Some love it, enjoying the freedom of casual (or minimal) clothing and the total commute of a few metres. Others hate it, missing the social interactions, having to pay for their own electricity or the anxiety of whether they’ve done enough to convince their manager they’ve actually worked. Either way more companies are moving towards a flexible working arrangement thanks in part to the digital revolution.
Here are 10 tips on how to master working from home.
- Stick to your normal routine/hours as much as possible – this helps with your sleep cycle and sense of normality. Bonus – no early morning game of sardines and finding out the hard way whether someone had washed recently.
- Make sure you have everything – Ahead of setting up to work from home, visualize what you need, don’t be that person with no charger and 2 hours of battery life left
- Set a timer to schedule regular breaks – It’s normal to find your productivity waning, set an alarm for every 90 mins or so to remind yourself to take a break away from your screen
- De-clutter your working environment – try and keep a dedicated working space where possible and put aside that Rubik’s cube to ensure you can maintain concentration
- Check your background – Webcam working? Check. Well groomed and dressed? Check. NSFW imagery in the background? Best remove it or you’ll become an office celebrity. Also mute yourself when not speaking, your 120wpm typing speed won’t be appreciated here
- Exercise during your lunchbreak – you still get a lunch break even if you work from home, get some fresh air to increase your total step count of 20 so far
- Check in with colleagues – phone (or video if you’re presentable) colleagues for a catch up, especially if you’re stuck on something. Reducing email traffic and giving you another voice that’s not Siri or Alexa
- Keep hydrated and snack – It’s important to keep your brain ticking along with regular hydration and the occasional snack (please observe self-control)
- Put your working hours in your email signature – colleagues/clients will then know when you can be contacted and when meetings can be arranged
- Off means off – It’s easy to get carried away, remember to switch off and not get tempted to reply to one more email, log off, pack up and relax
Whether you enjoy it or not, take it as a different experience and master working remotely. Keep a routine and break up your day. Who knows? You may soon find doing laundry a treat.
By: Matthew Lin
