When Are You Most Productive?

Lately, I’ve been reading a lot of posts with tips about working from home. Many emphasize that you need to work when you are most productive, although how many people actually know when that is?

Are you a night owl? Do you enjoy waking up early and getting things done? These are all factors in your productivity if you are going to work from home.

I’m not a morning person. I learned that quickly when I first started college and scheduled my classes from 9 a.m. to 11. a.m. everyday. I was half-awake for the first class, and not much better for the next. So the next semester, I decided to take classes in the afternoon. This way I was able to wake up, shower and eat some breakfast — and actually BE awake for my classes. It worked out a lot better.

But, there are some drawbacks  to the flexibility. A lot of people still work “normal hours” and it may be hard on your social life if you decide to do all of your work at night (because that’s potentially other people’s free time).

As James Chartrand says in his post on Freelance Switch:

“Be prepared for your productive hours to be scattered all over the day in little bits and chunks. This isn’t just likely – it’s almost guaranteed. Very, very few people can actually work productively for a solid eight-hour block, freelancers or no. Don’t fool yourself that you’re above being human like everyone else.”

In the end, do what works best for you. Working from home definitely takes some getting used to. Many people have to experiment with their schedules until they fall into a comfortable routine.

When are you most productive? Do you have a routine when you work from home?