Work at Home Productivity Tips –

I remember years ago when working online was becoming more popular. 

Working in our PJ's, setting our own hours, having NO BOSS was the cat's meow.

Reality set in quickly as we all found out that it wasn't so easy.

Easy is working every available hour to get a foothold and chip away at the ever increasing mountain of things we need to do to make our business work.

Easy is getting sidetracked and spending too much time in mindless 'research', AKA surfing the net, reading 'industry newsletters' and blogs.

Easy is trying the latest, newest strategy but not quite getting it in place, because easy is also being scattered, spread too thin and distracted onto the next latest and newest stategy.

Soon, it was easy to see that the average day ended without much to show for it.

The question on my mind is… how many work at home business owners end up returning to the work force after running up a pile of debt, feeling like a failure?

Not because they don't know their business.

Not because they don't have a good product.

Not because working at home just isn't for them after all.

Simply because they never did enough of the right things throughout an average working day to produce results and to give their business a chance. 

If you find yourself floundering and wondering how the heck the average Joe can can get on the right track and get the important things done – the things that you know you should be doing, here are 6 things that you can do today to turn it all around.

6 STEPS TO INCREASED PRODUCTIVITY FOR YOUR ONLINE BUSINESS

1. Block Your Time – I can't stress this enough so I'll say it again. BLOCK YOUR TIME. If you do nothing else, you will see increased productivity if you use this one tip. Try it on one project this week.

Put aside about 1 hour and repeat it through the week, at the same time if possible.

You can experiment with the time you want to use, 3 hours is probably about the maximum.

If your time block is longer than an hour you should get up and move around for a few minutes at the top of each hour to reboot your brain, stretch your bod, get the blood pumping and to allow you a minute to step back and have a look at your progress.

Sometimes this 5 minutes is the most valuable as you can do a little brainstorming and regrouping during this time.

2. Block Distractions – This includes of course the telephone and your front door, your office door and windows (if you live at my house, you have 3 cats who think they live here and their main access is my office window.)

But the most important distractions to make a habit of blocking these days are probably your email, internet and open windows – on your computer.

– Before starting a project time block close your email unless it is absolutely necessary for the project that you are working on.

– Disconnect from the internet unless it is absolutely necessary for your project.

I like to work on my laptop because it only has dial up access so is virtually disconnected because it's almost too slow to bother – no temptations!

– Close any open windows on your computer that aren't absolutely necessary before you start.

Leaving too many windows open will make it much harder and slower to navigate and work on your project as you click and search for the tabs that you need, will slow down your computer and if you have too many open may even freeze or crash your computer, costing you valuable reboot and re-set up time.

3. Map It Out – Create a step by step plan outlining exactly what you need to do. You can create the major steps first, then fill in the details for each step.

This can really help us to 'show up', as it gives us a clear picture of exactly what to expect to have finished at the end of our session. It can be exciting to anticipate our progress.

It also allows our subconscious to work on any details that we may need to ponder before jumping in. It's amazing what ideas can pop into your head when you are doing something else. Be sure to write them down and put them in your project folder – either on or offline.

Your master plan will become your life line to efficient and steady progress – and eventual completion of your project.

4. Finish Up With a Fresh Start In Mind – After you have finished your project time block, put any papers you may need in a hard copy file folder for easy reference during your next session.

Place a small note to yourself inside of the folder giving you any info you may need so that you don't have to remember where you left off.

Next action steps, telephone numbers, contacts you need to make etc. Just think 'grab and go'.

How can you do to set yourself up so that you can grab the file and get right to work with no delay.

If you aren't using any hard copy files for your project, create a note to self file in your project folder that will keep you up to date on your next actions during your next session. Date it so that you can easily see where you need to be.

This tip will save you a lot of frustration and start up time in picking up where you left off – totally wasted time that can be reclaimed by getting into this habit at the end of any project time block.

5. Keep Everything In One Place – After you've been working online awhile, it can be easy to lose track of where things are and stick files and folders here and there, or start using different programs for different aspects of your online work day.

When ever possible, do your work and keep your files and resources in one place, using one program. Even better if you can access them all online, in fact, this is almost a necessity if you work from more than one computer.

Even if you don't now, you may someday – a laptop is a sweet luxury that can really help you to increase your productivity – both because you can work in more places when your desktop may not be available, and because it gives you a change of scenery, which in itself can motivate a working session and give a fresh perspective.

And in the event of a computer crash or even a prolonged visit or trip somewhere, the ability to access your working files online can be a lifesaver. It's also an excellent way to collaborate with others.

You can do pretty much anything with all of the toys Google provides.

I've been amazed at how easy and even fun it is. In fact, I'm writing this report using google.docs. If you don't have a google account, go to http://www.google.com and set one up. If you do but haven't been using it, give it a go.

6. Track Your Progress – I like to use a graph sheet to track my progress – the simpler, easier to use and faster, the better.

Tracking by day, time spent and action taken can be a very effective motivator and also can help you to determine a more accurate time line, especially if you create similar projects. Once you do one, you can get a realistic view of how long future similar projects may take and plan accordingly.

You can create your graph online if you prefer digital, or hard copy and stuck to your wall for an in your face productivity boost.

USE THESE TIPS – GET YOUR PRINTABLE

Print them out.

I've provided a printable PDF for you to download and print, including a handy tips box that is small enough to tape to your monitor. You can print the complete version to put in your day planner or ACTion Planner.

Productivity Printable

Hang it up where you can see it and start putting these tips into ACTION. 

I use them myself to increase my productivity and to be sure that I get the important things done.

WARNING

Don't print the steps and use them for a day or two, then get sidetracked and scattered, ignore your plans and end up right where you started. I think we've all been there, done that AND bought the t-shirt.

Make today different.

Make it your intention to give it a solid try for at least a week.

After that…

A) you'll see how well it works for you when you realize how much progress you've made over the week.

B) you will have gone a good way into developing your new working habits, making it that much easier to continue.

If the only thing that works for you is 'in your face' (waving hand), print it out and put it somewhere that you can't miss it.

Instead of hanging it on the wall, tape it to the side of your monitor. Make another copy and place it in front of your monitor every night when you shut down so it will be the first thing that you see when you start the next day. 

Set up some reminders to keep you on track. You may have the capability in your email program, or you can set up google calender to send you reminders as a pop up and an email. I use both.

RAMP IT UP BY JOINING US IN THE 1000 HOURS PROJECT

Try these tips and see for yourself how much more focused and productive you become with very little extra effort. In fact, as you'll see, it's easier to work this way.

We will be going into further depth on exactly how to use each of these productivity steps and more in The 1000 Hours Project .

You will create your own step by step ACTion plan, create your own Success System and join us as we HIT THOSE TARGETS and say NEXT!

WHY 1000 HOURS?

Listen to this audio to find out what is the meaning behind 1000 Hours and how it can help you to get more from your day.

I hope that you are looking forward to moving ahead and leaving behind the frustration of spinning your wheels for good.

Want to find out what your made of?

No more someday when…

Do It Now.

Join The 1000 Hours Project – Work at Home Productivity on Steroids.