How do you stay on task?
Interview with Andrew, a freelance writer who works remotely
One of my favorite productivity methods is the Pomodoro Technique. It’s a nifty trick where you divide your work time into intervals of productivity followed by a break. Most people like to divide their work into 25 minutes, then a 5 minute break, but I find that my focus gets too interrupted by just 25 minutes.
Instead I work for about an hour uninterrupted, then I take a break, usually for 15 minutes. This method usually gets a significant productivity out of me, in terms of words per hour, I usually am able to slam out 3,000 words in an hour if I’m going at that pace.
Putting the phone out of reach is another important trick. I use my timer, but when the timer is running I don’t touch the phone. I put it to the side where I can slightly see the clock running, that way I know how much time I have left to hit my target goal. It’s easy to just spend your day messing around on your phone, especially since you don’t have a boss to yell at you about wasting your time. Sometimes, when I’m working a job that doesn’t require a large output of words written, I’ll actually just put the phone somewhere else. Out of sight, out of mind.
My biggest method of staying productive involves working almost as soon as I wake up in the morning.
I find that my creative energies wane as the day (or night) go on, so the earlier I can get going, the more productive I am. Even if it’s just for an hour or two, I find that working right after I wake up will increase my productivity by a high margin. If I wait until later in the day, after I’ve expended a lot of energy on other things, I tend to be sluggish and not nearly as focused.
Andrew became a full-time freelance writer after experimenting with freelance marketplaces. After the first month, he was already earning more than his full-time job.
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Interview with Pilar, director of Virtual Not Distant
I have been freelancing all my life, I am incredibly organized and self-motivated, and I love my work, I don't have anything magical that I do.
Hear about Pilar's flexible approach to managing Virtual Not Distant and the career-changing advice she received from a friend.
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Interview with Sarah Archer, a content marketing manager & remote work techie
I create weekly goals at the beginning of the week and circulate them with the team. That keeps me accountable for what I need to accomplish on a weekly basis.
Then, I personally break down what I’m going to tackle each day.
Once I’m in the right mindset, I set goals on a daily basis so I don’t feel overwhelmed by the amount of tasks I need to complete by the end of the week.
From noise-canceling headphones to Basecamp—content marketer Sarah shares her must-have remote work tools & essential productivity tips.
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Interview with Tara, a remote director of research and administration
I am very routine-oriented (ask my husband!). Lists are also very helpful—I love checking things off.
And I do try to complete the most dreaded task first, to get it out of the way.
A move to be closer to a spouse's job led Tara to remote work—see her tips for staying productive and organized as a full-time remote director.
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Interview with Emma, a freelance marketing consultant
By regularly checking that to-do list! Each time I finish a task, I’ll cross it off the list with great satisfaction and then move on to the next thing.
And if I find one particular task is taking longer than expected, I’ll break it down into sub-tasks that mean I can cross off more things!
Emma is thriving as a freelance marketing consultant—see her tips on managing client demands & making yourself marketable as a freelancer.
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Interview with Audrey, a military wife thriving as a marketing manager
I’m a very structured person, and I thrive on routines, so work blocks are my BFF. I love looking at my day and designating specific chunks of time to certain things.
Here’s an inside look at how I typically set up my day with work blocks:
This can vary if I have meetings, but generally, the rule is that I do my creative work in the mornings, and save my less-creative work or my more administrative tasks for the afternoon when I’m feeling less invigorated:
8 am
- Organizing and prioritizing tasks
- Answering emails and Slack messages
- Making a to-do list of everything I want to accomplish for the day
- Prioritizing the list
8:30 am - 11 am: Creative work
- Writing projects (blogs, articles, etc.)
- Planning work (webinars, FB live events, and any creative brainstorming that needs to be done)
11:30 am: Break and lunch
12pm: Catch-up
- Email check
- Scheduling meetings
- Sending follow-ups, inquires, etc.
- Checking in with team members on project statuses, etc.
1 pm - 3:30 pm: Work block for less-creative tasks
- Accomplishing all other tasks on the to-do list,
- Wrapping up projects of the day
- Planning for tomorrow (writing meeting agendas etc.)
Marrying an active-duty army officer sent Audrey on the search for a remote work position—see how she has established her career while staying on the move.
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Interview with Danielle, an author who found the benefits of coworking
Creating a to-do list in Trello. It's the ONLY way I can prioritize and stay on task. Also, Spotify! Depending on the task, if I need concentration, I will listen to music, and if I need further concentration, I will listen to the white noise playlists they have. It really helps tune everything out.
If not Spotify, I will take the distraction as a sign that I need to take a break and will take a 15-minute walk or something to clear my head and re-focus.
Danielle's remote work journey led her to become an author—see how coworking with other remote workers and digital tools have helped her to fulfill her passion.
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Interview with Tammy, founder and CEO of Workplaceless
When I journal every morning, I write down the three most important things I have to do that day. The goal is to get those things done before doing anything else.
I also keep track of my time using a Google Sheet, and keep track of all the tasks I have to do (and my team is working on) in Asana.
Learn how this founder and CEO of a remote work resource and certification program handles the triumphs and trails of location independence.
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Interview with Vernon, a freelance technical writer
As I've mentioned before, and I don't mind repeating it, as a freelancer and remote worker lists are your best tool. When building a list, you can organize your entire work schedule for the whole project or the foreseeable future.
You can come up with contingency plans and alternatives long before they become necessary, and if they become required, you can minimize panic and worry because you'll already know what to do should anything go wrong.
Taking your lists further, you can attach deadlines to each list item, essentially turning your list into a schedule. This will help you by forcing you to manage your time and also requiring you to prioritize your tasks as there is never enough time to do everything. By implementing a schedule, you'll find that you get a lot more work done in a lot less time with a lot less stress.
Having said that, another simple tool that keeps me on track is the humble alarm clock. Not just any alarm clock mind you, but specifically the alarm clock on my phone. I label the alarms on my phone for specific purposes, be it waking up and getting out of bed or a reminder to complete some errand.
When I am working, however, I try to take frequent breaks to avoid burnout. For this, I have a Pomodoro Timer. I set it for a very short work period when I start working in the morning and extend it once my mind starts to get into the groove.
Vernon is a freelance software technical writer that uses lists to organize his hectic freelance schedule—see how he maximizes his time throughout the workday.
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Interview with Deborah, a remote entrepreneur changing perceptions about remote work
By design, I generally enjoy my work, which means that it's not too difficult to stay on task. That said, when it's one of those times that my attention span is short, rather than force myself and not be very productive, I'll go away and come back to the task when I am ready to.
I may also give myself a deadline with a reward, i.e., work on this task solidly for an hour, and then I can do something I really want to do, ahem, Netflix hehehe!
Deborah has traveled the world sharing her research about the pros of remote work. See how she is helping companies and clients understand the importance of location independence.
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