In the beginning of social distancing and working remotely, I thought it would get easier as time progressed. But unfortunately, this was not the case. The longer I spent working from the same desk or couch day in and day out, the less motivated I became.

A lot of this can be attributed to burn out, as I am a student approaching the end of a long and particularly stressful semester. Though I think that a lot of it also has to do with the fact that I didn’t expect to be working from home for this long. So, in the beginning, it was easy to motivate myself to get to work, no matter how close I was to my bed, because I figured that I’d be back to campus (or an office) in no time. As a result, the motivation techniques I used only worked for the short term, and now I’m left with very little motivation for the long-term.

But I realized recently that as a writer, working remotely won’t be a short-term thing, there’s a very good chance I’ll be working from home for most of my career. I found myself in a sink or swim scenario, and I had to swim. Here’s how you can start swimming too:

Create a Schedule: If you’re working from home for a long period of time you need to know what to do and when to do it. This means you should have your deadlines written out somewhere so you can keep track of them all. That way, you can make daily plans of what you need to get done each day. Depending on how hectic my week is, sometimes I’ll plan out the entire week, or sometimes just a day or two in advance.
Stick to the Schedule: I know too many people who are perfectly content with putting off their work until later. But this only piles up the work down the road. It’s much easier to motivate yourself to do small bits each day than it is to do the whole project the night before.
Be Flexible with Yourself: While organization really is crucial, being kind to yourself is equally important. It’s hard to work from home, especially when you’re not used to it. It’s okay if you fall behind. Recognize that you’re doing the best you can, because the more you beat yourself up, the worse off you’ll be.
Stay Connected: One of the reasons actual workplaces are so effective is because you’re surrounded by people doing the same thing as you. If you have a spouse or roommates to work with, take advantage of that. If not, stay in touch with a co-worker or fellow student through texts or phone calls. Shared experiences are essential for personal motivation.

Like most things, you have to learn as you go along what works for you. Let me know how you motivate yourself in the comments!