Similar to most people in the country, I’ve been working from home and self-quarantining due to COVID-19! It’s been about three weeks doing so, and it was quite an adjustment at first. Today I want to share all of My Best Tips for Working Remotely so it no longer feels overwhelming!
In this post, I’m going to share my current work from home schedule, tips for working remotely, and also some of my favorite loungewear options too! I’ve been working my actual job at home AND doing remote freelance blogging work from home too. These are some things that have really helped me since I’ve been stuck inside for almost a month now. I think they’ll also really help you too!
Actually Change Into Fresh Clothing
My first tip on how to survive working from home is to actually change into fresh clothing! It’s really tempting to just stay in the same pajamas you slept in all day, but personally I feel like I can’t get into a working mood like that. Even if you just change into a similar shirt and pair of shorts, changing into a fresh outfit will make you feel a sense of professionalism!
I personally usually change into a nicer top and then wear a pair of athletic shorts. All of my meetings are usually from the waist up, so wearing shorts to me is okay! I’m able to stay comfortable, but still look a little bit more business casual for work meetings. I also LOVE wearing my favorite grey loungewear, so I thought I would share some of my top picks below:
Put Some Makeup On
Okay don’t hate me for this tip because it’s here for a reason! The first week I was working remotely my face started breaking out all over the place. I had no idea why because I wasn’t wearing any makeup! I also hadn’t changed any other part of my skincare routine.
I realized that this might be for a few reasons. The first reason is that you potentially touch your face more when you aren’t wearing makeup and that can clog your pores. Another reason might be that makeup blocks chemicals/pollution from the air and acts as almost a shield!
Every morning I’ve been doing my best minimalist makeup routine and it’s helped keep my skin blemish free! I just use my makeup necessities which are a little bit of concealer, some pressed powder, and a touch of mascara. This is usually all I use on a day to day basis regardless and I think it adds the perfect touch!
Try to Create Habits and Routines
One of my best tips on working remotely is to create habits and routines that help you have some semblance of a normal day! That could be anything from just forcing yourself to take normal breaks, or just making a cup of coffee every morning! Just doing simple tasks can really help you feel like you’re working a normal office routine.
I decided to also give a mini recap of my work from home schedule! That way if you’re new to this you can kind of model your routine after my own. This is my general day to day schedule; however, the days where I post on Instagram I usually allot an hour for that! Thirty minutes of that time is spent posting my photo on RewardStyle and then Instagram. The second thirty minutes is spent interacting with people on my feed!
My Work From Home Schedule
8:00am – 8:15am // Wash My Face and Put on Some Makeup
8:15am – 8:30am // Make Some Breakfast and Tea
8:30am // Log Onto My Computer
12:00pm-12:30pm // Lunch Break
5:00pm – 5:30pm // Log Off
5:30pm – 6:00pm // Go Running or Do An At Home Workout
6:00pm – 6:30pm // Make Dinner
6:30pm – 7:00pm // Take a Shower/Do My Hair
7:00pm – 10:00pm // Work on Blog Related Tasks
10:00pm – 11:00pm // Clean Kitchen and Get Ready for Bed
Invest in an Affordable Laptop Desk
A laptop desk is something that I’ve loved to use since high school! I had a really hideous purple one, but now I have a white laptop desk that fits with my couch perfectly. I purchased it when I moved into my apartment because it’s easy for me to blog with it. Now it’s helped me with at home office work too!
Whether you have a portable laptop desk that can easily be carried, or one that you built out and is more like a table, I think they’re a must! They’re also a really affordable addition to any space. I decided to round up a few that I love, but if you want to shop the one I love you can click (here):
Listen to Your Favorite Music or Podcasts
One of my best working remotely tips is to listen to your favorite music or podcasts! Some of the tasks I do for work are very necessary but don’t require a lot of brain power. That’s usually when I decide to listen to podcasts! Since I’m at home, I use my Google Home Mini as my speaker.
I made a joke that all of the podcasts I listen to are about women entrepreneur’s or are inspirational podcasts for women. They are created by powerful women and I love them! These are also some awesome podcasts for black women that have inspired me so much and helped me as a young adult. They’re really some of the best podcasts for 20 somethings.
My Favorite Podcasts
1. The Goal Digger Podcast – Genre: Career, Marketing, Business
2. WSJ Secrets of Wealthy Women – Genre: Career, Finance
3. How I Built This – Genre: Career, Business
4. Girlboss Radio – Genre: Career, Entrepreneurship
5. Superwomen – Career, Entrepreneurship
I also think that listening to music while you’re working can motivate you too! I try to listen to more calming music in the morning and then as the day goes on I’ll listen to more upbeat music to get me in the mood to work more quickly. This is just how I listen to music, but it works really well!
Open Your Windows and Let in Natural Light
My favorite thing about my apartment is the fact that almost one entire wall in my living room is a window! It’s so bright and brings so much sunlight into my house. I prefer natural light from my window much more than any artificial light from my ceiling fan or lamp.
Opening your blinds or windows is the perfect way to feel less cooped up in your home! Since about all I’m able to do at the moment is go outside, it’s nice to be able to see the trees and all the wildlife from my living room. It’s also is better for your eyes than having fluorescent lights above you on all day every day!
For my desk placement in my apartment, I decided to put it right next to my window! That way I’m able to get some interior natural light in the morning and not have to turn on all my lights all day! It’s also an easy way to save some money on your power bill as well (which is always a plus).
Want to find out more ways to save money and be more sustainable? Click here!
Take a Break and Go For a Walk
Sometimes working from home is stressful! I went from having two huge monitors at my desk to one 10-12″ screen on my laptop. The transition at first was very difficult. It’s also hard being stuck in one place for so long! One thing that’s really been helping has been going for a walk on my breaks.
Occasionally for my lunch break or 15 minute break, I get outside to go for a walk! Although it’s not a lot of time, it’s still important to me to get out of my one space a few times a day. I also try to go for a run or do an ab workout after I get off work each day! Staying active and going out when I can really helps with working at home.
Create a Separate Workspace In Your Home
I personally live in a 1-bedroom apartment. That said, I purchased my favorite desk ever (shop it here) when I lived in Florida! I was only interning for six months so I ended up not purchasing any living room furniture so I didn’t have to move all of it. I did; however, KNOW that I needed a desk!
Now that I’m living in Atlanta and I have actual furniture in a really nice space, I knew I needed to make it special! Setting up a home office for remote work when you really only have two rooms is difficult. My first goal was to make sure my desk was set up next to my living room window! It’s a massive window and I really wanted natural light.
I then started to set up my workspace! Having a space that wasn’t my living room table to bar counter was very important to me. I think it makes working from home in an apartment a lot easier and makes it feel like a separate space from everything else. I also decided to link all of my home office necessities below:
I hope you guys enjoyed this post on remote work best practices! It’s not the easiest thing to do, but as an introvert I personally love it. These tips have helped me to stay sane and not go crazy being in a one bedroom apartment all day every day! If you have any other tips, be sure to leave your advice below to help other people out.
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