Right mindset is key to a positive experience working from home
THERE is a possibility you might find yourself working from home in the coming weeks. Best case scenario - it won’t be for too long. Worst case scenario - it could be long-term. Most likely scenario (my favourite) – well, in the case of Covid-19, we just don’t know what that is. As a result, it is better to be prepared so you are productive.
I’ve been working from home for over 10 years and I currently have two children under four years in the house. All things considered I pack in a very productive day. Being self-employed, there is no choice. So, let’s look at some tips on how you can make this a positive experience not just for you but for the people around you.
If you have family at home it would be really important to remember this point – you are now the visitor in their environment. It will be a novelty at first for everyone but that will wear thin if you take the view that all the routines must change to suit you. Your mindset and approach from the outset will dictate how positive or negative this experience will be.
Communication will be key.
Find your working space. Most people will be thinking kitchen table and chair. The kitchen, as you may soon learn, is the busiest room in the house during the day unless you are home alone. Better if you can retreat somewhere quiet that has a desk. If you don’t have an office chair, it won’t take long for you to get stiff and uncomfortable sitting down. If that is the case make sure that you get up and walk every hour for at least five minutes. Your bum will thank you!
Working from home is an opportunity to be more productive and creative with your time. Consider that you don’t have a commute, you don’t have work colleagues coming to your desk to chit chat and there are no meetings. So how do you fill in this extra time? You could spend the time catching up on Oprah on TV or use the time more effectively to do some exercise.
Create a healthy routine from the start. Remember this could be long term – we have no idea. There is a couch to 5km training plan and other plans on my website www.wexfordhalfmarathon.com/training
Covid-19 is awful and I sincerely hope it is short term and has a limited effect on people’s lives. However, this might be an opportunity for commuters to show companies that they can work successfully from home. Instead of waiting for the company to give you directives – ask for them now. Make sure your internet is working at home. Make sure you can access company log-ins etc. Be proactive and start preparing.
It is very easy to go stale working from home if you don’t have a plan. It is also easy to waste hours on social media when nobody is watching. Creating a proactive routine from the start will have a major positive influence on your mental and physical health.
It also gives you a degree of flexibility to do stuff in-between or during work. If working from home comes to pass – blend in quickly and make the best of it for you.