In response to the coronavirus outbreak, many employees are now working remotely. Sounds easy enough – but if you’ve never worked from home, staying focused and productive can be a challenge. Especially if you have a spouse or kids in the house.
The fact is, working from a home office can actually increase performance, business continuity, and even achieve greater work-life balance. Here are 5 examples to follow—whether you’re a first-timer or a seasoned remote worker:
1. Ease into It
Working from home can be a big transition. You might feel lonely, isolated, stressed, frustrated, anxious, unmotivated, or – on the other hand – relieved, energized, or productive. It’s all normal. Any transition takes time to get used to, so try to be easy on yourself.
2. Set Up a Routine
It sounds simple but decide on where you’ll be working (preferably a home office scenario vs. the kitchen counter). Regardless of space or location, establish a quiet area of your home where you’ll work, and commit to this space every day. If you were previously at your desk by 8:30 a.m. every morning, you should do the same when working from home.
Map out your day and avoid the compulsion to wander out to the kitchen or pet the dog. “To Do” lists sound like something from your 10th-grade math teacher but writing one each morning can enhance self-motivation. If you have kids, work in two-hour shifts, then take a break to be with them. Just be sure to clearly set boundaries.
3. Use a Planner
In addition to making to-do lists, get into the habit of using a calendar or planner to write down and keep track of deadlines, appointments, and meetings. This is especially important since you won’t be able to walk over to a co-worker to ask a question about a project or meeting. By organizing tasks into projects, you can successfully address them one at a time
4. Stay Focused
When working from home, many people think they can juggle things like eating, talking on the phone and typing an email all at once. But if one of your hands is holding your child’s art project you simply can’t focus properly. Stop trying to do everything at once. Being efficient means focusing on one task at a time, not multi-tasking with things you wouldn’t be doing in an office setting.
5. Get Dressed!
Many people feel that working from home means they “don’t have to get dressed for work.” But nothing could be further from the truth. Beyond psychologically getting you in the right mindset for work, getting dressed means you’ll be ready to handle any kind of video chat or check-in. You’ll be prepared to get work done, and you’ll feel mentally and physically sharper during the day.
Summing it Up
While the coronavirus outbreak has caused more employees than ever to perform their jobs from home, working remotely is here to stay. Even though working remotely offers some amount of flexibility, it’s still a professional job and needs to be treated that way. The above suggestions will help you take the steps necessary to be a successful at-home worker.
Lanmark Staffing provides over 40 years of combined human resources, recruiting, temporary placement, sales and management, and temp-to-hire services. Our team of experienced professionals will work with you to help land that next great career position.