Back to blog“Eat this frog” – a few tips on being a digital nomad and stopping procrastination
Many people’s careers changed a lot after the pandemic. Since remote work is the norm for millions of individuals today, conventional workplaces may gradually lose their significance as workers opt for more mobile arrangements. To put it another way, if you have a reliable internet connection, you can get some work done just about everywhere, from the side of a pool in Thailand to the sidewalk of a café in the heart of Split. There has never been a better moment to become a digital nomad since governments all over the globe are introducing new remote working visas.
Unfortunately, there are a few roadblocks that make it difficult to get business done while traveling the world. First, let’s examine the monster that is procrastination.
Those who work remotely must overcome the temptation to procrastinate, even if it may be tempting to do so. Gaining and maintaining focus on work may be difficult for everyone. You won’t be able to avoid the occasional zap of procrastination no matter whether you work the standard 9–5, from home, or at a new office every other week.
In reality, digital nomads are bound to a strict routine, despite the seeming freedom of our lives. To keep the ball in motion, you’ll need to learn how to refocus your attention on work when you’re feeling unmotivated. If this is you, we have some tips for maintaining your sanity while taking on travel, new customers, and other life obstacles.
Have a Goal in Mind When You Wake Up
Everyone here can relate to that feeling. We’ll start the day by hitting the snooze button on our 9 o’clock alarm a few times before rousing up. This isn’t exactly the best way to begin the day. You should prioritize early activities. You may, for instance, begin getting up an extra hour or two before you really need to in order to prepare coffee and sit down to enjoy that first stimulating cup.
If you have more freedom in how you get to work than most people, it’s still a good idea to stick to a routine and get the day started the same way every day. One way to do this is to go ahead and set your alarm for an hour earlier and really get up when it goes off. The first thing you should do after waking up is have a hearty meal so that you have the stamina to go through your first shift.
Popcorn Breaks: Chunking Up Your Workday
Have you heard of “workstation popcorn?” This expression refers to the practice of allocating separate areas of your physical workplace to the completion of distinct tasks. The first step in making popcorn at your workstation is to plan out your day in advance, breaking down your tasks into manageable chunks and allocating them to different parts of your office.
One digital nomad’s experience with popcorning their office:
The First Spot
- The fresh start: You should visit a cafe (30 minutes)
- Step 1: Respond to email messages (45 minutes)
- Step 2: for instance. Call potential customers (1 hour)
- Timing: 2 hours and 15 minutes
The plan is to arrive at your destination the night before and immediately get into whatever work has to be done at that location. This not only adds venues and coworking spaces with stable WiFi connections to your schedule, but it also helps to induce productivity throughout the day.
Transform Your Traveling Office
Given your nomadic lifestyle, you won’t have many opportunities to modernize your working environment. Most of this will depend on your choice of Airbnb or hotel, but you may still bring the proper equipment.
The nature of your work should define what you buy.. Following are, nevertheless, some of the most fundamental resources that would greatly increase your output:
- A standing workstation that can be moved around and adjusted to fit your needs
- Headphones that filter out ambient noise to help you focus and concentrate.
- A place of business devoid of distractions
- Keep nourishing foods and fluids on hand to avoid fatigue caused by bad eating habits.
- A supportive chair that helps keep you from slumping into that unflattering “hunchback” position.
Is it a mystery to you how standing desks might help you avoid the health risks associated with sitting all day? Well, studies show that those who utilize standing workstations are 45% more productive due to the activity they get while working at their desks. If you’re a digital nomad, you might use some additional productivity, because a sedentary lifestyle is the enemy of productivity.
Prepare a Work-Break Schedule
“If you spend too much time thinking about a subject, you’ll never get it done,” Bruce Lee, the great martial artist, actor, and philosopher, once stated.
Using timers is the single most effective way to boost your productivity levels. Despite its apparent simplicity, using a time-tracking software significantly increases productivity since it provides a visual stimulus to employees.
By keeping track of the time you spend working and the amount of actual work you get done during that time, you can more effectively divide your time between working and resting. For the day’s duties, you may, for instance, arrange a break after every two hours of work and repeat this schedule many times.
You’ll be astounded by how much you can do when you use the time-tracking method, and the results will blow your mind. The ability to focus on one thing at a time and keep to a plan is a major benefit of this approach that eliminates the need to multitask throughout the day.
Get the Right Equipment
For a digital nomad, having the too many of applications may be limiting! No doubt you have a number of programs installed on your laptop, but having too many may be counterproductive. You should choose your applications with a specific goal in mind. Doing so will not only help you keep your work in order, but it will also help you clear your desk and your mind of unnecessary distractions.
When it comes to applications, we have a few that can really assist you with getting more done. Some examples of such programs are:
Do unexpected sounds in the areas you go distract you? This specific use case? Its primary function is to eliminate distracting sounds so that you can focus on your job in any setting.
The goal of the RescueTime app was to provide you with a concise summary of your time spent online. You could think you just spend a few minutes every week on Instagram, Facebook, or any other app, but the truth is that you can be spending up to five hours.
The Importance of Preparation
If you’re a digital nomad, it’s also a good idea to make tomorrow’s schedule and to-do list before you go to sleep. This way, you won’t have to worry about being late to the next meeting or missing out on other social opportunities. If you take the time to organize your day in advance, you’ll be able to tackle the tasks at hand and any obstacles you encounter with confidence and poise.
Mark Twain once said, “Eat a live frog first thing in the morning and nothing worse will happen to you the rest of the day.” In other words, start with most difficult things.
An easy method for organizing your “tomorrow list” is as follows:
- It’s important to keep track of everything that has to be done the next day by writing it down at the conclusion of each day.
- Read through your daily agenda before you get started.
- Create a list of things you need to do tomorrow before bed.
Give Yourself Room to Think and Do
Being a digital nomad allows you to work whenever and whenever you choose, wherever you are in the globe. You need to arrange your time so that you can accommodate both work and travel. If a digital nomad sets aside two hours each for lunch and supper, they may split their time between sightseeing and work without feeling rushed.
A Final Word
Achievements in productivity don’t happen right away. You’ll have to put in a lot of effort and adjust your routine if you want to achieve this goal. The time it takes to make these adjustments a habit is little compared to the boost in productivity you will experience.
Improving your morning routine should be your first personal objective. In the morning, give yourself a reason to get out of bed and then do something you love or that comes easily to you. Assuming you’ve already got your morning routine down, your next task should be to break up your day into manageable parts.
It will take you about a month of dedicated practice before you can begin to concentrate on each step individually and see the fruits of your labor emerge. One’s ability to travel and enjoy the benefits of a digital nomad lifestyle is directly proportional to one’s level of productivity at work.
Finally, I wish you the best of luck!
P.S. Do not eat frogs! They are very lovely animals!
