5 Things You Can Do While Working From Home to Advance Your Career

5 Things You Can Do While Working From Home to Advance Your Career

Just about everyone in America has had their normal routine turned on end in the past few weeks. For some employees this is the first time they have worked from home. Now the co-workers they see every day are their spouse, partner and even their kids. Even with the uncertainty in the country and for many businesses there is no better time to better yourself as an employee. 

Self improvement is a great way to advance one’s career. By bettering yourself make yourself more valuable to your employer, helping to secure your current job, or better yet, help you advance your career within the company. Maybe you are thinking about changing jobs or careers, self improvement in the form of new knowledge and skills may be the stepping stone you need to head down a new path.

There are lots of things to do this such as attending regular training and seminars, getting certification exams, and taking new courses to expand your knowledge and skill set. But all those things are typically delivered in a classroom, or in-person setting.

What if we’re all asked to work from home due to some emergencies? Take for example what’s currently happening with the COVID-19 outbreak where millions of employees are asked to work remotely from home.

For some of you this is already reality. We have compiled a list of simple ways you can still improve yourself while working from home. As with many areas of our lives we need to adapt to the normal and make the most out of this new situation — even if we are working from home.

Here are some of the best ways to advance your career while working from home.

Complete an online course.

One of the best things you can do is to complete an online course. In an age where information is at our fingertips, it makes perfect sense to make efficient use of the available resources around us. Information and knowledge is everywhere, through the internet the possibilities are endless.

Why not use your time at home, to not just work and carry on with your normal job duties and tasks, but also to expand your knowledge and skills by learning something new.

There are countless online courses out there that can keep you up-to-date with the latest advancements in the construction industry. Most of these online courses are free. However, there are also some that you need to pay for.

In conversations with some contractors we have spoken with they are even encouraging their employees to take online courses and reimburse them for the cost. They see the return on their investment by bettering their employees. Even if the cost for the course is out of your own pocket, it’s actually worth it, think of it as investing in yourself and your career. Who knows, after all the dust settles from the pandemic your new knowledge and skills may help you in getting a raise. At the very least you will be better equipped to take on more responsibilities and better secure your current job.

Read a business or personal development book.

Another easy thing you can do while working from home is to read a business or personal development book. Yes, it might seem too simple, obvious, and common sense, but don’t take this lightly because this is a very effective tip to advance your career.

Why settle for boredom and unproductive tasks after getting your required job duties done while  at home, when you can still make efficient use of your time.

Reading a book for the sake of career advancement might seem boring, but you’ll eventually get the hang of it especially if you understand that what you’re doing is for the improvement of your career and may even make your standard of living better.

And it doesn’t have to be a physical book, because there are countless ebooks you can download from the internet for free. Download them into your laptop, or any device such as a tablet or a smartphone and read them when you have the spare time or in the mood to do so. In time, you’ll make this as a habit and you’ll realize that you’ve become way more productive.

Develop a good habit.

Working from home might seem daunting for some as this can suck the productivity out of you. You get out of your routine, your’re out of the office setting and there’s no boss or supervisor to check in on you regularly.

What’s more is that you don’t feel compelled to act serious, formal, or professionally because you might just be wearing your pajamas or something more casual than you would in the office. And let’s face it, your new desk is the kitchen table.  

Working at home can even be advantageous to you because you become more independent and you don’t rely on others’ presence just to keep you working at 100% efficiency.

Set a schedule for your working time, place yourself in a location where you won’t be distracted by home matters, and as much as possible, treat your home as your new office, only that this one’s better.

When you develop a good habit, then you’ll surely bring your career to greater heights.

Learn new skills.

Learn new skills so that you won’t feel stagnant in your job. Hitting a dead end with one’s career is common for employees because of the regular and continuous day-to-day manotney. You surely don’t want to end up feeling bored with your job, right?

Well, one good way to avoid stagnation and boredom is to learn a new skill. Education is a never-ending process. The most successful people are those who are lifelong learners.

Even from home learning a new skill is possible. This doesn’t have to be a monumental task, and could even be something you learn in a single afternoon. As was pointed out in some of the previous examples of things to do from home to advance your career. Taking an online course or reading a book are easy ways to better yourself. Learning something new can be as simple as finding a YouTube video and watching it a few times. 

Just like David Sandler said in the title of his book…”You can’t teach a kid to ride a bike at a seminar.” You will actually have to put your new skill into action to really make it effective.

Just because you are working from home doesn’t mean you have to be stagnant. The internet is a haven for information, the only limiting factor is your imagination.

Use this time to learn more about your job, your industry, your customers or maybe a new market you might want to tap onto. As they say knowledge is power.

Tap into new networks.

Growing your network can be as simple as making three phone calls per day. The full article can be found here: 3 Phone Calls a Day. By surrounding yourself with the right people, both physically and virtually , you can exponentially grow your powerbase. 

Social media is used by millions of people around the world, so use it to tap onto new networks or people that you can benefit from. LinkedIn is one of the best places to connect with professionals around the globe. Who knows? Your new connection might just present you with a new business opportunity?

What’s also nice with today’s technology is that you can expand your market and get the chance to get the right people into your network, knowing that there’s no more distance and time barrier. Whether you are picking up the phone and making the three calls a day, or sending three messages via social media. The most important thing to remember is, you have to work to build your network, but when you do the possibilities are endless.

Final thoughts.

With all this being said, one can clearly see how working from home can still allow you to be productive and grow your career. It’s all about self-discipline and making efficient use of one’s resources where you can advance your career to greater heights. Just remember to be consistent in what you’re doing, always remember to make the most out of your time, and be passionate about whatever you’re doing.

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