Well, right up until the moment your husband started jumping and dancing around the room to TikTok, and your neighbor, whom you assume is at home, just as you are.. calls you to inform you that they are chilling. You would think at this point ‘Yeah, right mate – not everyone is as lucky as you are’.
Lots of people fantasise about working from the comfort of their homes. But it is a double-edged sword — sure, you get to stay at home, but it can be harder to focus on actually working; whether it’s a pile of laundry that suddenly looks more appealing than your boss’ to-do list, or the whole seasons of F.R.I.E.N.D.S and Money Heist you’ve been dying to watch; being productive at home can take a little extra effort.
Take it one step at a time: My suggestion is to get up straight away, do some yoga or meditation, have a warm shower, a healthy breakfast, and get dressed (no spiderman outfit) rather than being in pyjamas. This will give you a routine where change is happening and you are influencing the changes around you.
1. Let’s start with the location.
Find a dedicated and comfortable spot to work — this means no couch, and definitely not the side of the bed. Always start your day with a positive mindset and stick to the office space – cut off from the rest of the house.
2. Set a clear working schedule.
Start your workday between 9:00 a.m. and 10:00 a.m and know when to clock out. Always have a to-do list – block specific chunks of time for your tasks, this allows you to be more focused and to minimise interruptions.
To complete your day, set your time to finish work and stick to it as you have defined in the structure of your working schedule. Any tasks pending can be added to your to-do list for the next day. Once done, move into a different area of your house and disconnect from thoughts about work.
Shifting from a chair to a comfy sofa.
3. Have a plan and think about communicating more with your teammates.
Set up a daily scrum call with your colleagues. Talk about your workload as well as have chatty time with them. Keep the team bonding – for example, do a virtual coffee time with them or play some heads up on the House Party app.
Using video is great to see your colleagues’ expressions and allows you to connect and communicate with them more effectively. There are occasionally issues with bandwidth when everyone around is on the internet or need to share something. What do we do then? Without visuals we need to rely on our voices and listening power to convey and understand messages, we can facilitate this through the tone and variation of the pitch and the pace of our voice. We can vary our voices depending on the conversation. It keeps things interesting for everyone and will increase engagement to keep things going.
4. The important one – take breaks.
Take a minimum of 2 short breaks for a quick reset. Coffee lovers can grab a cup of their favourite drink, but in my case – I cannot get enough of a cup of ‘chai’. Leave your “office location”, get some fresh air – this will provide a mental retune so that you can be more productive upon returning to work.
Have a real lunchtime, in my case, I set up a lunch date with my husband so that we can talk about our work and motivate each other. However, most of the time, we end up talking about what to have for dinner.
Take a break to stretch, move, re-energize your posture before getting back to work.
5. Always stay positive
Be grateful you’re working from home! That gratitude will motivate you to work harder.
Believe in the power that clothes have to impact your mood. Simple, but it’s effective. Having fresh flowers on your desk also has a really positive effect.
Working from home can have some benefits as well as its drawbacks – But without the proper checks and balances in place, it can just as easily lead to feelings of isolation and a serious lack of motivation.
We hope these little tips from our Digital Marketing Executive can be helpful to you.
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In the meantime – #stayhome #staysafe #staypositive