This website is supported by its readers. If you click one of my links I may earn a commission. I am also a participant in the Amazon affiliates programme and I will also earn a commission from qualified purchases.
Anyone who has worked remotely, or from a home office for any significant period of time knows that usually the work day doesn’t end at 5. There have been plenty of occasions when I’ve worked well into the night, especially when on a deadline or a side hustle and so staying up and keeping focused can definitely be a challenge.
So what are some tricks to staying awake from your home office? Luckily I’ve compiled a list that helps me and should do the same for you, keep reading to find out more!
(Just a heads up a lot of people reading my blog are in the process of designing their own home office. If you want to save some of the painstaking time I did in designing my office, you can find my non-chair recommended products here)
Drink coffee
I know, I know, this is probably the most obvious answer to staying awake when working from home however there is a good reason that 64% of Americans drink coffee – it works!
Coffee and other energy drinks contain caffeine which raise your heartrate and can keep you awake well into the early hours of the morning.
Just make sure that you don’t rely too much on coffee. Drinking too much can lead to a tolerance of it meaning you will have to drink more to have the same effect.
Caffeine also has some pretty severe withdrawals if you quit and can also lead to digestive issues especially if you have things like lactose intolerance.
Keep your diary full
One of the best ways I’ve found to stay away when working from my home office is to just keep myself busy.
Have you ever got into the flow state when three or four hours fly by because you have a lot of your to do list?
Schedule your day so you are back to back and I guarantee you will adjust to ensure that you stay awake and stay productive to get your tasks done
Get a full night’s sleep
Let’s face it, very few of us get the full 8 hours sleep that is required from us to fully recover and get ourselves ready for the day ahead.
One of the most obvious reasons why you’re having trouble staying awake in your home office is because you’re not getting enough sleep.
There are a few quick things that you can do however to ensure you flip this around:
- Limit the amount of screen time and hour before bed Read a book
- Invest in a sleep monitoring app to track how you currently sleep
- Consider blackout blinds to help reduce the amount of light coming into your bedroom
- Go to sleep at a set time every day
Doing all of these should make you feel less groggy and help you stay awake when working from home.
Use the pomodoro technique
Any long term readers of this blog know exactly how much I love this work style.
The general idea is that you work in 25 minute bursts with a 5 minute break, repeat three times and then take a 30 minute break.
Doing this helps break up tasks into more manageable timescales and you can focus for longer periods of time.
Studies show that it is more effective to work with shorter breaks the longer breaks in order to sustain productivity as the day goes on.
So why is this beneficial if you want to stay more awake when you work from your home office?
Think about the amount of energy your brain uses to focus on task work, it takes a lot out of it, and so it’s natural response is going to want you to rest.
By taking regular breaks your going to allow yourself to get the breaks in that you need whilst still remaining productive.
Eat the frog
Some of you might have already come across this term first devised by Brian Tracey from his best selling book Eat That Frog.
It’s something I aim to do especially on days when I know I’ve got a lot on.
The concept basically refers to doing the biggest most difficult task first, saving menial tasks for later on in the day. We only have a certain amount of willpower every day with each decision you make eating away at this.
This is super beneficial for staying awake from your home office because even if you do need to go for a quick nap,you can ensure that it will only be when the most important task for the day will be completed, meaning you won’t be losing anything by way of productivity loss.
Use screen protection
One of the most common reasons why you are tired when you work remotely is because usually, you sit in front of a screen for 12+ hours a day staring at a screen.
This is something you can instantly change.
Firstly you can run the brightness down on your screen or increase your text size when writing. Most PC’s nowadays are user friends for people with any hearing or visual issues and so definitely look into them.
I would also consider investing in a larger monitor, so you are not staring at a tiny screen all day. My recommendation would have to be the Samsung FHD Curved monitor which you can read up more about here.
There are also a couple of other investments you might want to make such as glare reducing eye glasses or screen protectors, both of which you can find out more about on my eye protection page here.
Listen to background music
Have you ever had to drive back home on a highway late at night?
You were probably exhausted from travelling all day but notice when you’re listening to your questionable song choices on the radio how does it keep you awake?
The same goes for staying awake in a home office. Listening to much is a surefire way to keep you engaged and keep you awake when working from home.
Personally I like to listen to binaural beats but movie soundtrack editions which keeps me focused (you can see the video below to check out one of my faves)
Now in order to not disturb anyone else and help you focus even more noise cancelling headphones can go a long way. My choice would have to be the Sony WH1000XM3 which are second to none when it comes to reducing outside noises whilst keeping you focused.You can find out more about them here.
Get dressed for the day
One of the easiest things you can do when working from home to avoid staying tired is just by getting dressed in the morning.
Doing this will subconsciously put your body in the mindset that it is time to wake up and well, do work.
I would even go so far as wearing something uncomfortable like a suite or a formal shirt and trousers to really help you stay awake.
Get out and exercise
Your body will look for the easiest way to do less.
If your body doesn’t have to burn calories it wont, and if your body wants to just sleep all day then it will.
The best thing you can do to avoid this is simply by getting out and doing a bit of exercise every day.
I like to do this on my lunch break as it usually gives me the boost I need to avoid any feelings of sleepiness for the afternoon slog of work.
Sort out your diet
Similar to the point above, diet and exercise go hand in hand.
If you’re eating nothing but junk food every day, your in for a world of hurt as the afternoon carb sleep kicks in.
I personally try to keep my biggest meal for the end of the day. For lunch I usually whip up a protein source with a lot of veggies.
Whilst eating veggies aren’t my favorite thing in the world they do help regulate blood sugar levels and avoid that feeling of tiredness when working from home.
Expose yourself to sunlight
Sunlight naturally triggers our bodies’ way of knowing to stay awake.
It’s one of the reasons why in some nordic countries insomnia is a real thing.
If you do find yourself feeling sleepy, go to your nearest window and take a few minutes looking outside.
You will be a lot more fresh when you come back to work and should knock off the feelings of tiredness as the day goes on.
Buy comfortable furniture
Furniture is one of those things that you don’t realise the difference good items make until you have them.
So why is furniture good for avoiding any feelings of sleepiness.
Well if your desk space is too small or char is too uncomfortable it can leave you feeling frustrated which, subsciously can lead to you feeling tired during the work space.
So what are my recommendations for great items you can invest in? Luckily for you I’ve listened some of my favourites below, feel free to read up more about them by clicking on the links:
Start a side hustle
Now this is one you might not want to admit to yourself but it’s the truth.
Part of the reason you might feel tired when working remotely or struggling to stay awake from your home office is because you’re just not passionate about what it is you do.
I was in a slump myself a few years ago and one of the easiest ways in which I got around this was actually by starting this blog as well as a host of other side incomes.
Not only can setting up a side hustle be a great way to focus your mind and earn a bit of extra pizza money per month. It can help keep you motivated in your day job too.
My recommendation has to be Project 24 by Income School which talks all about how to make a full time income within the space of 24 months. You can find out more about them here.
Invest in lighting
Typical office lighting can really take it out of you, especially staring at blue light all day.
This can definitely be amplified at home with a lot of us still using normal bulbs in our home offices.
I like to set the mood with things like LED strip lights to give my home office character. You can also filter these to pulsate which can keep you awake well into the early hours of the morning if need be.
All my recommendations for lighting including the LED strip lights can be found here, in which I go into just why they are some of my favourites.
Track your progress
Another fantastic way to stay awake when you work remotely is by tracking how you feel.
Whilst journaling might seem a little new age-y at first ( trust me I felt the same) it can definitely help you sport patterns on why you feel so tired.
For myself I know on the Sunday I went out and got back home agent 9 I definitely felt a massive increase in feeling tired the Monday after.
Tracking how you slept and how busy you were everyday can be a fantastic way of not only avoiding feeling tired but also improving other areas of your life.
Drink more water
Again, similar to drinking coffee and caffeine this might be an obvious one, but your body can sometimes feel sleepy at work because you’re not drinking enough. I know ever since I started working from home I don’t make anywhere near as much of an effort in investing in drinking water as compared to I did before.
A good way around this is to invest in a smart water bottle like this one ( link will take you to Amazon) which reminds you exactly how much water you’ve drank during the day and how much you have left.
You don’t need me to tell you the benefits of drinking water instead, feel free to check out this blog post I wrote on the topic talking all about how to drink more when you work remotely.
See a doctor
If you’re anything like me you try to figure out your own problems asap however there comes a point when you might need to seek professional help.
So if you’ve done all of the above and are still struggling to get a decent night’s sleep it might be worth seeing a doctor.
You might have a severe case of insomnia or other issues which are physically preventing you from sleeping. They might be able to refer you to a specialist or diagnose then and there what might be preventing you from sleeping.
Why do I feel tired when working from home?
People often feel tired when working from home because their bodies are not moving as much, they do not commute to the office and so the less activity you have the less energy you have.
How can I stay awake when working from home?
So hopefully this post has covered a lot of how to help you stay awake when working from home. As I mentioned in the last points it’s important that if you are severely struggling with sleep and you’ve tried all of the above, speak to a licensed professional to discuss further about how you can improve your tiredness.
Tiredness when you work from home can have a direct impact on your productivity, so if you’re interested in learning a little more if working from home is productive check out this post I wrote on the topic here.
Getting enough sleep is one of the most important things we can do in order to help us in the long term so please do take care of yourselves!
Finally a lot of people reading my blog want to know what products I recommend for a home office/remote working. You can find out my recommendations here and learn how I make money whilst working remotely on the side here.
The content on this on this site has been written by Fehed Nicass who has over a decades worth of experience in sales and has worked remotely for the past 2 years.
