Tips for Staying Productive While Working from Home

Working from home can be a dream come true—no early alarm to catch the overcrowded train into the office, comfortable clothes, and AAA to your fridge. However, this often comes with its own set of challenges that can make productivity a struggle. Here are some tips to help you stay productive even when working remotely.

Set a Schedule

One of the most essential aspects of working from home is establishing a schedule. Without set office hours, it can be tempting to stay in bed for longer or take extra-long lunch breaks. Having a routine will help you maintain focus and stay on track. Try time-blocking your calendar into sections to plan your day, just like this example.

Create a Dedicated Workspace

Create a dedicated workspace that is separate from your comfortable areas. Working from the sofa or bed may seem like a good idea, but it can make it hard to focus on work. Having a designated workspace helps to create a mental distinction between work time and personal time in your home.

Dress for Success

While working in pyjamas may be tempting, getting dressed in the morning can help switch your mind into “work mode.” Dressing up in professional attire can be highly motivating and help increase productivity levels.

Minimize Distractions

Working from home comes with lots of distractions like chores, family members, social media, or even the TV. To maximize productivity, try creating a focus playlist or podcast, that helps you stay focused or use noise-cancelling headphones to block out noise. You can also set a timer to take short breaks and use the break time to attend to any personal tasks.

Stay Connected

Working from home can feel like you’re out of the loop, so staying connected with co-workers is essential for maintaining morale. Regular communication can help you stay accountable, bounce ideas, and keep the work moving forward!

Take Care of Yourself

Finally, remember to take care of yourself. Be sure to take regular breaks, eat healthy meals, stay hydrated and get your steps in with your four-legged friends. It’s easy to forget these things when working from home, but they will help you stay focused and energized throughout the day.

 

Are you looking for a hybrid or remote role? Check to all of our lasted jobs over on our job page.

How to Identify and Prevent Workplace Bullying

This #AntiBullyingWeek we look at how to identify and prevent workplace bullying to create a positive working environment for all.

What is workplace bullying?

Workplace bullying is repeated, and perverse behaviour directed towards an employee or group of employees that creates a risk to mental health and well-being in the workplace.

Bullying can happen in any type of workplace, and to people in any type of role from part-time employees to CEOs.

It can also take lots of different forms, from verbal or physical abuse to online harassment and in some cases can extend to out-of-work-hours harassment.

Examples of workplace bullying: 
The negative implications of bullying in the workplace include:
What steps can you take to prevent workplace bullying?

It is important to note that single incidents of unreasonable behaviour are not considered bullying. However, it is still important to deal with these issues correctly and monitor them accordingly.

 

For more information on dealing with workplace bullying, head to the National Bullying Helpline webpage.

Apps to Help Combat Work-Related Stress

There are many ways to help aid mental well-being such as helpful tips to avoid burnout, and it’s clear our attitudes inside and outside of the workplace are shifting for the better as we become more aware of creating a work-life balance.

To help monitor and suppress your stress, anxieties and worries when life is looking a little worse for wear, it’s good to remember that you have many places to turn to for a safe space to help you unwind. Like downloading some of the best mental health apps, designed to offer you support from the comfort of your mobile phone, at work or at home.

Headspace

One of the most popular apps out there for meditation, mindfulness and monitoring stress and sleep. Headspace can help you to change your day-to-day life with tips on training your mind and body to relax and focus on the better things in your life.

Students can also use the app for a discount price, meaning it’s even more accessible for those who need it.

Calm

Calm’s goal is to help you improve your head and happiness, by helping you to achieve a better night’s sleep, stress less and develop a more mindful, with access to calming sounds, stories, and visuals.

If you are a business looking at improving your workplace health & well-being benefits, Calm for business is a useful and supportive tool to help with high-stress periods and become an integral part of your employee’s daily well-being routine.

Finch

A modern, less needy, Tamagotchi. An interactive app with your very own Finch pet that helps you feel prepared and positive, one day at a time. Taking care of your pet is taking care of yourself including access to breathing exercises, stretches, daily gaols and more.

Balance

A smart meditation app that personalizes your meditation programs based on your current meditation level, how often you meditate, and which skills you master with a bank of soothing sounds to take you on your journey.

Forest: focus for productivity

If you’re a relentless scroller and can’t stay focused, this app is for you! When you want to stay focused on work or study, you plant a tree. Your tree grows whilst you focus on your work and leaving the app will cause your tree to die. The more times you use the app, the bigger your forest! Forest App also plants real trees when users spend virtual coins in the app.

Impact is an accredited Living Wage Employer

Impact recruitment agency is an accredited Living Wage Employer! This means that every member of staff and all of our temps will earn a real Living Wage.

The real Living Wage is higher than the government’s minimum, or National Living Wage, and is an independently calculated hourly rate of pay which is based on the actual cost of living. It’s calculated each year and is announced by the Living Wage Foundation as part of Living Wage Week.

The current London living wage for 2022-23 is £11.95/hour and UK wide rate of £10.90/hour, reflects the current higher costs of living.

Over 4,700 organisations, including Impact, voluntarily choose to pay the real Living Wage because we believe that a hard day’s work deserves a fair day’s pay.

This commitment applies to not only directly employed staff but also to our third-party contracted staff. We have ensured that we have a plan in place to ensure that all our third-party contracted staff, such as our cleaners, are paid the real Living Wage.

We are proud of this commitment as a Living Wage employer which is in line with our values and commitment to good business, and all temps supplied by us will be paid at a rate above the London Living Wage minimum.

If you are looking for temp work or a client looking to temporarily expand your team, why not contact us!