The Work from Home culture was already pretty common in the West and while we were witnessing it slowly clawing its way into the East, the pandemic has pretty much forced everyone globally to embrace the concept. Working from Home is a,s we call it, the ‘New Normal.’
While many of us have gotten accustomed to the culture, we still struggle to stay productive with so many distractions out there.
So, here are some tips that will help you game up your WFH:
Table of Contents
1. Define Your WFH Workspace
This is a no brainer. You have to have a corner dedicated to your work from home stint everyday. Because we all know how it will go down if you work from your bed.
2. Decorate Your Workspace
The workspace at your place is where the majority of your time will be spent; it might as well be aesthetic.
You can decorate it as you please, buying stuff online or using some DIY hacks—have your fun with it. Also, it allows for a more organized work environment which naturally transforms into production of more organized work.
Pro-Tip: Just in case you do feel like getting even a wee bit unproductive, you wouldn’t have to feel as guilty later because all that time spent on Instagram, posting your pictures with #WorkFromHomeScenes or #Workstagram or #WorkspaceDecorDIY will be worth it.
3. Set the Mood: Routine, Regime
Having a routine will set your clock so that your mind gets signals accordingly. When you need to work, you work, when you need to take a break, your mind automatically shuts off to any sort of interpretations or calculations. It gets relaxed. The regime should be the right proportion of work v/s chilling with things like video games and procrastinating work reading about whether mobile games will stand up to and be able to compete with the onset of PS5; because you don’t wish to lose your job during a pandemic, do you? Yeah, we did not think so.
4. Wi-Fi Check
“Hey, sorry can’t join the meeting; my Wi-Fi is down!”
“Hey, your voice is breaking, is it your Wi-Fi or mine?”
All of these aphorisms are fun only till you are lying through your teeth and just using it as a form of escapism. When it really comes down to it, your Wi-Fi should be at its best because the whole situation is frustrating enough already to gawk at the download or upload button buffering for hours. So, get your Wi-Fi checked, buy a new one, if you have to, but save yourself the pain.
5. Secure Your Home Office
When working in the office with their systems, they are almost always secured. So, get your home office security in place. The risks of working in an unsecured system are high and while everything these days is digital, the risks of systems getting hacked are even higher. One of the most important things to do in the age of the internet is to protect your online privacy with the appropriate online services. So, safety first.
6. Do not Skip Meals
The whole drill can be strenuous. Companies are being able to churn out twice as much work as they used to because people are working day in and day out. But you should not let it worsen the scenario for you. After all, work from home is ideally meant to make your work from the COMFORTS of your home. What good is it when you can’t make the most of it? So, always have a specific lunchtime where you do nothing else but eat in peace.
7. Self-Rewarding and Break-up Time
The thing is, we all know that work from home once in a while is alright but doing so on a daily basis is inundating. It is not all fun and games. We see a lot of people taking mental health breaks too, at this time. Because it is overwhelming. There is no close guidance and time to appreciate what you do. While you nail one thing, the other seems to be lackluster, substandard, and so forth. The only way to maintain sanity during this time is to set short goals, reward yourself with small things. They make a lot of difference. Also, have a defined time to break up with your work. Work can be fun only when you are being able to spend enough time with your family to appreciate it.
While working from home can find you swamped at most times with the work pressure, missing your mates, missing those office coffee breaks, you can still find your way to make it fun, safe, and productive. We are all in this together. Let’s do this!
