Everyone's Working From Home, but It's Not For Everyone
Working remotely is equally amazing and awful.
If you’re new to it - Welcome. You’re working from home under very unusual circumstances and aren’t exactly going to have the best experience right away. You might not have a desk or a comfy chair at home, and the couch will not cut it! Working remotely takes a bit of time to get into a rhythm and appreciate it for what it is. Patience will be a virtue throughout these next few months!
If you’re an old pro - Welcome! Add to my list of things in the comments for your suggestions.
A few of the joys of working remotely:
The WFH Wardrobe Mullet: Business clothes on Top (for video calls), comfy athleisure on the bottom. Rarely having to wear shoes.
No commuting. Save lots of time! Learn a new hobby or something.
Pure, unadulterated, work productivity time. Knock things off your to do list!
Making your own food, fresh, all the time. No more $15 sad salad at lunch time standing in a line for 20 minutes.
Taking a work break for 15 minutes to do laundry or other odd job around the house as needed.
Take the time to read that article or watch that video that improves your understanding of your job/industry without fear of someone judging you
A few of the challenges:
Missing out on the water cooler / hallway chats
Going hours without speaking to anyone
The horrendous way people manage conference calls that should be video calls to be inclusive of everyone
Staying relevant if you’re not in the thick of things
Not having defined boundaries and working super late/long hours to overcompensate
Feeling lonely, anxious, or stir-crazy
A lack of focus / creativity if you’re inspired by others
You could make the same kind of pro/con list for being in an office as well. No situation is absolutely perfect, and in many ways WFH is not for everyone - just like being in an office is not for everyone. I’ve done the remote thing off and on throughout the last 6 years of my career. As an extrovert, it is weird to say that I truly enjoy being remote most of the time. But the only way it works is to get outside, eat healthy, and be extremely mindful of your time. It’s incredibly easy to just keep working because there’s no internal clock that says you’ve got to get up and get home. Don’t overcompensate for that feeling of being detached. If you’d normally leave at 6pm, then shut your laptop screen and go do whatever it is you would normally do at 6pm.
However, COVID-19 has thrown a solid monkey wrench in that last part. You may not have anywhere to go during this social distancing time. No gym classes, restaurant dates, tickets to sports/music/theater, etc. If you live in a place where you can go take a walk - do that. Your physical health can take a serious nose dive if you aren’t aware of your timing. Also, you might find your whole family is now at home, and you may not have enough separate rooms to focus on your work. Very real challenges that you’ll have to be creative about finding solutions for - especially if coffee shops or coworking spaces aren’t an option.
How can you mitigate the challenges?
Shower. Brush your teeth. Have breakfast. All of that to start your day gives you some normalcy.
Set your working hours and obey your own rules. When you’re done, you’re done. Shut off the laptop, go do something else.
Set up virtual coffee dates with your colleagues to check in with them. Or with anyone - friends, family, broader network - everyone will need to stay connected during this time!
Take your breaks seriously. In an office you might go to the bathroom and on your way back to your desk bump into 3 or 4 people and have a few conversations. At home, get up - walk around your apartment - get some fresh air, but try and change your scenery every hour or so.
Listen to music/podcasts, or watch the news, but don’t watch TV/movies. Ambient sound is important to keep you moving, but don’t get caught up in anything with a storyline.
Get familiar with remote tools. Video conferencing with Zoom, Slack, and XXXXX are all great to keep in touch, and keep conversation going. It’s easier now than ever before to brainstorm and be impactful with your colleagues.
This is only temporary - but you might find that if you do this long enough and can create some structure, you might just like it.
What’s your setup look like?
Share a pic!