Stay communicated and this could be best thing to happen workers

THOUSANDS of people all over the world have had to adapt to working from home, often with very short notice.

Slane business owner Lorraine Murphy of Lorraine Murphy Coaching & Training has had a home office for years, but with added pressures of homeschooling for her son, and not being able to meet clients, she has had to change her own methods too.

“It’s been a steep learning curve for us all,” says Lorraine, who is an executive coach and trainer. “Because of the nature of my business, I lost many contracts straight away, and had to think quickly. Even though I have worked for many years from a home office, I have been fully propelled into doing everything online, getting up to speed practically overnight.”

She said the first thing she did was apply for the Louth Local Enterprise Office (LEO) Business Continuity Voucher, which referred business her way.

“That is a total of €2,500 and I got a steady flow of business through that which allowed me to keep going and get up to speed with the technology,” she says. “I actually think we will all change the way we live and work because of this, and our personal development will have improved tenfold.”

Lorraine has found there are ways of dealing with the new challenges to make your new life easier.

“There is more time to focus on the task in hand with a commute or travel time to work gone,” she says. “I’m up a lot earlier to allow me to start before my son gets up, as we have been homeschooling since March, and for that period, it also had to be a priority.”

Communication is key to a successful working day according to Lorraine.

“Make sure you have all the tools necessary to stay in touch with your colleagues or clients, as communication is the backbone of any organisation,” she explains. “Because the social aspect of our working day is gone, I recommend taking coffee breaks with your colleagues every now and then, and maybe doing something like a quiz.

“It shouldn’t be all about getting the work done, and because some people aren’t comfortable with things like Zoom or Team, use other forms of communication to ask ‘ how are you’ every now and then.”

She says that time management is also the way to cope with working from home easier.

“Find the hours that suit you if you can, and work other parts of homelife around that, and it’s really important to avoid burnout,” adds Lorraine. “There is no question that people are working longer and more erratic hours, especially businessowners, and you have to find a balance, but if that can be fitted into some sort of routine, that’s best for everyone.

“All businesses have adapted to the new norm and the different level of engagements is healthier and I think we have all pared back to being nicer, more natural people, with more time for our families.” For more details, contact Lorraine on www.lorrainemurphycoaching.ie.