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!
Thank you so much for all of these great tips! I struggle to focus on one task and get it done ! I really need help
You’re so welcome! I am happy to help!
Love this!! Thanks for the tips and I love that you shared your personal schedule! Great job girlie and so excited to see what you do with this blog in the future! 💕💕
Thank you, sweet friend! I appreciate you checking it out and giving me so much encouragement! You’re a gem! XOXO
Dang Lindsey Lay, you are one heck of an organized business coach!!! Love all these tips, I struggle so much with keeping up with life and business!
Lindsay – working from home can seriously be such a struggle! Love your tips – you can tell what a great business coach you are!
Thanks, friend! That means a lot! XO
Thanks so much for this information. I will definitely make some changes.
Yeah…I’m there right now. The schedule is not exactly as tight as the spandex leggings I wear to ‘work’ everyday… 😀 Thanks for the sample schedule!
<3 Caitlin
https://glutenfreedairyfreefitness.com
These are great tips! Getting in the shower and dressed like I was going somewhere changed everything for me!! If I don’t do it, that’s when the Netflix or YouTube binging happens 🙂 Every now and then I will get ready and head to Starbucks to start the first hour or two of my day. That’s totally helped to break things up! I work full-time so I need to make my weekends and days off as productive as possible! Thanks for the great post!
These are all really good and important tips. Cute dog too!
This is a great post, lots of informative information! Thank you for sharing!
I need to do all of this. I think lists will really help me with my goals. But yeah netflix and scrolling through feeds on social media is my roadblock.
There are so many distractions when you work from home! Gotta ignore them and stay focused. With your tips and a Pomodoro timer, it’s teally possible to get things done. Thanks for sharing! 😊
Love these tips, I definitely need to be better at them myself!
These tips are so helpful, you are a great Business Coach Lindsey Lay!
I really needed this! I still work a full time job around my business and sometimes I overdo it with the me time. I’m definitely going to keep these tips in mind… thank you!
Schedules and getting dressed help me feel like a boss even on my day off! My favorite thing is getting a cup of coffee and putting on that Netflix series, it’s like background noise that clears my head.
I’m more of a multi-talker! I love Netflix binging while I edit/email/etc! Love seeing your side of things, Lindsey Lay, as a business coach!
Creating a Business schedule is so important!!! I cannot stress this enough!
Haha, Lindsey Lay that is hilarious. I’m the happy one because I do not watch TV. So no problem with Netflix for me.
What a great post! I struggle with this so bad! I feel that Netflix keeps me going and motivates me to sit down and get my editing done but only too often I find myself staring at the screen and wasting way too much time watching the show instead of getting stuff done!
What great tips! I definitely need to stick to a schedule like this! Thanks for sharing the helpful info!