Shital Kakkar Mehra shares tips on working effectively from home
Our expert Shital Kakkar Mehra shares tips on how to enhance your productivity while working from home
As companies grapple with ways to navigate the current COVID-19 crisis, one of the biggest game-changers has been the number of professionals who are working from home. In the past few days, corporations in India have been experimenting with different formats – some have quickly moved to work from home while others are recommending certain days of the week only. Whatever the format, working from home can pose several challenges as it requires working without supervision and the presence of your colleagues. Focus on the following points to enhance your productivity as you continue to convey a strong executive presence to stakeholders across the globe.
INFRASTRUCTURE INVESTMENTS
While work spaces get automatically defined at the office, it takes planning to demarcate them at home. Buy high-speed wifi, sound-cancelling headphones and a high-definition camera for video-conferencing.
RESPONSE TIME
Stick to your work-schedules and deadlines. Remain accessible to your clients and teams, ensuring the response time for phone calls/ emails/ text messages remains the same, regardless of where you are working from.
INCULCATE SELF-DISCIPLINE
Seamless transition from office to home-office will ensure both productivity and profit. Define your work hours – your inability to do so will leave you exhausted as you work over the weekends, stay up late or wake up early to meet deadlines, blurring professional and personal boundaries.
CONVEY PROFESSIONALISM USING TECHNOLOGY
As face-to-face meetings get compromised, your verbal and vocal presence has to be stronger to create impact. Speak with energy and enthusiasm when communicating with all stakeholders. Punctuality, commitment and a strong work ethic continue to remain important for success, regardless of your physical place of work.
NETWORK USING TECHNOLOGY
Telecommuters get isolated from all face-toface interactions. Fill this void by scheduling e-meetings with colleagues, investors and clients (current and potential). Go through your LinkedIn contacts, make a list of contacts you have lost touch with and send them an email requesting for a brief chat. Use your spare time to update your online presence and connect with new business contacts/ potential customers.