Feeling Unproductive? Maybe it is Because You Work from Home.

As soon as COVID-19 hit, many companies and organizations in Nigeria had to adjust their operations. As was commonly said at the time, the world as we knew was about to change! To prevent the spread of the COVID-19 virus, many companies in Nigeria had to fully adopt the “work from home” model which was not popular before the pandemic hit Nigeria.

As the country is gradually easing the lockdown, some companies have resumed physically, while others operate partly physically and partly remotely. However, this shift has affected many workers in terms of productivity in ways they may not even be aware of. Although most people feel more comfortable working from home, gradually, they too start to feel tired and somewhat drained.

One of the challenges of working from home in a country like Nigeria is that most employers expect you to be available almost 24/7 because you are “at home”.

Being new to the fully remote style of working, it was no surprise to hear workers complaining about employers texting them as early as 7am and as late as 10pm on work-related matters. One thing some employers in this category fail to understand is that being at home means having to be physically available for your family/dependents most of the time. They also are not conscious of the need to rest and unwind after a hard day’s work.

Another challenge of working from home is that there is room for distractions. Making food, running quick errands for parents during the day (because they want a slice of your time at home too), assisting younger ones with assignments, social media updates and so on. There are some simple ways to tackle distractions — by being more conscious of these distractions, creating boundaries, making a schedule to incorporate these tasks and so on.

Working from home may sometimes put you in a lazy mental space that doesn’t fuel productivity if you have not put systems in place to make your home environment work-friendly. This particularly happens to me. Imagine working on your desk right in front of your bed, then it rains and you decide to have hot milo with lots of milk, or you have a heavy breakfast (hahahaha) that’s a recipe for sleep!

Professionals who work from home often have designated work spaces in the home or home offices which most young professionals in Nigeria may not be able to afford.

Another challenge we must not forget too is the epileptic power supply in Nigeria, and the cost of providing unlimited internet at home to work without technical issues. Ordinarily most offices take care of these costs, however working from home puts the burden on the professional to provide these facilities. Young professionals may end up spending a substantial part of their salaries on internet supply alone!

If any of these paragraphs illustrate what you are currently going through, I know how you feel, I personally was in this space, until I got a co-working space where I now rotate with working from home. I will in another article share my experience working at a co-working space in lagos, vis-à-vis working from home. However, I must confess that I cross off 80–85% of my tasks everyday which is a high level of productivity for me.

Here are a few suggestions for you, moving forward:

1. Get an affordable co-working space. This was what I did, and I rotate it with working from home. It has helped to greatly improve my productivity because most of the issues I faced earlier revolved around power and unlimited internet issues. You can get a co-working space in Lagos for as low as N1000 a day and 13,000 a month, see some here.

2. Follow your daily schedule strictly. Create daily tasks on your phone with apps like Microsoft To Do, Google Tasks, TickTick etc , and create some sort of routine for yourself. This way you are not so distracted. At least have a to-do list for each day and be sure to complete your important work tasks.

3. Create an environment at home that can pump you up for work. This could be by listening to music that makes you feel energized — piano music, rock music, country music, gospel music etc. Also, if possible, avoid working anywhere close to your bed or even on your bed. Get a worktable and chair somewhere in your living room ideally or an empty room at home. You can also work from your study if you have one.

4. Create boundaries. This might be slightly hard in a familial society like ours in Nigeria if your family is not so understanding. I tried doing this too before I got my co-working space. Being at home with 2 younger brothers and a grandma meant having to create boundaries when I’m working, and I also had to balance this with being present to help them out from time to time.

“Lauretta bring me this”, “Sis I need your help with that” were often part of my day to day. If this is you too, find that balance between being present for your family and making them understand the need for boundaries when you are working.

I sincerely hope you find this article helpful!

Cheers to better version of yourself.