During lockdown, many of us are working from home, possibly for our first time, and we have found ourselves navigating through an unpredictable world of conference calls, laundry beckoning, and less-than-ergonomic working environments. Rather than seeing this new situation as a burden, we can view it as an opportunity to learn new techniques for motivating ourselves and establish some daily practices that will continue to benefit us once we return to the office.
These simple methods for finding motivation can help you find your footing in this new environment and set you up to become your most motivated and productive self.
By Victoria Rollison
Image Via Pinterest
Tidy your work area
If your workspace looks like the scene of a paper explosion, or your area has coffee cups that are housing small cockroach communities, it’s no wonder you can’t be bothered doing anything!
Your place of work should reflect your attitude to work – clear and focused, not complicated and cluttered. Spend ten minutes before you end the workday tidying up. That filing that piles up on your desk and takes four hours to organise when you finally get to it, can actually be sorted in two minutes each day if you stick to it. Once your desk is clear, you’ll have a better idea of what work you need to do and what work you’ve already done!
Prioritise your tasks
The most important part of being organised is knowing what your priorities are. Whether you keep a ‘to-do’ list jotted down on a writing pad, on your computer calendar or even in your iPhone, it is the best way to keep on top of your work.
You’ll find the motivation to get things ticked off the list by rewarding yourself when the page is full of ticks. Promise yourself a cup of tea or ten minutes of gossiping when you’ve received 5 ticks, or try to get 10 things ticked off by lunchtime. You’ll be amazed how much quicker you work!
Stay busy
It is a well-known fact that the busiest people in the workplace are the best people to ask for help. That’s because they don’t have time to procrastinate or waste time over a task, they are efficient because they don’t have time not to be!
Become one of these busy people by working with your boss to drive projects, showing initiative when you run out of things to do, and keeping your ‘to-do’ list up to date with tasks you can get to when you have time. When you are bored, you aren’t motivated so it’s key to avoid lulls in your schedule. You’ll be amazed how much faster your day goes when you spend as much time as possible working!
Set aside time for procrastination and stick to it
Do you get into work in the morning and search the internet for an hour before starting any tasks? Does Facebook sound more interesting than doing something your boss wants you to do? And do you get the 3:00pm blues where you can’t find the motivation to even gossip with your colleagues, let alone tick something off your ‘to-do’ list?
Everyone has moments in their day when they feel like doing anything but working. The key is to allocate time for this and stick to it! When you are eating your lunch, have a quick look at the news sites on the internet, update your Facebook profile, or tell your workmates about the crazy weekend you had. When you put aside time to do this, you’ll look forward to it and won’t feel as guilty about it.
