How To Actually Work From Home/Do Online School

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Hey guys! Our world has kind of been turned upside down over the past few weeks, hasn’t it? And now, pretty much everyone is working from home and doing school from home. I’ve been homeschooled/online schooled my entire life, so I thought I’d share some of my tips for being productive and getting your work done in a different environment than you’re used to.

Get dressed and get ready for the day. Okay, so I know you’re not going anywhere and it might be easier to just stay in your pajamas all day. But the thing is, if you stay in your pajamas all day, oftentimes you’ll feel like going back to sleep all day. Get up, shower, get dressed, etc. I mean you don’t have to wear a fancy dress or something (heck, I wear sweatpants most days), but do make yourself look presentable and feel good about yourself. This will get you into a productive mood and ready to work.

Do your work at a desk. I know that this might not be a possibility for everyone, but if you can, do you work at a desk or a table of some sort, rather than in your bed. Even a small desk in your bedroom or at the kitchen counter is better than in your bed or on your bedroom rug. This is so important because if you have a set place that you “work and do school” than you will be less likely to become distracted with social media or video games.

Plan out your days. This one might seem like a huge no-brainer, but honestly, it’s super important for being productive and getting stuff done. I use OneNote to plan out 99% of my days, but there are plenty of other planning programs, such as Google Calendars or you could use a paper planner or BUJO.

Put away your phone. Speaking of becoming distracted with social media or video games or texts, put your phone away! Listen, everybody and their mothers are on social media or at least on their phones, because everybody is stuck in their house and has nothing to do. But don’t let that disrupt your productive school and work time. Put away your phone and respond to your friends later!

Get the hard stuff done first. This is a classic homework trick, but it also can really be applied to online school and working from home. When you’re doing school and work from home you can pretty much dictate your own schedule. So, get the hard stuff done first, then move to the easier things. Don’t procrastinate or mess around, just get it done and over with.

Take breaks. I know that this may seem counter-productive, but actually, it’s super important. And I don’t mean taking a break every five minutes or taking a break for longer than you work, but I do mean taking breaks to refill your water or just to stretch for a while. I usually like to set a timer for an hour to solidly work, then I take ten minutes to get up, refill my water and stretch.

Drink lots of water. For me, drinking water is 10000% essential to my productivity. Honestly, I can’t think of a disadvantage of drinking water throughout the day. (except frequent bathroom breaks XD) It’s so important to not only drink water during meals but also frequently throughout the day. A personal tip from experience: A cute water bottle sitting at your desk makes it more likely that you’ll actually drink water throughout the day. 🙂

Make time to workout. If you’re in a lazy slump, this is the perfect way to get out of it. In my state (at least for today, things do seem to change quite quickly currently 😉 ) you can still go outside to take walks/runs if you just keep your distance from other people (which really isn’t hard). And even if you don’t want to go outside, there are plenty of apps you can download to do live workout classes or do recorded ones.

Try out some new hobbies. When you’re done with school and work, I’m sure you’ll still have some time left over. Rather than just scrolling through social media, watching the news or simply being lazy, try working on some new hobbies. Start a garden, learn guitar, practice something you’ve been meaning to practice for a while. Personally, I just ordered some watercolor paints, brushes (including a water brush, which I’m super excited to try!!) and paper. So don’t be afraid to try something new. There are millions of tutorials online so it shouldn’t be hard to get started.

And there you have it! 9 tips for being productive and getting your work done remotely! 👏👏👏👏 to all of the amazing people being productive and getting their work done! It honestly isn’t a huge change for me, since my school is already online. (I just desperately miss seeing friends and going to events XD) But I can see how it would be a huge adjustment for all of you guys out there who typically go to school and work at an office.

Also, if you enjoyed this post and found it helpful, I’d love if you shared it with others on Pinterest & Instagram! Thanks, guys! 🙂

💙 Hannah

28 thoughts on “How To Actually Work From Home/Do Online School”

  3. These are awesome tips! This is my first time that my school is totally online, but it was probably easier to adjust since my school is half home/half school already. I definitely do the starting with the hardest first without even realizing it, math is so long and the toughest to get through, but it just happens to be the first in my schedule, so that’s nice! Whenever I do math last I’m just waiting forever for it to end and taking a ton of breaks, so this is a great tip. I hope you’re doing ok with the quarantine! I was really busy the past few days but they didn’t give us a whole lot of homework this weekend so the boredom is setting in again. XD Let me know when you get my letter! I sent it like four or five days ago, so it might take a while to arrive. 😉 Sorry about the long comment!

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    1. Yeah, I agree, switching school programs can be tough! Yeah, I usually will follow my schedule for the day, but if I have extra time before I start and there is something extra tough, then I’ll go ahead and do that first. Yep, we’re all good here, just staying home and not going out as much as possible. 😉 I hope you are doing well too! 😉 Okay, I’ll do that, it hasn’t arrived yet, but I’ll let you know when it does! 🙂

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  4. I loved these tips! I am in my 2nd year of being homeschooled and I am constantly getting distracted! lol I am going back to public school next year for high school, so hopefully,
    I will not get as distracted in that environment. hehe.
    Have a great weekend!

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  5. Great post, Hannah! I really like all of these tips. Drinking water AND having a snack (at about 3 o’clock in the afternoon) helps keep me going during the day. I definitely feel more confident and productive when I’m dressed + wearing makeup. 🙂

    I’ve been homeschooled all of my life, so nothing has changed in that area. 😀

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  6. These are some great tips! I started online schooling this Monday and I’ve just been working towards my school timetable. But now I’ll use your tips and do the harder stuff first! How long do you roughly work before taking a break? 😁

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    1. Yeah, I feel that would be a hard (and sudden) adjustment! Usually, I like to work for an hour or so, then I’ll get up and get some water/stretch!

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  7. Great tips, thanks for sharing! I actually don’t have any work set as we have finished our exam courses but they’re also cancelled. However, I have found myself some things to keep myself busy so am just trying to get myself into a bit of a routine now!

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    1. Having a routine is so crucial to being productive! (doing school or not 😉 ) Yeah, my exams got canceled too, so I really don’t have much work to do.

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  9. I like these tips, Hannah! I attend an online school as well, and creating a schedule for myself helps a lot. It allows me to see what is due for the week and stay organized. I’m not one who particularly enjoys taking breaks, but I’ve been making an effort to do so (mainly because I don’t want to strain my eyes since I now need glasses). 😀

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    1. Gotcha! Yeah, it can be super helpful to take breaks, even if they’re just like 5 minutes. I usually find it most helpful to actually get up, rather than to check my notifications or do something else at the computer. 😉

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