How to Adapt to Working from Home

How to Adapt

How to Adapt to Working from Home

Working from home is not without its challenges. The lack of regular interaction can be isolating, and you’ll likely miss having more immediate feedback. We’ve already looked at how to find the right space for your home office, but now we’re here with tips to help you maximize your productivity.

Stick to your designated space

The line between your home-life and work-life can easily become blurry. Once you’ve invested in an optimal workspace, avoid kicking back with your laptop in front of the TV. Spend your work hours sitting in a proper chair, ideally with your monitor at eye level — your eyes and your posture will thank you. Getting through your day distraction-free will make it easier to decompress when evening rolls around.

Establish your routine

When you’re commuting each day, you know exactly how many minutes you need to get ready and get to work on time. Don’t lose this discipline just because you’re home now. Create a set of morning rituals — preparing a healthy breakfast, doing some yoga stretches, pouring a strong cup of coffee — so that you have a regular sequence to follow each day. This is important for the end of the day as well. It’s easy to lose track of time and realize you’ve worked through dinner, so set a hard stop and establish a clear winddown routine.

Write down your goals

When there’s a lot on your plate, knowing where to start is half the battle. Put pen to paper (or use a digital planner like Evernote or Trello) to catalogue what you hope to achieve.

Tackle tasks in order of most important to least important and try to spend at least 25 minutes straight on a designated task. Make sure you schedule breaks with the same level of discipline. This will help signal to your mind that it’s okay to relax and give you a clear milestone to work toward.

Overcommunicate

Make sure you have regular checkpoints scheduled with your manager and any direct reports to align on weekly tasks and expectations. Use this time to communicate progress and set goals for the upcoming week.

Decide on how you’ll communicate day-to-day roadblocks and updates as a team. Most companies use Slack channels to keep threads organized and the wider team informed, but email works as well as long as everyone agrees.

If you’re not sure how you’re doing, don’t be afraid to ask. It’s better to be proactive in seeking feedback than to realize too late you’re falling behind.

Stay connected

Spend the time to maintain personal connections even when you can’t physically connect. Use video to make meetings more engaging and use a real photo of yourself for all chat icons, so that people know who they’re speaking to. Schedule virtual lunches or coordinate Zoom Happy Hours to bring that team dynamic to life online.

Share a job well done

Call out key wins among the team so that everyone can celebrate those successes. There’s nothing more motivating than recognition from peers.

Use your extra time wisely

Calculate the time you used to spend driving to work or sitting on a train. Do something just for you with these extra minutes of your day — work on a hobby, connect with friends, or take a long walk. Now’s the time for all those things you swore you’d tackle if you only had the time.

source : blog.kaiyo