Our 5 top Coronavirus Work from Home tips to help those on COVID-19 leave.
So you’re on Coronavirus work from home leave. You’re doing your part to help stop the spread of this insidious illness.
Maybe you greeted the news with total horror – no more water cooler gossip and HUMAN contact for a few weeks. Or maybe you fist-pumped the air at the chance to ‘work’ in your PJs for a fortnight.
If this is something new for you, it’s time to master home working quickly. With over 10 years of remote working experience, we bring you our Coronavirus work from home tips for productivity and survival!
Stick to set work hours … and try the 5am club!
So now you don’t need to turn up to the office, for 9am, punch a card, or clock in. However there’s still work to be done!
Our first home working tip is to SET YOUR WORK HOURS. Make sure your colleagues and bosses know when you will be available to talk with, or be ‘online’ working.
Be clear when you will be taking breaks, having family time or napping! Working from home isn’t an excuse for bosses to have you available at crazy hours. Your personal and family time shouldn’t be invaded by this brief home working period.
Be honest with bosses and family when setting work hours. You’ll need space and peace to work well. Don’t promise to be working when the kids are getting ready for school. And there’s no point booking conference calls if little people need nap times.
Embrace the opportunity to be flexible in your working hours – if your bosses permit it. If they don’t then maybe it’s time to join the 5am club!
The 5am club, by Robin Sharma, advocates waking as early as you can to win your day. Early rising also means you can get in quality working time while the world sleeps.
If you have tasks to be done whilst the home working rule is imposed, then getting up early should be a temporary option you take. Winning your day and having peace and quiet away from family distractions to work can vastly improve your productivity. Oh, and it can keep you chilled as well!
Create a work space – don’t let work take over the house!
This is the second of our second Coronavirus work from home tips! A home working principle that I advise everyone is a total must to keep a clear and productive head.
And yet as I write I see stock boxes under our tv, and unopened orders piled by the front door… really Alexandra, take note!
- Avoid working from the sofa. It gives you a bad back and you can be tempted to watch tv while you ‘work’. I speak from experience!
- Set up a working space where you can shut the door and have peace to concentrate.
- Avoid setting up your temporary office in any bedroom or quiet space in your home. These places are designed for you to go into and switch off so never ruin this by bringing in your work tools.
- Find a sensible chair and sit at the table, if you feel like you are ‘at work’ you are more likely to perform.
It’s so important to keep work and home life separate. Otherwise you just never fully switch off from one or the other!
Get dressed to ‘show up’ for work!
Working from home in your PJs can seem like the most fun idea. But take it from me, it’s not the best way to get into a productive mindset!
How we dress can have a huge affect on how we think and behave. Think of it this way – PJs are for slobbing about in and sleeping. It’s hard enough when working from home to get into your normal work groove, so being in sleepwear is an unnecessary extra roadblock.
Get up, get washed, and prepare like you would any day for work. Break out of the loungewear. Instead, think of it as dressing up to stay in.
Staying in PJs can lead to all manner of unhealthy practices like trying to work with one eye on the TV. And unscheduled napping! Trust me no meaningful work is ever done from a sofa.
My clothes from www.glamrocksboutique.co.uk are some of my favourites, and allow me to be comfy but still in a work frame of mind.
If you insist on being a PJ worker then at least change into clean ones, or your poshest PJs. For a bit of luxury and for long distance travels my go to PJs are ones from https://nightire.com/.
Turn off notifications = turn off distractions!
Staying on task when you are at home can be the most tricky issue.
The TV is available, there are chances to make unlimited brews and fridge trips, and even just gazing or people watching from your window becomes more fun.
So to stay on track with work tasks it’s essential we eliminate all the distracting dings and buzzes, to protect workflow and avoid upsetting concentration and productivity.
Since I turned off notifications on my phone and Mac I’ve found I concentrate for longer, and scroll social media far less!
Make time to answer emails. Personally, I set a timer on my phone to check twice a day, again this is to eliminate distractions. I give myself 30 mins in the morning and 15 mins in late afternoon to answer my emails and wade through my inbox. This is because I don’t want notifications of emails springing up during the working day to distract me.
You have to be ruthless – but trust me, it allows you so much brain space to really do great work from home!
Don’t let work invade your family time – remain present at home!
You simply can’t allow the office to invade your home life outside your agreed working hours (which might change for this homeworking period).
Be clear to your family that when you are working you need to concentrate, but when you are off the clock you will be WITH THEM. Then demonstrate this 100% by turning off phones, packing away any working tools and being present and in that moment.
My six year old gives me such a look when i forget my promise to be PRESENT with her outside work hours. After all, family living is the core of really living that home working dream for our family.
