WORK FROM HOME: HOW DO YOU COPE?
Camille Dungca-Fuertez
So many of us are struggling in transitioning from traditional work in an office to working from home full time. The shift comes with great challenge especially to those who never experience working from home and had spend their entire career in an office-based environment. With the Covid-19 pandemic lockdown due to its increase in number of cases across the globe, remote work seems here to stay for a longer period of time. Though work from home is one way of mitigating the spread of the virus and protecting our health, it comes with pros and cons especially with our mental health. No soul-crashing commute, no strict dress codes, flexible schedule, custom environment, cozy clothes, unlimited contact with your phone, and more time with your loved ones are just some of the advantages working from home provide. But there are also disadvantages that comes with it. One of which is the difficulty to stay highly motivated.
Being a teacher, shifting from a classroom-based environment to working from home takes some getting used to. It is a very different ball game. We are very much used to face-to-face traditional delivery of lessons in the four corners of our classroom and personal meetings with colleagues and school leaders. Moreover, the shift from the traditional classroom to a virtual learning environment is still at its adjustment phase giving teachers a very hard time on strategizing their teaching this coming school year. Adding to this are the different challenges the Department of Education, with all the teachers, parents, and students are facing in ensuring the delivery of quality basic education and learning continuity despite the worldwide health crisis. Truly, remote work is not something you can simply switch to and hope for the best out of it.
So how are we coping? What makes it difficult to cope with? Here are some of the struggles of working from home based on reports.
Unplugging after work. It is very difficult to log off from working from home especially for the first time. We find ourselves constantly checking our facebook, messenger, e-mails and other online communication platforms even after working hours. It is not easy to disconnect since work and home are too difficult to separate. When working traditionally, our workspace gives us work atmosphere while going home gives us the idea to lower our guard down and start to relax. It is very important that we disconnect or to create an ending ritual and tell ourselves that workday is over. This is to give our mind and body true breaks that we deserve from all the online hassles we’ve taken for the day.
Feeling of isolation. Many of us have had to cope with isolation due to the global health crisis brought about by the pandemic. Survey suggests that people, especially who used to commuting in a workplace everyday, experience increased loneliness occurring in conjunction with anxiety due to the changes of mental health while working from home. Depression of working alone at home affects employees productivity. In order to address this, other companies and agencies create happy hours or events to make sure that employees are connected. Not having such in your own company doesn’t mean you won’t be able to overcome this. Reserving five to ten minutes of chatting with other colleague or a friend talking about other matters aside from work may help you boost and be vital to your morale.
Distractions. Working from home eliminates chances of suffering from stress of having to deal with demanding bosses and co-workers. For teachers, it is a chance to escape all the dramas and headaches our students bring to us everyday. But these do not mean peace and happy working. W e get to be distracted by our own children and spouse especially during online meetings and conferences. If you are a mom just like me, you get to be distracted by your threemonth old baby or household duties that need to be done. Another major distraction are cellphones. Intentionally picking up your phone to check e-mails but ending up checking social media posts. Decrease productivity is observed due to over usage of phones. There is no other way in defeating this than staying and keeping focus.
Shoddy internet access. Let us face the fact that our tech can make remote work miserable. Some of the common tech issues from working from home are unreliable internet connectivity, low quality audio and video calls, and software programs which are confusing to navigate with. Fast internet connection is one major requirement in downloading files and during conferences. Unfortunately, Philippines internet speed is still below global average ranking 103rd among 139 surveyed countries in terms of speed test. When this problem arises, there is nothing much we can do beyond calling our internet service provider. We can also turn on our smartphone’s hotspot feature which serves as a miniature wi-fi network making internet connection faster when broadbands are loaded.
Working from home is surely a work adventure that comes with excitement alongside with frustration. It is important to figure out how we can overcome these struggles to make work-life efficient and easier. Also, take breaks and time in cultivating relationships whether personal or virtual. This will help us combat mental health problems we are currently facing during these unprecedented times.
References: https://pspdfkit.com/blog/2020/overcome-common-struggles-of-remote-work/ https://www.vault.com/blogs/workplace-issues/challenges-of-working-from-home https://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/working-from-home.htm https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/18/technology/personaltech/working-from-home-problemssolutions.html
--oOo-
The author is Teacher III (Special Education Teacher) at Gueco Balibago Elementary School