Out of the many new skills we had to learn this year, staying motivated to work from home was one great challenge to tackle. Some of us at DCMnetwork have been working from home for quite some time, even before the COVID-19 pandemic propelled other businesses to adapt to the home-office scenario. Technologies like Zoom, cloud computing, and authenticator apps had already made me bid adieu to the daily commute to work.
Working from home is much more effective, and productive notes a recent study. There’s also a discussion that while you become better at some tasks, you lose point on others. A perfect sense of balance is required to master the art of working from home.
I will be sharing with you how DCMnetwork employees have been doing it right for years at length now.
Setting up an office space:
DCMnetwork has a criterion to set up an office at home for employees who sign up to work from home. I remember sharing a picture of the home office on my company profile. This was the first thing I did when I prepared myself to work from home, and guess what? It motivated me to get up early in the morning and head to my office space after making myself some refreshing coffee.
A minimalist office space works best because it avoids distractions. Bijetri Biswas, my colleague says that all she has in her sitting area are notebooks and water bottles besides a laptop and a phone. This helps stay focused, as well as hydrated.
Start work after breakfast:
One mistake I did during my initial days was getting to work as soon as I woke up. It took me a few months to realize that I don’t have to sleep with my laptop beside me if I can manage time efficiently. After you wake up, go for a short walk, prepare your morning beverage and breakfast, and then sit down to work with your belly full. Else, you’ll know that nothing distracts more than a hungry tummy.
Take breaks but stick to your schedule:
Give yourself a break mid-work as if you really are at the office. Go to your dining space, or have some social tea break with your family. When you work the whole day on your back-to-back projects you get mentally exhausted whether you know it or not. Even the most introverted person needs a social break, and you definitely do.
One of those breaks can be a meditation and an exercise break. Richard Chettri, a DCMnetwork employee shares “work-from-home requires sitting down for long in front of the laptop, so this helps in keeping endorphins, testosterone in the right balance.”
A total of three breaks is advisable, and it can be as long as 15 minutes to 20. The best way to time yourself is to think you’re really at the office and you need to go home before dark. Just saying.
Communication is the key, really:
When I work with my colleagues of DCMnetwork, I really have to keep up with my digital communication skills. Prompt Slack messages help in getting the work done faster, and when I need an answer to a quick question, a Slack call does the job. I write more emails, texts, and messages than ever, but this truly is the key to work effectively from home.
If there’s a problem at your end, say, WiFi does not work, then you can call your trusted colleague to let them know about the issue rather than have them second guess why you ghosted them at work. Not cool. If your colleagues are super helpful then they will definitely help you out to complete the task on time so that others’ timeline does not get affected.
Making notes before and after work:
Richard Chhetri spends some time prior to work to make notes on things to do throughout the day. That also includes meditating, breaks, and exercise. As soon as the work is done, he jots the tasks completed because it “brings a sense of achievement and is good for my mental health,” he shares.
Take care of your physical and mental well being:
Work-from-home can make you used to a sedentary lifestyle, so it is advisable to move every 90 minutes. As noted above, exercises will help. However, mental health is what you need to crucially take care of when times are extremely difficult and stressful. At DCMnetwork, we understand the importance of good mental health, so the pressure is more or less avoided, and talking about how you are feeling is encouraged. At times when I feel mentally exhausted, I take a short break or talk it out. Work from home can feel extremely lonely, but when you have understanding colleagues there’s nothing you cannot accomplish at work.
These are tried and tested tips on working effectively from home. Let us know if this article was helpful to you. If you wish to partner with us, then sign up for our affiliate program. We also have a business response to COVID-19, have a look.
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