The global spread of the novel coronavirus is keeping people at home. Major conferences, including Google I/O and Mobile World Congress have been cancelled to decrease the risk of infection. Some employers are encouraging, even requiring people to work from home for an indefinite amount of time. If you’re new to the work-from-home lifestyle, whether due to coronavirus or because you’ve changed your job to a remote one, you’ll need to change some of your habits and routines to make working from home successful.
I’ve worked 100 percent remotely for about half a year, and I have some colleagues who’ve done it, too. We all encounter unique challenges, not only because of having different personalities but also due to our different lifestyles and the type of work we do. Still, many of the core issues we face as working remotely are the same.
Everyone working remotely has to figure out when and where to work, how to create boundaries between work and personal life. What about office equipment and building relationships with co-workers? Working remotely, particularly when working from home most of the time, means figuring out these and other issues. Here are my 20 tips for having a better and more productive remote working life, based on my own experience and what I’ve learned from others.
1. Maintain Regular Hours
Set up a schedule, and do your best to stick to it. Having clear guidelines for when to work and when to call it a day will help you as a remote worker to maintain a work-life balance. That said, one of the advantages of remote work is flexibility, and sometimes you need to start early or extend your day to accommodate someone else’s time zone. When you do, be sure to sleep in a bit the next morning or wrap up earlier than usual to make up for it.
Automatic time-tracking apps will let you check in on whether you’re sticking to your schedule. They can additionally help you figure out what times of day you’re most productive what times you’re not. You can use that information to your benefit by spending the hours of high focus for your most important tasks.
2. Create a Morning Routine
Deciding that you’ll sit down and start work at a particular time is one thing. However, creating a routine that guides you into the chair is another thing. What it is in your morning routine that indicates you’re about to start work? It might be making a cup of tea or coffee. It can be returning home after a jog. Routines can be more powerful than a clock at helping you to get started each day.
I mentioned “morning,” but not everyone who works from home follows the usual nine-to-five schedule. Yours might be at another time, just try to follow the morning routine.
3. Set Ground Rules With the People you Live
Set ground rules with your family, roommates or other people you live with or who share your space for when you work. If you have children, they need clear rules about what they can and cannot do during that time. Also, just because you’re at home and can take care of the house, pets, or go shopping, it doesn’t mean other family members should assume you will always do it. If that’s how you choose to divide up the domestic labour, then it’s fine, but if you simply take it all on by default because you’re at home, your productivity may suffer.
4. Schedule Breaks
Follow the policy of your company on break times and take them or give yourself sufficient time during the workday to walk away from the computer screen. A lunch hour and a couple of small breaks will help you stay productive.
5. Leave Home
You don’t have to eat out every day, especially at these critical times, but try to leave your home or workspace sometimes. The same advice also applies to people working in traditional office settings. Leave the building at least once a day. Your body needs to move and the fresh air and the natural light will do you good.
You don’t have to go to crowded places (and try not to go) to get away from your solo workspace. Take a walk and try to get distracted from your work. You get the picture. (Note for COVID-19 related rules: Please check your government laws and recommendations whether you are allowed or advised to go out)
6. Do Not Hesitate to Ask for What You Need
If your company tells you to work from home, request the equipment you need when you realize you need something new, without which it is hard to do your work. It’s extremely important to set precedents early that you will ask for what you need to get your job done comfortably, including the right monitor, software, even a printer if your job requires you to print things and so forth.
If you’re working from home suddenly due to coronavirus, ask for what you need. You could be working from home for weeks or even months and you should be comfortable, but ordering a new office chair and desk might be asking too much.
7. Keep a Dedicated Office Space
In an ideal world, remote employees would not only have a dedicated office but also two computers, one for work and another one for personal use. It’s more secure for the employer, and lets you do all your other activities in private. But most of us do not have a separate office in their home, and keeping two machines isn’t also realistic. Instead, dedicate a desk only for work use. For example, whenever your laptop is connected up to the monitor and external keyboard, it’s work time and when it’s on your lap, then that’s personal time. Even it might not be possible for a lot of people but will help you if you do.
8. Socialize With Colleagues
Loneliness and isolation are common problems in remote work life, particularly for extroverts. Some companies that have a remote work culture usually offer ways to socialize, mostly by chat channels where remote employees can discuss work-related things, talk about common interests or even channels for humour. Even if the meetings are not done with voice messages or video chats, ask the management to do so. On the other hand, talk regularly with the people whom you do so in the workplace. Social interaction is one of the keys that will help you stay productive.
9. Don’t Be Too Hard on Yourself
The most successful remote workers have a reputation for being extremely disciplined. After all, it takes serious focus to do full-time office job from a non-office space. That said, everyone lets their attention drift sometimes. If you find yourself working one minute and then watching a youtube video or doing another thing at another minute, don’t criticize yourself harshly, it’s normal to have some breaks, but try to limit them.
10. End Your Day With a Routine
Just as you should start your day with a routine, it would be helpful to end your workday with a routine too. Create a habit that will signal the end of the workday. It might be logging off from the work messaging app, dog walk, or working out at home. Even as simple thing as shutting down your computer and turning on a favourite podcast will do. Whatever you decide to do, do it consistently to mark the end of the working hours.
Make It Personal
The most important thing is to figure out what works best for you. Sometimes the answer is obvious, but other times you might need inspiration or advice from other people who are in the same spot. Try different things and you’ll eventually find something that works the best for you. I’m sure that you’ll find it, just keep trying.
