u2019re not alone; the adjustment to working from home is significant yet many of us have been asked to do so without time or support to really understand the implications.<\/p>\n One of the most important things you can do is have a really honest conversation with yourself about where you are spending your time and question whether this is really on the right areas.\u00a0 It\u2019s likely there are lots of things going on that are stopping you being truly effective, or which are eating into your time and, as a consequence, are affecting your ability to focus on where you can add most value.<\/p>\n If we think about our reaction when stressed, it\u2019s typically one of not being able to focus in any specific area because the brain feels too overwhelmed to process everything going on. As a result, we become unproductive.\u00a0 Addressing the working day is the same; we need to understand how we spend our time and what our distractions are so that we can stop getting over-whelmed. It will also help us make more conscious choices about what we should and shouldn\u2019t be focused on.<\/p>\n Grab a pen and paper and start writing<\/strong><\/p>\n There are many theories and tools to help productivity and no shortage of techniques you can try in the quest to manage yourself better.\u00a0 However, sometimes simple is best.<\/p>\n When thinking about productivity, a pen and paper is your best friend (or yes, a digital equivalent is absolutely ok!).\u00a0 Write down everything you spend your time on over a period of a few days, covering everything from work, personal and family time.\u00a0 Make sure you capture how long you spend and ideally, how it makes you feel.<\/p>\n From here, highlight your time wasters.\u00a0 Is the amount of time you\u2019ve spent on email management proportionate?\u00a0 Are you getting value or benefit from the meetings you\u2019re attending?\u00a0 Is your kit or software causing you a challenge?\u00a0 When you know what the problem areas are, you can do something about them.<\/p>\n