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62% of us would up sticks in favour of working abroad if given half the chance, according to global employment incentives firm, Perkbox. What’s more, a third of us would happily quit our jobs and move abroad for a new role, citing factors like rising living costs, reduced confidence in the UK Government, and a desire to pursue a more nomadic lifestyle.
Remote working abroad is the dream for many of us in the post-pandemic world, with lots of people motivated by the flexible working practices we benefitted from during the times of Covid-19.
While jetting off abroad for a flash new job in one of the countries you’d most like to live in might seem appealing, however, unless you’re a highly motivated individual, you might find it difficult to remain focused on your workload at times. Even if you’re familiar with home-working, you might find it harder to stay productive on long travel days or when you’re sat admiring an exotic beach scene from your office window, as opposed to working from the comfort of your home office.
The good news is, however, that there are various steps you can take in order to maintain, or increase productivity levels when working abroad. Read on to discover some of my top tips for staying focused while working remotely in another country.
Top tips for staying focused while working remotely abroad
Invest in some room dividers or office screens
The best advice I can give you if you’re looking to improve your levels of focus while working remotely, is to invest in some room dividers or office screens.
This is especially relevant if you’ll be working remotely from your own home or a rented accommodation space, as opposed to being based in an office or another fixed location.
Office Screens enable you to divide up the space in a given room, separating yourself from family, friends or other colleagues, while creating a quiet, calm space in which for you to work, free of distractions.
Depending on your individual requirements, you could either opt for a screen that sits at the back of your desk, behind your computer monitor or laptop or, if you need to create larger areas of space within a room, you could go for standing partition screens instead. Whichever option you choose, you’ll be bound to notice the impact it has on your productivity levels.
No doubt you’ll want to keep in touch with your friends and family while working remotely away from home, but when it comes to your working hours, it’s best to stay away from social media if you want to remain productive.
Close any windows you’ve used to browse Facebook, Twitter or Pinterest on your laptop, and silence social media notifications on your phone for a few hours.
While you might find it trickier to do this if your career is centred around digital marketing, you’ll be surprised at just how many unnecessary windows you’ve probably got open at any one time. Okay, so perhaps you need access to Facebook to post some content for one of your clients, for example, but this doesn’t mean you need to have every social network under the sun open as well.
Save the socialising for after work, and you’ll probably find you’re able to enjoy deeper, more meaningful conversations with your loved ones too.
Create set working hours – plus time to unwind
If you’ve got the freedom to set your own working schedule, it can be tempting to lie in bed every morning, knowing you don’t need to get up at a set time to start work.
Before you know it, however, you’ll find yourself working late into the evening in order to stay on top of your workload and meet deadlines – believe me, I’ve been there!
Whether you have the option to work flexible hours for your employer, or perhaps you’re simply working on a freelance or self-employed basis, define your business hours and stick to them.
At the same time, however, it’s absolutely essential for you to schedule in some ‘me time’ for yourself, too. Whether you choose to wake early to fit in a gym workout, morning swim or yoga session before work, or you choose to clock off at 5pm every day and hit the beach or a local cafe or restaurant with your friends, make sure you make time for yourself; if you work around the clock without taking a break, you’ll soon find yourself feeling burnt-out and lacking motivation. Work-hard, play-hard! 🙂
These are my favourite ways to stay productive when I’m working remotely away from home, whether travelling for work, or pleasure. However, this is by no means an exhaustive list; there are many other ways to boost focus and productivity levels, wherever you’re working from. How many can you think of?
Leave a comment below to share your favourite suggestions on how to stay focused while working remotely.
This is a sponsored post.