Well folks, we have come to quite a crossroads here. Part of me says, I DESERVE a day to just watch TV and snuggle with the doggos and the other part of me says “NO, GET TO WORK!” Ugh… seriously, the struggle is real.
If you work from home, even just a few days a week you feel me, you get it, you’re picking up what I’m putting down. Don’t get me wrong, if I feel like I need some time to myself whether it’s to watch an episode of my favorite binge-worthy show or to get a manicure – I will 100% allow myself time for those things! But (and this is a big but), it’s a about balance; making sure I don’t let this happen every day 4 times a day…
What can you do to combat the urges to forget work and just hang out on the couch?! Well, my friend, let me tell you what works for me! It may work for you! If so, #You’reWelcome
1. Daily + Weekly To Do Lists
This may seem like a “duh” point but just hear me out. At the beginning of each week write out a list of deadlines you have, whether it’s to send emails to your clients, deliver products, mail packages, etc; WRITE IT DOWN. Then, each morning go over this list and write smaller goals for each day: post on your blog, write your caption for the IG post you’re posting this evening, or even to make sure to go to the Dr’s appointment you scheduled 3 months ago and will inevitably try to cancel at the last minute (because, let’s get real… putting on pants wasn’t on your to do list for this week)!
2. Get Dressed!
This is something I personally have struggled with the last few years, I think “I am SO much more productive in my pjs with a pound of dry shampoo in my day 3 hair and I don’t want to waste time washing it, getting dressed and putting on my makeup.” Man, was I WRONG or what?! When I put actual clothes on – yes, yoga pants totally count, I have found that I begin my to do list at a reasonable time and even finish earlier than I had planned!
*These are what I call selfies 2.0 – casually taken with my professional camera in a mirror… this is normal, right??
3. Make a Schedule + Stick to it!
I know, I know… The beauty of working at home is that you don’t *typically* have to follow a set schedule BUT someone or something has to keep you on track so you don’t spend an hour and a half watching funny animal voice overs in the middle of a big project you’re supposed to be working on! When I say schedule, I don’t mean work for the solid day with only two 15 min breaks and 30 min for lunch. Schedule time for you to surf IG or YouTube, time to grab coffee or lunch with your friends, and of course time to snuggle your doggos – trust me, that should be in there.
Here’s a sample schedule that I try to follow on the daily. Just remember, you’re human give yourself a break, you don’t have to do everything perfectly 100% of the time – the world will not end if you have a day of doing absolutely nothing.
Sample Daily Schedule
MONDAY – FRIDAY // 8:00AM – 4:30PM – set your office hours, trust me
Coffee, clean kitchen + downstairs, cuddle with pups.
8:00am – EMAILS, FB, IG
9:00am – Creating content, writing coaching plans, meeting with clients, etc
12:00pm – FOOD + tv/social media break
1:30pm – Updating income/expense/tax spreadsheet (done every Monday)
2:30pm – IG post + at least an hour of engagement with my peeps
4:00pm – EMAILS (one last time for the day), appt reminders, creating promo material for the coming day/week
4:30pm – computer goes to “sleep” and phone is only used for social media (because, let’s get real that’s NOT a 9-5 job…) If I don’t want to answer business DMs on IG, I don’t. I try to keep business during business hours BUT if I slip up and reply at night I don’t beat myself up about it!
Comment any questions below! Hope this helps!
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