If you are a former office worker, transitioning to freelancing may be a challenge. As soon as you sit down in your dedicated workspace at home, you suddenly start to miss the things that may have annoyed you in the past. Or, perhaps, being in near proximity with your bed has been distracting you from actually doing any work.
If you are having trouble adjusting to your new workday, here are a few things you can do to boost productivity:
Coworking Space
In the past few years, the use of coworking spaces has increased. The term coworking refers to the use of an office or other places where people who have different employers can interact and collaborate. These places usually have amenities that typical offices have. There are resources online that provide information on how to start a coworking space, so more can open to accommodate the rising number of people who use them.
For freelancers, coworking spaces encourage productivity. Moreover, if you feel lonely and isolated in your home, in coworking spaces, you like-minded people you can interact and collaborate with. It is good for networking; you may meet people you may work with in the future or simply have someone to have a small chat with during your lunch break.
Going to a coworking space will also allow you to have separate work and home life, but without the formality and commitment of being in an office.
Set a Schedule
When you are a freelancer, you have control over your workload and time. However, if you do not keep a schedule, this may send you sliding into a rabbit hole of activities that are not related to your work. It is easy to procrastinate if there is no one around you but yourself to monitor if you are actually doing your work.
Keep a daily schedule and make sure you follow it. Start by waking up early in the morning and carve time for a daily routine. Make coffee, eat your breakfast, do your 10-minute meditation — anything that you may need so you can begin work the soonest. Do not forget to set aside time for breaks, either. You may work from 9 to 11 and then take an hour off for lunch before you begin work again from 1 to 5.
Eliminate Distractions
If you tend to scroll through Instagram or Twitter, you can either shut off your phone or download some of the many productivity and concentration apps available on Google Play or the App Store. Apps such as Freedom stops you from fiddling with your phone when you are supposed to be working by blocking social media sites.
If you live with someone and you cannot stand the chatter, get yourself a pair of noise-cancelling headphones to block out sounds that may distract you.
Dedicate a Workspace in Your Home
If coworking is not for you, the least you can do is create your own workspace. Get yourself a desk and a comfy chair. If possible, your desk and chair should not be in your bedroom or near your bed. It is also ideal if your desk is placed near a window where you can be exposed to natural sunlight. Moreover, make sure that your workspace is set in your preferred temperature so you can focus on the tasks in front of you.
The life of a freelancer is as challenging as those who work in an office. What you need to do is to make things work for you so you will be able to produce all the output you need.
