It’s that time of the week…Inspire Me Monday! I share some inspiration with you and bloggers can link-up with their own inspiring posts. These can be anything from an awesome recipe you tried, a fun craft project or something you’ve learned lately. I love learning from all of the lovely bloggers who link up!
(see more Inspire Me Monday posts here)
Weekend Fun
I got to spend the morning in Minneapolis with my friend Katie learning about social media things at the Social Media Breakfast. (You can check out this hashtag on Twitter to see some stuff we learned.) I took a lot of good mindset things away from the talk, so I’m very glad I went.
We also grabbed some lunch at a cute cafe in the area called Moose and Sadies. The quesadillas were fantastic. As was the iced chai latte. 🙂
I swear, the more things I do in the twin cities, the more sad I get that we are moving back to Nebraska!
Dave and I got to hang out in Edina over the weekend. They have paddleboating there…I kind of want to paddle boat before we leave, but Dave pointed out that his aunt and uncle have paddleboats on their lake. :/
Tips to Get Stuff Done While Working from Home
I wrote a post a couple of weeks ago with some of my favorite productivity tools and you guys seemed to really enjoy it, so I thought I’d share the second half!
Working from home full-time for the past couple of months, I’ve discovered many things about myself. Including how easily I can get sidetracked.
Today I’m sharing some tips that I’ve learned along the way! Hopefully you can learn from some of my mistakes!
1. Chuck your phone.
Okay, don’t really throw it away, but keep it far away from you during your work times. I know it’s hard to be separated from that safety blanket that is your shiny iPhone, but trust me—you will get so much more done when you only check it at intervals as opposed to every time you hear a notification.
2. While you’re at it—turn off social media notifications.
Seeing a bazillion notifications for social media can stress you out and give you the need to check them all when really that might not be the most productive use of your time at the moment. I have the notifications set for e-mails, text messages and phone calls only at this point and it’s really helped me focus more on my work. Bonus: you will feel SUPER popular when you only check social media every few hours! 
3. Lists are life.
I don’t know how people function without them. Keeping your to-do list in your brain isn’t serving you either—you need to keep your brain space free for new ideas and creative problem solving. (check out my favorite tools for making lists here)
4. Get off your booty and move!
The general rule of thumb is to get up for 10 minutes every hour. Sitting in one spot is no bueno for the body. I can’t tell you how many times (as a healthy living blogger mind you) that I used to sit for HOURS not moving. Tons of problems can come about due to sitting for long periods of time such as lower back issues, tight/sore muscles, and even headaches—just from sitting on your bum too long. (check out a quick 10 minute workout you can do at home)
5. You need downtime.
I know you have stuff to do. I know you want to be a productivity superhero, but the fact is that you need breaks. It actually helps when working on a big project to take some time to do mindless tasks (insert dishes and laundry here) because your brain has time to try to problem solve. I swear the best ideas I have come in the shower or when I’m driving.
6. Separate work-work time and working on home stuff time.
It’s so tempting to notice that pile of laundry or dishes and want to do all the home things before you start on your “real work,” but if you’re honest with yourself…that may mean you don’t sit down to your laptop until the afternoon. It’s also easy to get overwhelmed when you combine your home tasks with your work tasks. What I attempt to do is to use my 10 minute breaks as a quick home chore time.
7. Change things up.
Sometimes it helps to get out of the house. This can help clear your head and allow for creativity to flow. My rule of thumb is that I need to get out of my apartment at least once a day. I’ve even been trying to move my workplace to a different location one day each week. This has resulted in a lot of iced chai lattes. I may be addicted.
[Tweet “7 tips for getting ish done while working from home! #productivity #blogging”]
Believe it or not, I actually have more to go along with this, but the post was getting uber long again…so more next week! Update: Check out part two here!
If You Liked This Post, You might also enjoy:
What I Like and Dislike About Working From Home
My Favorite Productivity Tools
Get Shit Done Even If You’re Totally Unmotivated via The Nectar Collective
Inspiration from Diary of a Semi-Health Nut Lately:
Spicy Lime Homemade Baked Tortilla Chips
Benefits of Compression Socks [Did You Know #17]
Cocoa Mocha Cashew Butter + Confessions of a Food Blogger
Inspiration from Last Week’s Link-Up:
Summer Thyme Blueberry Lemonade via The Domestic Lifestylist
This sounds so yummy and refreshing!
Easy Blueberry Jam via a Sprinkle of This and That
I’ve never made jam before…but I kind of want to try!
Most Clicked on Link from Last Week’s Link-Up:
Tell me…Do you work from home? Do you have any tips to add to this?
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Great tips! I work from home on occasion and I try to follow most of these rules. It’s harder to get up and move every hour when I’m at the office, because that’d end up being an 80 minute break by the end of the day, but I do usually work out or go for a walk during my lunch break!
Yeah 10 minutes is a long break once an hour, but even standing up and stretching for a minute can help! 🙂
Thanks for sharing your tips! I usually work from home one day per week and I am so easily distracted. Will be trying to implement some of yoru tips soon!
I really hope they help, Steph!
I love your tips! Found you through the Weekend Snapshot! Will have to try these for my next work from home day!
Hey I’m so glad you enjoyed this! Love Erin’s blog and link-up! 🙂
I used to work from home, and I tell you what, there were some days I was the most productive person ever, and days when I was useless. I think having some sort of structure is critical–like having a schedule and a rhyme and reason to the day.
And a padlock on your kitchen cabinets and fridge.
I feel the exact same way about all of these things! Sometimes I find myself wandering to the kitchen if I just need a break haha. Slightly dangerous!
I’m so glad we were able to meet up!! When I first lived in Minneapolis it was very hard to figure out how to find good places and get there without massive headaches, of course the more you explore the more you learn, but those first couple years are so frustrating!
Theres just SO MANY places to explore! I’m so happy we got to hang out before I leave! <3
Great tips – especially about getting up to move a bit. There is a certain “guilt” that takes over with working at home and you feel like you have to do everything. Not so!
So true! But it’s not like you can do dishes and send e-mails at the same time, right? 🙂
Love this! The distractions are REAL. Especially when you factor in a boyfriend and a kitty, it’s like I never cross anything off the list some days! <3 I need to pick a couple coffee shops downtown that are productive for me and escape there more often 🙂
Have you liked working from home more? Or do you prefer more structure?
Great post, and I am really digging on your blog! I've checked it out a few times now, and your content is awesome.
So happy this was helpful, Torie!
I definitely have mixed feelings about working from home…I would like to be able to do it fulltime, but I think it’s good for me to work outside the home part of the week too…so I get out and talk to people face to face! 😉
This is awesome, and guess what? I just signed up for Toggl Timer and the clock is ticking. Thanks for the tips. I am excited!!! Take care, friend. : ) Oh, and I finally updated my grocery list in Wunderlist so I wouldn’t forget anything. : ) LEGIT helpful post. THANKS!
ahh so glad this was helpful!! Toggl and Wunderlist are my absolute favorites. Both are on the first screen on my phone AND in my browser when I’m working. 🙂