Work From Home: 8 Mistakes You Make That Affect Your Productivity

Working from home can be a real blessing, but only if you do it properly.

An experiment by Chinese researchers showed that employees who work from home can have greater job satisfaction and be more productive than their office colleagues. But at the same time, they often feel lonely and isolated because they no longer feel part of a community.

Also, people who work from home tend to make certain mistakes that can affect their work.

You work in pajamas

We all feel better when we are in pajamas, but this outfit should be kept for relaxing moments, in no case when you work. Scientists have already shown that the clothes we wear affect our mood, energy level, and even our way of thinking. So, wearing pajamas will make us feel lazy, relaxed, and not motivated at all to work.

What you can do: Our brain loves routine and wearing different clothes when you work and when you go to sleep helps us to separate work from personal life, even if we spend all day at home.

Try to wear clothes that you will only wear while you are "at work" and you will see that this will help you feel more productive and organized.

You don't have a stable schedule

According to doctors, healthy eating, sleep, and exercise are essential not only for our health but also for our success.

When you work from home, it can be quite easy to completely ruin your routine, because you have no external stimuli that will force you to work according to a stable schedule. So, be your boss and create a program that allows you to enjoy the benefits of flexible working hours, but also that does not affect your health.

You can't make your family understand that you have to work

When you work from home, everyone seems to have the impression that all you do is sit in front of a computer in vain and end up doing everything and everything else at the request of others, such as sitting with children, cleaning, going to the store, etc.

Discuss with your family and friends and explain to them that you have a real job with real obligations that you have to take care of, just like them. Of course, it may be easier to change your work schedule, especially if you don't have to be available from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., but you still have to meet deadlines.

You're used to working out of bed

If you are used to working out of bed, you should know that this way of working can be harmful in the long run. Our brain is a factory of associations. Therefore, it is common to associate the bedroom with rest and when we decide to work there, especially in our bed, an error will occur in our brain. This habit of working in bed leads to a lack of productivity and insomnia.

Forget about bedding and set up a nice office where you have everything you need. This way, your brain will understand that you need to focus and give your best.

You don't talk to people face to face

Working from home can be great for people who don't need a lot of social interaction all the time, such as introverts. But staying home all day can make you feel alone. And even if you can chat online with your colleagues during the day, this still can't replace a real conversation over a coffee break. Social interactions are essential to our mental health, so make sure you have such experiences.

We all have different needs when it comes to communication. If you can talk to one person during the week and you feel great, there is nothing wrong with that. But if you notice that you are feeling lonely and depressed or that your self-esteem is suffering, try to find a way to communicate as much as possible face to face with different people.

You fall into the trap of routine

Even if you love your job, at some point you will get bored and you will have the feeling that you are reliving the same day indefinitely.

This feeling is common for those who work in the office, but when you work from home, all the fun and interesting things that can happen in your life depend entirely on you. The funny stories from your colleagues that you can hear during a coffee break or the things that can happen on your way to work no longer exist.

It can be very tiring to do the same thing every day. So you have to get out of the house and do things that have absolutely nothing to do with work. Do something new every day so that your brain does not get bored and you will see that you will start to feel more alive.

You no longer differentiate between work and personal life

When you work from home, it is very easy to fall into the trap of mixing professional and personal life. Get used to getting all the work questions out of your head after you finish your program and resist the temptation to check your emails or perform even the smallest task at work in your free time.

This will help you create boundaries between personal and professional life, which can be challenging even if you are your boss.

You don't make sport

You may not get the hang of the gym, but it is extremely important to get out of the house for at least an hour after you finish work, which will make you more active. An average office worker takes about 6,886 steps a day, which may not be enough to stay healthy.

If you spend most of your day at home and the longest walk you take every day is from the bedroom to the office and from the office to the kitchen, with occasional bath breaks, you probably won't miss it.

If you notice that you have not gotten out of your chair in 3 hours, get up and take a short walk around the block or choose to walk outside more after you finish work. If you don't feel like going out, choose to do a quick workout at home. Many videos on Youtube will help you regain your energy.