As you probably know by now, users of Zaplee‘s internet-based business phone systems often work from home in virtual offices. Our series on Tips for Working from Home has been a hit, with great feedback from Part 1 and Part 2. Here’s the third installment of our series – hope you find it helpful!
1. Set appointments with yourself.
We know, it sounds lame, but it works! Fill your calendar with appointments with yourself to keep you on task and on track. Block off times to work on various aspects of your business, whether it’s accounting, email, social media, reading trade publications. You’ll find that you stick to your tasks must better when you’re accountable to a digital calendar!
2. Secure your data and files
Working from home has its advantages, but a big IT set-up and firewalls usually aren’t some of them. Your data and files are much more susceptible to security breaches when you’re working from home, and don’t have a sound security infrastructure in place, like you would at an office. Research and invest in some of these tools for small businesses, and remember to back up your work! Most places of businesses have cloud storage where you can back up your important files, and it’s important to replicate that activity at home as well.
3. Stay Connected
It’s easy to disconnect yourself from the outside world when working from home. Avoid that. Disconnecting yourself stifles creativity and keeps you from constantly generating new ideas and ways to do things. Keep your work and your mind fresh.
4. Pair up with an accountability partner
Sometimes the good ol’ buddy system is the best way to be. Find someone else who also works from home, or one of your coworkers, and communicate your goals to them. Then, schedule weekly meet-ups with that person for status updates to make sure you’re achieving targets, and that the excuses you make to yourself are actually valid.
5. Dedicate certain days to certain tasks.
This is similar to setting appointments with yourself, but it might behoove you, depending on your job, to dedicate certain days to specific tasks. This is especially effective if you have tasks that require focus for long periods of time, like design, or writing. Try it out; if it doesn’t work for you, you can always go back to the way you used to work.
Do you have tips that have always worked for you? Share them in the comments below!
