How Puno, the founder of ilovecreatives, increases productivity while working remotely

The workday as we knew it was forever changed by the global pandemic in 2020. Nearly a year and a half after it started, we’re still figuring out how to function in this new world. In a hybrid or remote work environment, unique methods are needed for effective time management, task management, and project management.

Entrepreneur Puno, is the founder of the ilovecreatives online community that features job postings, online courses, event listings, career resources, and more for creatives like graphic designers, video editors, and web designers. “I’ve been working from home since 2012, so I’m used to it,” says Puno. “But a lot of the people on my team were not, and it took them about a year to get used to working from home and being autonomous.”

Learn how Puno was able to keep her business on target during a difficult year, and get tips on how to increase productivity while working remotely. Plus, discover how Adobe Acrobat online PDF tools can help streamline your workflows.

How entrepreneurs can stay motivated

ilovecreatives came out of a simple desire to connect with other creatives, and quickly became an internationally recognized and successful business.

“I had just quit my job, and I was in LA and didn’t have any friends to have lunch with,” says Puno. “So I just started meeting a ton of people and they were all doing interesting things. And at one point, I felt like an operator trying to connect people with other people.” That’s when ilovecreatives began to take shape.

Evolve your business to satisfy a need

Puno’s business was built out of a need, and to move it forward she continually checks in on what her community needs from her. “I love learning and I love teaching. I love helping people figure out what their next step is,” says Puno. “I had no idea what ilovecreatives was supposed to be. It wasn’t until I started doing online education that I actually had a business model.”

By offering online courses that creatives could watch at their convenience and come back to repeatedly, ilovecreatives blossomed into much more than just a classifieds site.

Community is the secret ingredient

Built around the need for community that Puno felt, ilovecreatives speaks to something many fellow creatives can relate to — craving camaraderie even if your work is mostly solitary. Forging those personal connections can be a powerful motivator. “Starting ilovecreatives taught me that consistency helps a ton. Having a community helps even more,” says Puno. “Everything that I’ve ever done has been because someone asked for it. Someone’s like, ‘I want to learn how to do this really cool thing.’ Done. Got it.”

Productivity tips for small business owners

For people running small businesses, the effects of the pandemic can make it hard to keep motivation going and avoid burnout. But Puno believes it can help if you communicate more, standardize how you do things, and automate tedious tasks with different applications.

Over-document everything

When everyone’s working from separate locations, it’s crucial to overcommunicate as you work. Writing down information in a shared space can help you avoid phone calls with confused teammates. “I think one thing that people don’t realize about remote working is that you need to over-document because otherwise, it’s really hard for everybody to be on the same page,” says Puno. “Our entire team is all about making wikis.”

Create templates or use automation for time-consuming tasks

To help keep everyone in the know and speed up the workflow, Puno’s team creates templates for repetitive tasks so they take less time. You can create reusable document templates when you sign up for a free seven-day trial of Adobe Acrobat Pro DC.

Remove the blockers to get things done

One of the best productivity hacks is to prioritize. It’s easy to get overwhelmed by every potential task you could be doing, which breeds procrastination.

“I would just sit there and worry about things, and I wouldn’t actually come up with a solution,” says Puno. “But once you figure out that you’re worrying, you can actually move toward a solution and get some work done.”

Sort through mental clutter

By using task lists, you can remove stressful or burdensome thoughts from your mind. “I realized productivity is making sure you’re doing the most important things,” says Puno. Sort your to-do list into important tasks that need to be done now and things that can be done later. Focus on doing one thing at a time, instead of multitasking. Delegating tasks you can’t get to yourself can help as well.

Standardize your documents

Even when you’re no longer remote, digitally sharing and reviewing work in a standardized way will help with workflow optimization. With Acrobat, you can convert images, Microsoft Word docs, Excel spreadsheets, PowerPoint presentations, and more into PDFs that retain formatting.

Collect feedback digitally

First, add your own comments to a PDF. Then sign in to Acrobat online to collect everyone else’s feedback in a shared online file with the Send for Comments tool. Your team can add comments, text, and freehand drawings to shared PDF files. Comments show up in real time, and you’ll instantly be notified when reviewers add them. You can also add review deadlines to keep your projects on track.

Always be learning

When you want to learn how to use new productivity tools, set aside the time to research them. Any amount of time you spend educating yourself will pay off. And if you can take an online course, do it. “Try to be as resourceful as possible,” says Puno.

If you want to be more productive in today’s evolving work environment, try Acrobat online tools for free. You can speed up your document workflow and get everyone on the same page faster, giving you more time to focus on what matters most for your business.