ne of the most profound changes I’ve seen people have to get used to with COVID-19 is working remotely from home. There are hilarious social media threads about how “coworkers” (aka kids, spouses, and pets) are derailing productivity. I’ve had friends tell me they are not getting anything important done because it’s so hard to focus. And others have shared how they find themselves even more busy now that their desk is also their kitchen table.

The good news is that I’ve seen some really good advice floating out there about best practices for working from home. From having dedicated office space to still showering and dressing in the morning (which we have to do since we’re now constantly on Zoom), there are a lot of ways for people to make the best of a hard situation.

I’ve been working from home for nine years now and wanted to share the productivity hacks that have been game changers for my work / life integration.Here are my three favorite productivity hacks:1. Time block
Ok some of you are rolling your eyes at me right now, but this has been the single, most effective tool in my toolbox for getting shit done. Every Sunday, I sit down, look at my week, and block times for when I’m going to do everything from work out to drive to the dry cleaners to write a blog post. An easy way to do this is to look at when you have meetings and when you don’t. Schedule blocks of time during the non-meeting times when you will answer emails, work on a particular project, eat lunch, etc. I’m not 100% rigid in following my time blocked schedule, but having a plan for my days helps me flex within them to make sure I’m prioritizing the right projects and tasks.

Tip: If you’re new to time blocking, start with one day – tomorrow – and simply time block your working hours versus your friend/spouse/parent/cook/ hours.

2. Transition well.
Now that you’re working from home, you’re going to be switching between being a worker, parent, spouse and pet mom/dad a lot more often throughout the day. Every time you are switching roles, take 30 – 60 seconds, take some deep breaths, and set an intention for the new role. Ask yourself questions like, “How can I be an excellent team member in this next Zoom meeting?” or “How can I make lunch fun for my kids today?” Letting your brain and body rest for just a minute and setting a clear intention between roles will help make the transition smoother and more effective.

Tip: You can also do this between different types of work, i.e. being on a team sprint call versus writing marketing copy.

3.Get up and move.
When you’re at the office, you have to walk down the hall to go to the bathroom, climb stairs to get to your floor, leave and go to your car to eat lunch, and more. When you work at home, your “steps” are naturally going to decrease. Set a timer to get up from your desk every hour, ideally between your time blocks to stretch, do a few jumping jacks, or take a quick stroll around the block to get your blood flowing.

Tip: Studies show that exercising helps with memory, task management, coordination, and planning, so starting your day with exercise and then taking the time offline to move will help you be more efficient when you sit back down to work.Of course, productivity is in the eye of the doer, so you might find versions or tweaks to these that best suit your personality and way of getting things done. Let us know if you’ve discovered any favorite hacks since working from home!