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Tips on Discovering Your Most Productive Hours

gracemorris123 — Mon, 27 Dec 2021 11:37:43 +0000

Some hours are more productive than others. When you find yourself performing better at specific hours, it’s not just the coffee kicking in. You’re likely wired to be more focused and productive during these periods. Rearranging your schedule to match your prime work times to meaningful and challenging tasks is how you win.

Priceonomics analyzed 28 million tasks and 1.8 million projects from Redbooth and found that 11 am on a Monday in October is the most productive work hour. Additionally, a Moneypenny survey of 2000 Americans found that the week’s most productive time is 10:54 am on Monday.

However, those numbers don’t represent everyone. Your peak work time is unique to you, and finding it takes a process. This article shows you how to spot those hours and use them wisely.

Experiment

You might not know your peak hours because you haven’t used them yet. Your lunch breaks may fall in your most energetic moments. So, take your time to tinker around the clock.

Try rearranging your schedule outside your usual work hours and evaluate how you perform. This will be best suited to a flexible working environment. So, if your company doesn’t have a strict office schedule, discuss flexibility with your supervisor.

Be sure to track your productivity as you shuffle working hours.
Things are different if your work-life involves lots of irregular hours and travel. There could be forces preventing you from discovering your most productive hours. So, try to balance things out for a few days and stay on a strict schedule.

The important thing is tracking your productivity, whether you’re slowing down or rotating your work hours. That’s what makes the next tip vital.

Monitor Your Productivity

You need to track how you spend your day to know when you work better. Of course, you could monitor your time manually to find that sweet spot in your schedule. If you work from home, knowing how to track work time while working remotely will come in handy.
For instance, you can use a piece of paper. First, draw your schedule and write down what you’re doing and when. Then, document your start and finish times and note how you feel at intervals.
While the manual method works, a digital tracker can be more efficient and time-saving.

Time trackers have evolved beyond calculating billable hours and logging timesheets. Instead, the data they generate are treasure troves of productivity insights. They can be used to quantify your productivity and help you find your golden hours.

Some time tracking software applications keep tabs on the programs and websites you spend your time on. This way, they can easily separate your active hours from idle ones. You can then review your workweek or even month to find hours you spend the most time working.

You could also get insights from your employer if they use a remote employee monitoring tool. For example, most of them gather valuable data when tracking the amount of time remote employees spend on their projects.

Use a Time and Productivity Map

A time map serves as a blueprint to help guide you through your day. It gives you a snapshot of how you’ll use time blocks and get things done. It shouldn’t be confused with to-do lists and regular calendar schedules. Instead, your time map tells you what next to do even when you have free time on your hands.

Creating a time map involves color-coding your time blocks by type of event. Then, you can categorize your tasks or events by type or urgency level. This way, whenever you glance at your map for the week or month, you’ll have an idea about the number of urgent tasks or meetings on your schedule.

You can use the same color-coding technique to create a productivity map. In this case, you’ll keep different color codes for tasks you complete in time, those you finish with spare time, and when you take fewer breaks.

This way, you’ll identify periods with recurring productive colors as your peak hours.

Keep a Proper Time Log and Journal

Things won’t always add up when you track your productivity. Let’s say you find hours when you’re more focused. However, sometimes, you feel physically drained or lethargic. In this case, you can search inward to find out what’s causing the problem.

To ensure you have the tools to analyze such situations, you need a detailed log and journal of how you spend your days.

So, during the week or month you decide to track your productivity, try your best to note things. From your coffee intake to what you eat during lunch, make sure you document everything. This way, you can trace “what’s missing” when you’re low on energy or motivation.

Optimize Your Day for Productivity

Distractions can prevent you from spotting your golden hours. So, you have to get rid of them.

You can start by dealing with things that will likely get in the way of work later in the day. For example, if you expect an item to be delivered, you can get someone to pick it up.

Block websites and remove applications that could distract you. For instance, you can go offline on your social media accounts or use a website blocker. You can also mute notifications from specific apps on your phone and computer.

Keeping different work and personal devices is the secret for many. This way, you’re separating your work and personal lives and can easily focus on work. You should also create boundaries and let your friends and family know not to disturb you while at work unless it’s urgent.

Creating a dedicated office and sticking to a strict work schedule can help if you work from home. You should also avoid working from your bed, kitchen table, and living room. These areas are rife with distractions, especially if you don’t live alone.

Keep your work area organized to avoid wasting time reorganizing and looking for misplaced items.

Finally, make sure you take some time to rest as fatigue is one of the worst distractors of all.

How to Maximize Your Productive Hours

Finding your golden hours is one thing. Utilizing it the right way is another. You don’t want to waste those prime moments on distractions and less-important tasks.

According to a Stanford University study, there’s a sharp decline in productivity after 50 hours of work a week. It further reported that working beyond 55 hours would be pointless.

So, it’s better to get things done during your few productive hours than waste time working more outside them.

Dedicate your peak time to time-sensitive and vital projects. In the absence of those, use your best hours to tackle tasks that involve critical decision-making, problem-solving, and complex thought.

You can schedule unimportant and routine tasks for other hours. For example, try your best to reroute ordinary meetings and social engagements outside your peak hours.

Follow the Ultradian Performance Rhythm

Ultradian rhythms are cycles of 90 to 120 minutes that run in a typical 24-hour circadian day. According to researchers, these cycles affect our productivity and alertness.

In a typical ultradian rhythm, you’re active for 90 minutes and require 20 minutes to heal – or recover – before the next productive cycle.

So, when you identify your golden hours, try to work in 90-minute bursts and take breaks in-between.

Protect Your Productive Hours

Protecting your golden hours means keeping out distractions the best way you can and avoiding other performance-slowing activities and diets. Take note of snacks and drinks that affect your focus and avoid them. If you can’t cope in a distracting environment, leave for a more conducive one so you don’t waste your prime work time.

Conclusion

You shouldn’t stop finding your best hours. There could be other golden moments lurking around your typical workday that you’re yet to discover. So, take your time to repeat the exercises. Also, don’t forget to use your peak hours wisely. Finally, and most importantly, always know when to rest and recharge.

The Best Remote Jobs for the Travel Junkie

gracemorris123 — Mon, 27 Dec 2021 11:20:38 +0000

Are you in search of remote jobs for backpackers that are fun yet financially rewarding? What if we told you there are plenty of opportunities waiting for people like you?

According to Indeed Hiring Lab, remote job postings doubled during the COVID-19 pandemic, and it keeps rising. For many workers, the ability to travel while working is a dream come true. FlexJobs’ 2018 annual survey proves this. The study shows that 50 percent of respondents said they’d prefer remote work because they want to travel more and still afford it.

If you're yearning for the ultimate freedom to dictate your schedule and travel whenever you want, to wherever you want, you might be in luck. Below, we share the top remote jobs for backpackers that let you travel the world while getting paid.

1. Writer/Blogger

Travel blogging is a lucrative industry that allows you to write about what you love doing – traveling. As a travel blogger, you will spend a lot of time on your computer writing, editing, and researching. You’ll also read about destinations, sights, landmarks, and hotels. Aside from those, you’ll be editing photos and maintaining your blog.

The highlight of your career is that you get to explore the best of nature every opportunity you get.

If it’s a dream you wish could turn into a reality, you can start by learning how to create a travel blog.

Blogging, in general, can make you good money, especially if you pick a niche you enjoy writing about. Whether you're into birdwatching, classic cars, diving, wines, culinary arts, or real estate, you have a wide range of topics to pick from.

2. Developer

As the world shifts more and more to the digital age, the demand for developers is ever-increasing. The good thing about being a developer is that most of the positions are available as remote jobs.

On top of that, the software developer world is vast and highly lucrative. It even gets better. The employment rate of software developers is projected to grow by 22 percent from 2020 to 2030. That’s a much faster rate compared to other occupations.

Developers are the brains behind many software applications, and regardless of the type of developer you refer yourself to, developer jobs will always be in high demand. This is because of the rapid digital transformation happening across many organizations and industries.

To become a remote developer, you’ll need to learn the necessary skills. You can do so via:

Self-guided online courses, like Udacity and Codecademy
Flexible online mentor-led boot camps, such as Skillcrush’s Web Programming Bootcamp and Thinkful’s Engineering Flex
Remote, Immersive Bootcamps, like Fullstack Academy Remote Immersive and Hack Reactor Remote

After honing your skills, you can start looking at job listings for developer opportunities.

3. Virtual Assistant

A virtual assistant is one of the best remote jobs that let you earn while traveling. They handle various tasks for clients who require help running their businesses.

They free up a business owner’s time, allowing them to focus on expanding the business instead of getting stuck doing small tasks.
Some common virtual assistant tasks include:

Podcast editing
Email inbox management
Social media management and scheduling
Managing appointment calendars
Editing photos
Writing content for websites
Customer support

As you can tell from the tasks above, virtual assistant jobs require exceptional time management skills. If you get assigned several tasks, a time tracker for freelancers can help you stay on top of your work schedule.

Apart from letting you manage the time you spend on each task, a time tracking tool automatically records work hours. Such data can prove useful during payment processing.

4. Data Entry

Given today’s highly data-driven economy, data entry is essential to business growth. IBM estimates show that every person generated 1.7MB of data every second in 2020. Statistics published on Statista show that data creation is projected to grow to over 180 zettabytes by 2025 up from 40 zettabytes in 2020.

From these figures, one thing is clear. Data entry will remain one of the leading digital nomad jobs for years to come.

On top of that, most organizations prefer to outsource data entry for various reasons:

They don’t want to overburden employees whose time is better spent performing other tasks.
It's not economical to hire a dedicated in-house team to handle data entry.

Add these to the fact that all you need is a computer and a good internet connection to get working. Indeed, it's such a perfect job for digital nomads.

5. Vlogging

If you're not a fan of writing, but like to tell stories, you can do well as a vlogger. After all, more than half of consumers prefer watching a video over reading text. As a video blogger, you can make money doing affiliate marketing, advertisements, sponsorships, and so much more.

To excel in this field, you need to be charismatic, as well as have good video editing and marketing skills.

6. Designer

If you're a web-based designer, a laptop is probably the only equipment you need. So, why not do it while traveling? There are tons of opportunities online, and you can start by building a network to advertise your skills.

Graphic design jobs are in demand everywhere—from helping businesses with branding to creating social media and Pinterest posts. These skills can also fall under virtual assistant job requirements.

As a digital nomad, you have the added advantage of getting inspiration from nature.

7. Digital Marketing

A career as a freelance online marketer gives you many opportunities to work in jobs related to traffic generation, affiliate marketing, SEO, and inbound marketing, to mention a few. Since a high percentage of businesses are run online, they will need a specialist to promote their brands.

That’s where digital marketers come in. If you don’t have experience in online marketing, you can find dozens of courses and materials to learn the ropes. However, it takes hard work to start earning. Now, you stand a better chance of getting high-value clients if you own a blog that showcases your talent.

8. Customer Service Rep

Nowadays, organizations are outsourcing certain jobs to dedicated remote workers, and customer support is one of them. All you need is a laptop, stable internet, call or chat software, and excellent customer service and active listening skills.

It’s the kind of job that doesn't require physical contact with customers, which makes it perfect for digital nomads. Needless to say, you can find plenty of resources online to help you develop your customer service skills, most of which are free.

To stay on top of the competition, it's advisable to undergo regular training. Doing so also allows you to acquire some valuable abilities on how to handle customer interactions.

9. Search Engine Evaluator

Ever heard of a Search Engine Evaluator? If not, it is a nifty job that involves analyzing search engine results to ensure that they are relevant for users. Part of your tasks includes performing intense research on web searches, video, and other content. You also need to provide contextual feedback on the accuracy of the results.

Search Engine Evaluators usually work as independent contractors and can make between $12 to $15 per hour. The advantage of this job is that it only requires a few hours per day, meaning you can comfortably do it while traveling.

Some trustworthy companies that offer Search Engine Evaluator jobs include Leapforce, iSoftStone, and Lionbridge.

10. Online Tutor

Working as an online teacher can be a satisfying and well-paying job that you can do from anywhere. Native English speakers are particularly highly sought after, but there are jobs for teachers of all languages.

Moreover, if you’re an expert on a particular subject, you can make money teaching others on platforms like TutorMe. The site offers more than 40 subjects revolving around studying and test preparations. Alternatively, you can create and sell online courses on sites like Teachable, Udemy, and Coursify.me.
Online tutoring is a great opportunity for college students, teachers, or professors tired of the 9-5 grind.

Final Word

Travel jobs are everywhere, and this list is just the beginning. As a digital nomad, your journey will only get better. So, don’t be surprised to land unexpected opportunities now that you're in the driver’s seat.

Keep in mind, getting gigs as a freelancer can be extremely difficult, given the sheer number of competitors out there.
What’s the secret to staying ahead of the competition? Invest in productivity tools. Not only are they valuable in helping you monitor efficiency in a work-from-home setting, but they also help you maintain a high level of professionalism.

5 Easy Ways to Build a Work-from-home Team for New Businesses

gracemorris123 — Thu, 21 May 2020 10:16:02 +0000

Even while the Covid-19 pandemic rages on, opportunities abound that favor the creation of new businesses. However, these new businesses must learn to adjust accordingly including learning expense management while transitioning to WFH to help mitigate the spread of the Corona Virus. That is why working from home has become a necessity. Existing businesses will have to restructure and create new policies to promote remote working. However, the process should be easier for those who are just starting out.
Thus, this article discusses the basic ideas that will help your business become as profitable as possible during and after the pandemic. Work-from-home teams are the way of the future.

1. Remodel the Workplace Dynamics

Communication and team management are much easier in an office setting. Face-to-face interaction allows little chance for information misinterpretation. As a leader, you can easily observe your employees and read their body language, encourage those that seem to be unmotivated, and even call an emergency meeting whenever necessary.

However, the situation is quite different for remote teams. Interaction is much trickier when it has to be done online. Your ability to read the room becomes muddled.

Therefore, you need to establish an effective paradigm to ensure that everybody on your team remains informed, motivated, and productive. Here’s how:

• Set a Schedule: In-office work requires that everyone show up at their posts at a specific time, take a break at a specific time, and go home at a specific time. This should also apply to your remote team. Since distractions abound at home, it is often easy to become unproductive if you fail to follow a strict schedule for the workday.

• Provide a Handbook: Everything that your employees need to know in order to work efficiently should be written down. Provide answers to frequently asked questions so that teammates can easily refer to the guide whenever they need to. This will let them know what is expected of them, enabling them to carry out their duties while working from home. No rule should be left unwritten. So, don’t forget to include performance metrics.

• Ensure Continuous Communication: Since workplace interactions have taken a different form, i.e. physical interaction has been replaced with phone calls, instant messaging, and emails, it is important to maintain a line of communication where colleagues can get prompt replies to settle urgent concerns.

• Set Clear Expectations: Every employee must know what’s expected of them—from deadlines to work hours, and anything related to their work. This is important in ensuring that everybody is working collectively towards achieving the company’s goals. If anyone fails to perform their duties due to a lack of effective monitoring, the company’s objectives will be forfeit.

• Be Flexible with Meeting Times: If your employees are in different time zones, you have to consider every person on the team when scheduling meetings. It is important to record what was discussed during the meeting. Doing so will ensure that those who were absent won’t be left in the dark.

2. Allow Employee Inclusion
Inclusion means giving your employees a voice. Everyone has a chance to contribute to the success of the team. When you allow your team to bring their ideas to the table, the company’s performance not only improves markedly, but the individual’s confidence and innovativeness also improve.

Employ the Essential Remote-Working Tools:

Virtual communication and collaboration tools are requisites for running a work-from-home business. Some are available in free and premium versions and can function on both desktop and mobile devices. When making a choice, go for those that provide multiple features, adequate security, and can accommodate the size of your team.

Here are some of the basic tools:

Instant Messaging

Chat apps help your team stay connected. There are many that are quite popular among small and medium businesses. Take Slack as an example. Different teams can create their own channels and discuss projects. It also enables file sharing and video conferencing.

Video Conferencing

Although there are many instant messaging apps that have a video call feature, you may want to adopt an app that is built specifically for the purpose. Zoom Meetings is a good example.

File Management

File sharing tools, such as Google Drive and DropBox, are essential.

3. Track Employee Productivity

During the workday, how do you make sure your teammates follow their work schedule? How do you ensure that they are not overwhelmed by too many distractions or just taking too much downtime when they are supposed to be busy?

Monitoring employee productivity is essential if your business is to survive. Luckily, there are apps, such as Traqq, that can help you set a schedule for your employees, assign projects and observe progress, identify the least productive and most productive members of your team, and even allow you to take automated desktop screenshots in the background so that you can supervise what each person is working on. Time tracking apps help put the workday in focus, thus, ensuring that employees are putting maximum effort during work hours and taking a break at the appropriate time.

4. Prioritize Social Interaction
Although the team won’t be meeting face to face, you still need to find a way to maintain a good level of social interaction. It helps to boost morale, keep performance levels high, and promote camaraderie. Regular video calls on Zoom will be a good way to go. You get to see each other’s faces and engage in salon chatter.

Furthermore, each person on the team should be encouraged to get out of the house once in a while and breathe some fresh air, especially those that live alone.

Working from home is not always a tray of cakes. Even the most introverted among us can get lonely and claustrophobic after spending too much time indoors. It might be all alright for those that have a family since they have someone to interact with. But for those that don’t get too many visits from friends or neighbors due to the Covid-19 pandemic, it is very important to go for a walk once in a while. We would have suggested making a lunch or dinner date but we suppose that is out of the question now due to the situation. Safety comes first.

Bottom Line

Remote work can be very rewarding for your business as long as you recognize the pros and cons. Not only does it allow you to recruit talent from all around the world, but it also helps in cutting down costs.
Building a remote team requires finding ways to promote interaction and effective collaboration. You can always adjust if you notice that the tools or techniques you’ve adopted for managing your team are not yielding the best results.

Communication is important. Ask questions. Recognize challenges that affect both the team and the individual. Not even one person should be left behind. The profitability of your business depends on each and every person performing their duties as efficiently as possible. To quote a cliché, ‘You are only as strong as your weakest link.’