Are you still working from home? After I left my corporate job in 2019, I learned a few things on how to make the most of my day, being productive but also giving myself a break. Here are some tips:
Plan Your Week ahead of time
Planning your week ahead of time, whether on Sunday or Monday, will save you so much time and give you an idea of what your week will be looking like. Whether you work for yourself or an employer, there are likely a few items on your list that take priority over others and need to be done by Tuesday instead of Friday. Brain dump all your to-do's then prioritize them with due dates during that week.
Tools to consider: Asana, Trello or a weekly planner
(I go between Asana and my planner)
Write Down Your To-Do's Daily
After you do your initial brain dump and give them due dates, revisit this list daily. If you accomplished everything - yay! If there is something you aren't able to do, can you bump it down another day? This is the best time to really re-evaluate the priority tasks and timeliness of each.
Time Block
I've really grown to like time blocking because it allows me to focus during a certain set of time. Now that you are likely working more independently, those office distractions aren't as often (free table goodies to check out anyone?) Anyway, time blocking is one of my favorite things to do and I generally will set a time of either 30 min or an hour. There is a 90 minute method but I like more shorter time blocks that I can actually commit to and not give myself mini breaks. Use google calendar as a quick and easy to time block your tasks - makes it easy to adjust as needed.
Give Yourself a Break
I've always been a big believer in breaks! I would block out time for lunch during my office job days and while there were definitely days I wasn't really able to take a full lunch, I did try to make sure I stepped away from my computer.
Short on time? I would try to block out time in your calendar for at least 10-15 throughout the day. There are also a few apps that help you take quick breaks throughout your day to help you stretch & move. My favorite one is FitOn
I hope these tips are helpful for you and that you can easily apply at home or even in the office!