| This is what works for me. 1. Start the day with a plan (15 to 30 min) 2. List things that, absolutely, need to be completed 3. List things that would be great if can be completed (bonus) 4. Have a set time when you are going to finish work. For me, 6pm. So when 3 or 4pm hits and I still have 1 or 2 things from my list #2 above, I get on it right away. That also helps me to stay on track whenever I am in meeting or unexpected phone call etc. Excuse myself or end the call quick so that I can get back on track. It sounds very simple but it has helped me feel accomplished when I end my day at 6pm. Feeling accomplished for the day is very important for me. I usually hit the gym at 7pm and if I don't feel accomplished, I end up having a sucky gym time. A good gym time, run or outdoor activity, helps to set the tone for the rest of the night. If I am working on a side project, I usually start working again around 10am and stay up until 12 or 1am latest. Rinse repeat until Friday. So MY short answer to "How do you decide when you've done enough work for the day?" = When you feel "accomplished" for the day :) |
This year I started a business which means I work full time from home (or a nearby coffee shop), because my co-founder is in a different city and timezone.
While I've worked part-time remote and on distributed teams before, the lack of structure from being your own boss has been a huge change. A blessing and a curse to be sure.
When I start the day without a plan, even if I "get lots of things done", I feel stressed all day and am almost certainly not effective.