For the last eight years, I’ve been working from home. I started off writing on a blog as a hobby but I eventually decided to write a book.
That book led to three more books, speaking engagements, co-running a membership site, a podcast, and my own online course. Now writing is my full-time job and it all happens right here in my house.
All the while, my three kids and my husband are people who need to be clothed and fed, not to mention seen and loved.
As much as I love the flexibility of working from home, sometimes I long for the clear lines a drive to the office in the morning seem to offer. But we are figuring out how to make this whole “Mom works from home, where are their socks, meet that deadline, boil the water, finish the laundry, write this book chapter, record those videos in the closet, sign their homework papers” thing work.
Here are five ways I stay productive while I work from home.
1. Craft purpose in the dark but plan in the light.
If I don’t have a clear vision or purpose for my work (either short term or long term work), I feel like a crazy person. Add laundry and home chaos to all of that and it’s goodbye forever to productivity.
What I’ve found works best is to craft my purpose and vision in the dark hours – either morning before anyone wakes up or evening after they all go to bed. Then, when John and I schedule our week together while the kids are eating breakfast, our step-by-step plans can be made and followed in the daytime.
If I try to craft a plan for my day before I’ve developed a vision for my work, I’ll be planning for stuff I might not even value. It’s like trying to organize your house of clutter. Where do I put this sock that has no match!
Instead, clear out the clutter first, discover your purpose and vision in the quiet hours so that you can execute a plan that aligns with your vision.
2. Trade the to-do list for a done list.
I’ve been making to-do lists since middle school. As my fellow list-lovers know, one of the greatest discouragements after a days work is when the list remains largely un-checked. Over the last six months or so, I’ve changed the way I make my lists.
I have a large list for the week of things I need to finish. But when I sit down to my work for the day, I have a blank page next to me with my tasks in mind.
I write one task on the page with a box next to it and I work on that one task only. When it’s finished, I check it off and only then do I write down the next task.
This has been unicorn magic for me because at the end of my work session, I have a fat checked off list rather than a sad, anemic one. Progress!
3. Face away from the room.
If you only have an hour in the day to work, you can’t spend it looking at all the mess in your house because inevitably, you will put your work off until you can just tidy up the living room real quick. Soon that turns into cleaning out the closets.
Ask me how I know. Never mind, don’t ask.
Easiest solution: sit to work in a spot where you see as little of the room as possible. When I realized how much of my mental energy was spent cleaning my house (even only in my head!) I immediately turned my desk around to face the window.
Twenty seconds and done.
If you have a desk, face the window. If you work from the kitchen table, choose the seat so you can’t see the sink.
Force yourself to face away from your house while you work so you don’t get distracted.
4. Clear the surfaces.
If you can’t escape the mess of your house, the very most I allow myself to do during work times is to clear the surfaces. My sister, The Nester, taught me two golden rules of clean surfaces:
- Soapy Rags: A hot, soapy rag goes a long way on a kitchen table. If the kitchen is a mess, just clean the table off real good, sit down, face the window and ignore the rest of the house.
- Make Mine Pretty: This means if you have a choice between two equal things, why not choose the pretty one?
Case in point: soap. John buys the fluorescent blue brand of soap that looks like space poison.
I buy Mrs. Meyers with beautiful scents and lovely packaging.
It sits on our counter out in the clear blue open. Why not choose the pretty one?
This one I can help you with right now. Click here to learn how you can get an entire spring cleaning kit (including Mrs. Meyers pretty soap) for free. Woot! I love this stuff.
5. Take a walk.
Since I spend a lot of my work time on my computer, I try to do things that are the opposite of the internet when I start to feel like a robot.
One of my favorite productivity boosts is to take a short break from my work and walk around the block. I leave my phone at home and practice walking without an agenda. It’s the best 12-minute re-boot I’ve found.
What are your best productivity tips for working from home?
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Courtney says
March 7, 2017 at 8:34 AMI love these!! I’m currently in that in-between state: I work as a teacher at our local elementary school but I am trying oh-so-hard to move to a work-from-home position!
I take #3 and #4 one step further–each night before bed, I spent exactly 10 minutes making things look better. No deep cleaning, just picking up and wiping down the surface. Then, when I wake up in the morning and get started on my work, everything at least “looks” nice and clean! 🙂
emily p freeman says
March 7, 2017 at 8:41 AMExactly 10 minutes. I love that! Great idea.
Gwynne says
March 7, 2017 at 8:51 AMI am a morning person. I try to get to work as early as possible. Once I stop working (to go to the store, do laundry, etc) it seems to break my flow. I also won’t answer the phone unless I know who is calling. They can just leave me a message if it’s important.
emily p freeman says
March 7, 2017 at 8:54 AMYep. That’ll preach.
Amy Canby says
March 7, 2017 at 9:06 AMI love these tips, especially the idea of facing myself/my work space toward a window instead of the house clutter!
My tip is to keep inspiring articles in an app called Pocket that I can read to jump start my productivity. I love goinswriter.com, alifeofproductivity.com and emilypfreeman.com. They all have great tips and seem to have a way of offering encouragement to me (and thousands of others!) that feels sincere. Sometimes it’s my doubts about my ability that block my productivity and these folks help me get my ‘can do’ attitude back.
Melissa says
March 7, 2017 at 9:10 AMA to the men my friend. I immediately wanted to read all your tips when I saw the title. Love the tip about the things done checklist! Brilliant! And you’re so right about the facing out…when I moved my desk into face the window it was an immediate productivity boost…now if I can only get myself to sit down at the desk… ? xoxo
Elizabeth Scruggs says
March 7, 2017 at 9:27 AMSuch good stuff- I love the “done” list instead of a “to-do” list. I’m a huge lister and feel like all the things must be done- or, FAIL. But working from home is hard. There are SO many things that pull us SO many different directions. I’m working now on a schedule and to appoint certain things to each time slot on each day. I’ve never thought of walking around the block for a re-fresh, but I believe I will schedule that in:) I joined create + complete last fall and really want to do it this spring because I just couldn’t fit it in last fall- so that is one of the things I’m making time for as well. Hoping that my type-A tendacies will respond well to a “schedule” and I will be able to focus more:) I love how you scheduled “put a load of towels”- if it’s on the list, then it won’t be so random. Thank you always for your wise counsel- from a fellow twin + one mama:)
emily p freeman says
March 7, 2017 at 9:36 AMOh re-join us in Create + Complete! Are you in the Facebook group? We just started Lesson 1 this week and you can go through at our pace 🙂 And yes – that walk around the block goes a long way. (having 2 babies at once – I mean, that’s crazy town! How have we survived it?!)
Susan Ruffalo says
March 7, 2017 at 9:37 AMI love your list!! Even though I am a work outside of the home mama (7:30-4, like your original plans, but I work summers- drats!!) I loved reading your list.
#3 Really works!! I have a corner of my bedroom in front of a window that is my “War Room” and for the longest time it never worked for me. I tried and tried, but got distracted so easily. Once I turned my chair to face the corner instead of facing out to my closet/desk it was SUCH a game changer. Now I can spend time with the Lord, look out into his creation and no longer am I distracted by the mess/ what should I wear/ I should clean more/ etc.!
emily p freeman says
March 7, 2017 at 9:43 AMRight?! It’s so simple – I don’t know why it took me so long to realize.
Spilledmilkandsunsets says
March 7, 2017 at 9:38 AMWow! Woke up in the middle of the night unable to sleep to read this. Thanks Emily. I also love your to-do-done list tip. I’m going to try that tomorrow! Not sure if we can get Mrs Meyers in Australia but always love seeing you, The Nester, and others take pretty pics of them!
emily p freeman says
March 7, 2017 at 9:43 AMAw, thanks! And I hope you get some sleep 😉
Caroline Starr Rose says
March 7, 2017 at 10:02 AMMy desk is against the wall a la Stephen King. 🙂
Sharon says
March 7, 2017 at 10:06 AMThe getting up before the kids and not facing the mess have been very helpful. I am much more productive in the hour or so before the noise makers wake up. Both my desk and drawing table both face the wall now, if I could just get the rest of my art supplies unpacked.
Ruth Rutherford says
March 7, 2017 at 10:09 AMWhat works for me is candles, coffee and flowers. I make my desk somewhere I want to sit every day. Then the rest of the house and all its tasks don’t seem as pressing. Yes, my desk is full of work… but with a scented candle burning and a few tulips in a jar, it tricks me into feeling like a spa getaway. And, as with any spa getaway, I switch off all social media during work hours. An often mandatory rule at the office… a good rule at the home office as well. So much more productive during work hours when we’re not distracted by posting a photo of the tulips on our desk. 😉
emily p freeman says
March 7, 2017 at 10:59 AMhaha! I’ve posted that photo of tulips at my desk many-a-time.
Kathy W Rushing says
March 7, 2017 at 10:23 AMAs always, so good, Emily!
I have no one to blame but myself for distractions as my kids have launched. You wouldn’t believe the rabbits I can chase on the internet :).
2 things I’m using currently:
1. Freedom app–turns off all mail/social media alerts for a time period I set, so I can write without distraction.
2. I recently discovered a tool that Donald Miller uses, called the Storybrand Productivity schedule. One sheet/day, with projects/time spent/REWARD. “Things I get to enjoy today”–allows you to list the things besides the work to be accomplished. It’s been very helpful for me in focusing the day. (If anyone’s interested, it’s available on his website, Storybrand).
Deb says
March 7, 2017 at 10:34 AMThese ideas are so great! I’ll use them all, but especially love Craft Purpose in the Dark but Plan in the Light. This is probably Life 101 for everyone else, but I find that scheduling “baskets” (prettier than buckets) of time to do things makes all the difference. If something needs to be done, I decide exactly which day and how much time (and then I make sure I do it!) If something’s not getting done, it means I haven’t decided when to do it, and I’ve kept pushing it forward “until I have time”. Now, instead of “I have this whole long list of things to do, my day is crazy!” I can say, “I have these one or two things to do, the rest is scheduled for tomorrow/next week.” Can’t tell you how much more peace I have now. Thanks for the joy you bring~
Jana Snyder says
March 7, 2017 at 11:35 AMI love that your tips are not the same ol’ same ol’. (Thanks for not mentioning the pomodoro method!)
Rosanne says
March 7, 2017 at 1:49 PMI’m in that in-between state too – working part-time teaching but with an eye toward writing full time sometime soon! What I have found is scheduling my cleaning/house stuff for specific days/times. Then, when I am tempted to be distracted, I can remind myself that I already have a time for that and no worries!
Another thing I have invested in is an app called freedom which locks me out of things like Facebook during work times. I’m thinking of making it lock me out of my email too during those times because I can definitely fall down that rabbit hole for WAY too long! 🙂
Sue Triggs-Rhuda says
March 7, 2017 at 2:36 PMOh my gosh I just laughed out loud. I have this big list of things to do…foremost was cleaning up the giant mess in the kitchen…which I did…and then I decided to polish some silver LOL slippery slope!!!
Marian Vischer says
March 7, 2017 at 4:22 PMGirl. How did you know I’ve been in a productivity wasteland? You may have saved my life with points #1 and #2. Thank you SO MUCH.
Jodi says
March 7, 2017 at 5:05 PMGreat tips! I have the big mix of two work out of home days, a roughly 2 day a week volunteer role for MOPS ad trying to work on my writing. It has been several weeks of trying to figure out how to make it all work. I am thankful that I spent time creating an office space for myself with pretty and inspiring things to look at and facing the wall so I can’t see the mess. I am a long way from making it all work. Think I will try your done list tip first!
Mandy Turner says
March 7, 2017 at 5:20 PMJust started working from home this year (only a few hrs/week while my littles are at preschool) and have definitely realized how easy it is to fill that time with errands and laundry and busyness if I don’t commit to work above all else. My two workdays have to be ruthlessly maintained as just that – work days. And no one is going to regulate that but me.
And “space poison” made me LOL. ?
Amanda says
March 7, 2017 at 10:06 PMYay, thanks Emily! This is well-timed ?
Stacey Pardoe says
March 8, 2017 at 7:42 AMThis is very helpful advice! I spend hours writing in front of a computer screen as well. There are moments of feeling like a robot. I often feel guilty for taking a walk, but when I return, my productivity and creativity increase tenfold! It’s well worth the break to recharge and actually results in greater productivity! Thanks for sharing.
Stacy says
March 9, 2017 at 5:47 PMI am a new bullet journaler, still trying to decide if it works for me…?…for your weekly list to do do you put the list in your bullet journal? Then, each day you wait until you do it to write it down? It feels totally different to do it that way, but I think it may help me!!!
Jenn Tanaka says
March 9, 2017 at 11:59 PMSuch great pointers, Emily. Thank you for sharing. Every little bit helps. Right now, I’m trying to figure out a writing schedule when my husband is home! He works 24 hour shifts, so he likes to hang out with me when he is home, but when he has his 4 days off, I feel so unproductive in the writing sense.
Donnie says
March 10, 2017 at 12:23 AMOh, Emily, love the to do list idea! I, too, work from home. Love the time with my husband and being in my home, but it does have its challenges at times, as well.
Katie M. Reid says
March 11, 2017 at 8:22 AMEmily! Beautiful and helpful post- thank you. And I splurge on Mrs. Meyers too- smells so good!
Janelle says
May 11, 2017 at 12:09 PMThank you, Emily! Organization and administration is a struggle for me. I needed this post to give me direction. I love the “done” list.
Jess says
September 7, 2018 at 8:09 AMWhat a great article!
Emma @ Emmawritenow says
June 4, 2019 at 4:52 PMWorking from home is. hard. So, so many distractions to be discouraged by, but these tips are super helpful! I HAVE to work on a clean surface and face away from my messes now. Thanks so much for writing!