How To Be More Productive Working From Home (13 Productivity Hacks)

Working from home can be a blessing and a curse at the same time.

I remember when I started my blogging journey and I had to get work done sitting in front of the computer at home.

It was really hard for me to keep focused and be productive.

I had no idea how to be more productive working from home.

It took me years to actually become more productive working at home.

And finally, build the blogging business I had been dreaming of building for the longest time.

I owe all of my blogging success to learning how to be more productive working online.

I’ll explain why.

I learned about blogging and the opportunity to make money online in 2011.

I was a complete newbie.

But, I made a settled decision to learn everything I could about blogging and internet marketing.

I became obsessed.

I would talk about how I was going to make money online working from home all the time.

I remember; my friends would laugh at me.

They told me I was crazy and that my dream of one day be able to make money blogging online and working from home – was ridiculous.

Who is laughing now suckas! :D

Anyway.

I dedicated my entire being to studying the art of blogging for profits.

I’ve listened to as many successful entrepreneurs in this field as possible.

I read blog post after blog post. Listened to audio after audio. Interview after interview.

I bought courses and training.

I mean, I invested a lot to learn everything I could to succeed with my blogs.

I’ve educated myself as much as I could.

I had to succeed.

Failure was not an option.

I have to say that my friends and family who laughed at me at the beginning only helped do more and become more.

They lit up a fire under my butt to make it happen no matter what.

So, I had all of the knowledge to become a successful blogger and internet marketer.

But, there was a big problem.

Even though I knew exactly what I needed to do in order to succeed blogging online, I didn’t for a long time.

I kept failing for a few years.

The worst part is that I knew why and didn’t really do anything about it.

You see, I’ve suffered from really bad depression my entire life.

I also had a thyroid problem. I would get very lazy easily. And I had gained so much weight thanks to bad habits.

This is not an excuse.

But, I have to say that it was super hard for me to keep focused and stay productive.

I was approaching everything in a dumb way.

I only blame myself.

In summer of 2016, I’ve had it.

This is when something inside of me woke the f*ck up.

I was already having some success making money online.

But, I wasn’t where I wanted to be with blogging.

I wanted to be able to make good money blogging and help others do the same.

I was still feeling super depressed and was feeling super fat (because I was).

In summer 2016 I was weighing about 280lbs.

Today, I weight about 175lbs going into 180 because I’m putting on muscle mass.

I’ve become a gym rat.

I’m the healthiest I have ever been in my entire life. I look like a totally different person.

It’s unbelievable.

I still shock myself at times – when I really think about where I was at with my health and lifestyle just two years ago.

It’s crazy how one can change completely when you really want to.

So, the first thing I did during that summer in 2016 was learning how to be more productive working from home.

I had to start by changing my lifestyle and habits completely.

I had to lose all of the extra weight and change my diet.

I knew that what I was eating and how often I was eating was affecting my brain, my mood, my focus, and productivity levels.

Losing all of the extra weight and changing my lifestyle helped me overcome depression, cured my thyroid problem completely (without ever going to the doctor), and finally helped me focus more and be super productive.

Let me tell you, it was really hard to accomplish this.

But it was damn worth it!

I began to study the brain and human psychology a lot more.

I love these topics because they help you become a better human being.

Today, I want to share with you what I have learned to increase productivity working from home.

If you want to be more productive when you are sitting in front of your computer to work on your blog and online business, you must follow everything that I’m about to share with you.

I really want to help you become a productive machine.

So you can get shit done effectively and fast.

This is what has allowed me to put in the necessary work to take my blog to the next level.

This is why I’ve said at the beginning of this blog post that I owe all of my blogging success to learning how to be more productive working from home.

Because I’ve become more productive with my time I have been able to accomplish a lot of my blogging goals.

If you want to become a successful blogger you have to put in the work consistently.

You have to do what you need to do daily.

There is no way around the work.

Chances are that you already know what you need to be doing but tend to procrastinate a lot.

I know that many new bloggers don’t have a lot of time to work online. But, let me tell you, having less time could actually help you.

Having less time to work on your blog and internet business – can actually help you because you know you have limited time so you will do whatever to be as effective and productive as possible with the time you got.

It is up to you what you do with your time and how you use it.

If you feel lost I highly recommend investing in your education so you can know what to do exactly.

Let’s get to these 13 productivity hacks.

I’m basically sharing with you my daily routine.

This is what I do myself to be this prolific blogger and internet marketer.

I’m going to list these productivity tips in order.

How To Be More Productive Working From Home – My 13 Productivity Hacks

1 – Plan your day ahead of time

I have a whiteboard in my home workspace and I use it every day to plan my next day ahead of time.

I like to write down my daily goals.

It really helps to set small goals every day that you must accomplish. It will keep you on track and focused.

I also list my daily to-do tasks.

This helps me know exactly what I should be doing for the day in order to accomplish my daily goals.

You should implement this and plan your next day the night before.

You will be able to wake up and not worry about any planning at all.

You should also be more specific with your planning.

For instance, know exactly what websites you need to visit today, what you need to do and where to go, who you need to reach out to, what internet marketing method you need to work on today, and things like that.

I organize all of this on my computer.

I have organized my bookmarks and I use Google Docs to help me keep organized.

Doing this helps me get things done faster by wasting no time on searching for things and links.

You should do the same.

2 – Keep a work schedule

If you are planning to build a blogging business – then you should treat blogging like a real business.

Your blog is your business.

Working from home is your business.

It just happens that your home is your office.

You are your own boss.

So, be a damn good and professional boss to yourself.

Create your own work schedule according to what you got going on in your life.

If you are doing this part-time and have the main job – just treat this as a second job.

You need to organize your time accordingly. This is super duper important.

If you don’t, you will not be as productive and you will not get the results you are looking for.

My suggestion; create a work schedule that works for you, print it out, and put it in your workspace at home, and maybe also put it on your fridge door in the kitchen.

Have fun with this!

I have a lot of fun playing my own boss and getting creative with what I do for myself to keep myself in check and getting work done for my online business.

Do that and you will feel good every day at work – at home.

3 – Listen to a motivational video or audio as soon as you wake up

I do this every single day.

The very first thing I do when I wake up every morning is I go to Youtube on my phone or smart tv and play a long motivational video.

I listen to it while I’m still in bed waking up and getting ready to get up.

It fires me up like crazy. Every single damn time!

Your subconscious mind is most active right when you wake up.

This is a great opportunity for you to train your brain to use this subconscious activation in the morning to think positively and accomplish more throughout your day.

Here is an interesting fact;

Scientists have found a correlation between the frequency of brain waves and the body’s state throughout the day.

When you wake up in the morning your brain operates at around 10.5 waves per second and it goes down throughout the day – this is a phenomenal find for human beings.

There is something called “The Alpha Stage” in your brain – which ranges from 8 to 13 Hz (or cycles per second) – this alpha stage has been called the gateway to the subconscious mind.

Now, think about this study and how you can use it to help you succeed.

When you wake up, your brain is operating at 10.5 Hz which means you are in this alpha stage so anything you put into your mind at this time is critical to your mindset for the day and how your entire day will go.

This is powerful stuff! :D

I love studying the brain and the human body for this reason.

Learning these little facts can help you tremendously when you are looking to build a successful business.

As I’ve mentioned earlier in this massive blog post, if you follow all of my productivity hacks you will become a productive machine and get shit done effectively and fast.

Do this- every single morning. And watch what happens after a few months of implementing.

Please, do let me know if anything I’m sharing here helps you, I would love to hear your story.

4 – Make your bed

Right after I listen to a motivational video, I get up and do my bed.

This little act helps me build my self-discipline.

It really works.

Right away, you already feel like you have accomplished something in your day and it boosts your self-confidence whether you are aware of it or not.

Doing this at the beginning of your day will help you stay in that mindset that you have to get things done right away.

I highly recommend you to implement this along with everything else I’ve already mentioned.

5 – Go for a walk or exercise

Once I brush my teeth and clean up myself, I get ready to go for a little walk.

I wouldn’t eat breakfast before my walk.

This is what I recommend – you are free to customize this to what makes you feel good.

(I also do intermittent fasting so I don’t eat until 12pm)

After my walk I workout for 30 to 60 minutes.

Now, you don’t have to do both. This is more of a personal choice.

But, getting your body moving right after you wake up is very important.

Doing this will pump more blood and oxygen to your brain.

And this will allow you to think a lot clearer, get rid of mind-fog, and have better focus when you are ready to tackle your tasks.

Motion creates emotion.

This is something I’ve learned from a very successful blogger a long time ago.

When you do something physical it almost instantly changes your mood and emotions.

This will put you in a better mood to do the work you need to get done.

Try this out and see how you feel. I highly recommend you to add this to your daily routine.

6 – Take a shower and get dressed as if you were going out to work

When I’m done with my workout I get in the shower right away.

Here is my little hack to wake up your body like crazy;

At the end of my shower, I switch my water from warm to super cold!

I stay under super cold water for about 30-seconds to a minute or two.

This shocks my entire body and mind tremendously.

This is way better than a cup of coffee. I’m telling you.

All of a sudden you are more alert and can focus like a machine.

I’m not going to lie to ya, it really sucks to be under very cold water for any amount of time, especially during the winter time.

It sucks every single time. It never gets easier.

But, I do it for the benefits.

I always feel amazing afterward.

Here is an interesting quote from this article;

“Chilly water increases blood circulation, releases endorphins, and could make you a more productive human—if you can handle it”

This is true.

I experience it every time I take a quick cold shower.

And, right after this energizing shower I get dressed.

I act as if I’m going to work to an office outside my home.

It becomes fun. Playing employee.

This helps me get in a mindset that I’m here to put in productive work when I sit down at my desk behind my computer at my workspace at home.

I’m telling you, the shower and the dress up will help you be more productive when you are working from home.

I so recommend you to implement this. For real!

7 – Watch what you eat and how much you eat

Since I do intermittent fasting I do not eat anything until 12pm (lunchtime).

So I crush my work in the morning. I get most of my work done early in the day.

But, most of you probably eat breakfast.

So, after you are all dressed up and ready for work you might want to get breakfast.

Watch what you eat and how much you eat there buddy!

Here is an interesting fact;

We all fast.

We all go to sleep and that means we are not eating for a certain amount of time.

You’re fasting while you are sleeping every night.

Fasting is inevitable for all of us.

Now, when your body is in a fasted state you are insulin sensitive.

This means, what you put in your body and most importantly how much – first thing in the morning – is super important for how you are going to feel throughout the day.

What’s the job of insulin you ask?

Insulin is what opens the cell so that blood glucose can enter and provide the cell with energy.

You want to be careful with what type of food you eat and how much you eat in your very first meal of the day.

If you eat a lot of carbs (carbohydrates), more than you should, like bread, cereal, or potatoes, etc. – along with foods that are high in sugar like jelly, orange juice, or sweets like doughnuts, etc. – you will crash very hard and have very low energy for hours.

Your energy level throughout the day will depend on how much of these types of food you consume in your breakfast (or first meal of the day).

Now, I’m not saying you shouldn’t eat any of the foods I’ve mentioned, at all.

What I’m saying is to be more conscious about what you are going to put into your body and how much if you want to perform at a high level throughout the day.

You can eat whatever you want.

What’s more important here is to watch how much.

If you are going to eat anything for breakfast I highly recommend you to make it a small breakfast. The smaller the portions the better.

You also have to consider how much energy your body needs in order to digest the food you are consuming.

If you do your online work in the afternoon or at night – the same advice applies.

Don’t make your body work so hard to digest and spend a lot of energy doing that – leaving you with so little energy to work on your online business.

If you eat a small meal, just enough for your body to fuel up with energy, you are going to perform at a high level when you are working from home.

Add the right types of food to that small meal and you are going to become a work machine!

What I want you to take away from this is to be conscious of your eating habits and really take the time to learn more about nutrition and how it affects your body and brain.

8 – Build your own workspace at home

You need to have your own home office.

You are your own boss and an employee at the same time.

So, you need to build your own little space at home where you feel comfortable working on your computer.

I’m not going to tell you to keep it organized or anything like that.

I used to think that keeping my desk and workspace organized would help me with productivity but that is not true.

What’s more important is to feel comfortable in your workspace at home.

Whatever works for you.

Just make sure you have a nice little setup at home and that you are very comfortable working there.

Make it your space – your workspace.

Tell your family this is your home-office and that when you’re there you are there to work.

Call it your own.

If you live in a small house or place, get creative and use a small section to build this workspace where you can be comfortable and feel good ready to tackle all of your tasks.

It’s important to feel comfortable!

9 – Create the right environment

This correlates to the workspace.

You need to be somewhere in your home where you are comfortable and feels good to be there.

Maybe you want to be next to a big window facing some nature or the street. Or maybe not.

My home office has two medium size windows facing the street and some trees.

I love having the sun shining through my window and be able to look at the blue sky while I’m sitting down in front of my computer working away.

I also like to play some music in the background.

The type of music I play will depend on my current mood.

Sometimes, I play motivational videos in the background while I work.

I always have the volume very low just enough for me to hear.

Playing a local radio station is also something I like to do from time to time.

I’ve decorated my little workspace with art and motivational quotes and posters.

Basically, I create the right environment that works best for me when I’m putting some hours to work on my blog and internet marketing business.

I act as if I’m in an office and have the office type of environment.

You know, it is typical to have a radio station playing in the background at a small office space, a nice desk setup with a nice chair, and some cool looking art on the walls, maybe some fake flowers, and things like that.

Build your own work environment at home that feels good to you.

10 – Know when you need to take a break

This is very important.

You need to learn when you need to walk away from your computer and take a break.

Do not overwork yourself.

Even if you have a deadline, taking quick breaks will help you get more done a lot quicker and more effectively.

Trust me.

Quick and long breaks are super important.

Breaks allow you to keep productive by not overworking your brain.

Your body and mind will tell you when you should take a break.

Listen to yourself closely.

You need to be smart with your breaks in order to keep the same level of focus and productivity.

When you take a break walk away from your workspace.

I would recommend you to take a quick walk or spend a few minutes stretching.

One thing that I like to do is schedule my breaks.

Since I do this full time I have many breaks in my work schedule.

For instance; in my work schedule I have work from 9:00am to 12:00pm – from 12pm to 1pm is my lunch break – I get back to work from 1pm to 2pm – I take a long break from 2pm to 4pm and do something physical like walking or play basketball with friends – I get back to put in some more work online from 5pm to 6:30pm.

But, sometimes, you do get in the “the zone” and can work for many hours straight. The moment you snap out of the zone it probably means it’s time for a break.

Take note that I do work online full time and this is why I can take these many breaks throughout the day.

It might be different for you. You might only have like 3 to 4 hours to work online. But you still need to take quick breaks.

If that is your case then I highly recommend you to follow my next productivity hack.

11 – Work in chunks (the Pomodoro technique)

I love this technique.

Working full time online for me is still new.

So, when I wasn’t full time I had to learn how to be productive with the little time I had to work on my blog and online business.

I’ve found that working in little chunks helps a lot with staying focused and productive.

I’ve used the Pomodoro technique to help with this.

This is where you would work for 25 minutes straight and take a 5-minute break. And you repeat this for as long as you need to.

If you have limited time to work online I highly recommend you to implement this technique to help you keep as productive as possible.

Here is a video that will explain more about this Pomodoro technique.

You can either use a timer on your phone or this online tool called Tomato-Timer.

Learn to use this technique and get shit done quickly.

12 – Get rid of distractions

I avoid going to social networks and checking emails while I’m getting work done that doesn’t require them.

I turn off browser notifications and I silence my phone while I’m tackling important tasks online.

This is the online distraction.

You also have to ignore distractions outside of your computer.

If there are noises that bother you – do something about it.

If there is a lightning problem that bothers you – do something about it.

If there is anything in your work environment that bother you – do something about it.

At the end of the day, it is your job to get rid of distractions and anything that could turn into a distraction.

If your home workspace is next to a window and the view is distracting you then close that window and pull down the blinds.

Be flexible.

It is your responsibility to take care of your focus and not let things bother you too much. You are always in control so use that power to your advantage.

13 – Hack your brain (neuroscience)

This is one of my most effective productivity hacks.

Did I already mention how much I love studying the brain and human psychology?

Learning more about how your brain works and how your mind works is one of the keys to keep productivity levels high and perform at your best for as long as possible.

One of my favorite author and motivational speaker is Mel Robbins.

She has this neuroscience technique to hack your brain and force it to focus and tackle a task effectively.

The 5-second rule

The moment you are making a decision to do something new you only have about 5 seconds to act before your brain starts to try to talk you out of it.

This happens all day long whether you are aware of it or not.

Now, this blog post is going to get even longer if I explain the science in details, so I’m going to let Mel explain the 5-second rule to you.

The simple technique

This is where you count backward from 5 right before you need to work on something new.

The basic science behind this is that your brain is used to habitual behavior and counting backward is not something you do very often.

So, it triggers many things inside your brain and triggers connections that were dormant for a while. This helps activate your prefrontal cortex in a way that helps you be more productive and positive.

This helps create the activation energy you need to get started on something.

You will kill procrastination with this technique.

What you need to do

Count backward from 5 right before you have decided you will tackle a new task. Count backward and just go for it!

You can also use this technique to get rid of old bad habits and create new ones.

This neuroscience technique by Mel Robbins has helped tremendously to get rid of procrastination, create new better habits in my life, and keep focused and productive as much as possible.

It really works!

Wrapping it up

It is your responsibility to work on yourself and implement the proven methods to keep someone productive and focused.

It is not a big challenge to follow everything that I have mentioned here. It’s not going to be easy, but it is not impossible.

I have been able to change my entire life by following everything I just talked to you about.

I’m living proof that anything is possible if you just want it bad enough and take the time to learn the right knowledge and implement with consistency.

Working from home is a blessing but don’t take it for granted.

You need to grow and expand your online business and staying as productive as possible with your work is the key.

Over to you

Do you have any productivity tips you would like to add to this list? Which one is your favorite? Are you implementing all of these or some of these?

If you have any questions or thoughts on this topic please leave them in a comment below. I’d love to hear from you!

Fun fact; this entire blog post is about 4,600 words long – I wrote it in a few hours without any planning ahead of time (totally my fault) – but I got it done because I know how to be super productive and had fun creating it to help you become this productive machine you want to be! – I implement my own tips to get shit done, for real! ;)

A tiny request; if you know someone who would benefit from this information please share it with them. I’d really appreciate the support spreading the love here. Thank you so much!

Get sh*t done fast and effectively! Learn these 13 Productivity Hacks and become a productive machine! Share on X

Learn and implement right away!

Until next time.

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