It’s March, so what would we be writing about other than the virus-who-will-not-be-named? We aren’t medical 
professionals (but we work with a lot of great ones) so we recommend checking with the CDC and WHO for your daily updates on the virus and how it will affect you and your family. One thing we can help with is advice on working from home.
Being a virtual company, this is an area we excel in (if we do say so ourselves). If your company is switching to a work-from-home model temporarily, or your kids are home from school, causing you to need to work from home, we want to offer some advice.
Here are some ways our team came up with to ensure success as you acclimate to what might be a new way of working:
Your Work Space
If possible designate a location in your home to work and set specific “Do Not Disturb” times. Let your family know that you’re still on work hours, and try and stick to this as much as possible. Use headphones to cut down on distractions if you need to. We also recommend brightening up your workspace with some good lighting.
Yourself
Get up and get dressed at your normal time, as if you were heading to the office. When you’re getting your coffee ready in the morning, grab a glass of water as well to stay hydrated.
Your Sanity
Working from home can be great, but there might be moments where you just need to talk to another human. Our teams will often jump on a Google Hangout video to troubleshoot issues or simply catch up for a few minutes. This is great for checking in on individuals. As you virtually communicate, a lot can get lost in translation, and a video chat can help make sure everyone is on the same page.
Productivity: These ideas are great for any work environment!
- Do your least favorite task/to-do FIRST thing in the morning. This does a lot for your mental energy.
- Make a list and check it twice. We use online collaboration programs, but we also love a good handwritten list. There’s nothing like checking off a list of items.
- Set times to check your email inbox so it doesn’t get in the way of productivity.
- Take mind breaks, eat, and stay hydrated. It’s easy to forget these things but getting up to walk around and do some light exercises, or grab food, will do wonders for your work day.
While this list isn’t exhaustive, we do hope it will be helpful to those who are diving into the work-from-home life!
Working From Home: Let’s Talk!
Want to know more about what we do and how we do it? Let’s talk!