How to Really Nail Working from Home
With offices opening up again, middle managers all around the western world were hit with a shocking realization: people quite like working from home. Soon the hybrid working system was established. We were all talking to a screen with our boss’ face on it in our jammies.
There are a lot of benefits to working from home, including a better work/life balance, higher productivity depending on who you talk to, and saving money. But it should be done well to get the best effect. If you’re struggling to stay productive at home, take a look at our guide to really nail working from home.
Nail getting up in the morning
It can be easy to wake up to an alarm set a lot later than usual due to a lack of commuting and want to stay in bed all day. Well, that’s nothing new. But because you’re not likely to be going anywhere working from home, it can also be tempting to just skip the shower, the run, the breakfast, and everything else in order to get another 30-60min of sweet relief from the daily grind.
But these processes are important. They get you ready for the day and ready to tackle anything. No one’s saying you need to get up at the same time you were when you were commuting to work. But maybe limit the swapping in of sleep for swapping out commuting and makeup. Keep the rest of your routine as is, with all the breakfast, news and shower that comes with it. If you’re having trouble, take a look at this guide to working in the morning.
Set up your office equipment
While working from home has become part of our lives, it is important for employers to provide the needed equipment for daily tasks. In today’s technology, businesses are trying to go paperless. However, some documentation still needs to be done on paper. Employees may not own a printing machine or scanner. So, the company needs to provide all the equipment for better results. Employees can add desktop printers for home to their office and increase their productivity. Meanwhile, if someone’s work requires not only printing but also scanning and copying, multifunction printers will be a great choice for saving money and time.
Nail your workspace
Have you ever experienced the phenomenon of walking into a room and forgetting why you walked in there? Apparently, there’s actually a reason for it. When you’re stepping through the door, your brain somewhat resets, blanking out whatever you were up to.
You can use this to your advantage. Have you noticed that it’s a little harder to get into the game if you’re sitting on the sofa, pointed at the TV, while everyone’s coming and going? That’s already not a great option. But even if you have the world’s most peaceful home, you might benefit from a dedicated working area. You might find it’s a lot easier to work if you’re not working in the same space that you relax at, say at the dinner table or on your gaming PC.
And then there are the long-term implications. Middle managers kept upgrading their chairs almost to the point of having us sit on yoga balls for a reason: their staff were all gaining back injuries. If you’re sitting on the sofa or at a stationary dining table chair for 8 hours, you are going to be in pain after a while.
Carve out your own space in your home that is dedicated to work. The perk here is that you can decorate it how you wish. Have lots of plants and a stereo to keep you unstressed but productive, without the stifling white or gray of office décor. Be sure to take the best of the office space home, namely a good chair and a water source nearby.
Nail your uniform
Sure, no one’s asking you to show up in person to the office anymore, but that doesn’t mean you should sit in your jammies all day. There’s something about being in those that makes your mind say, “Time to relax?” that no amount of coffee will kick you out of you. Plus, you’ll have meetings, likely of the video variety. If you are working from home for the sake of a work/life balance and still need to go picking up and dropping off kids at school and after school activities, you’re going to need to get into something presentable.
We’re not saying that you have to get back into those starchy work trousers and too tight blouses again. Lockdown brought a lot of changes to a lot of things. Amongst them was an acceptance of athleisure. It became not only acceptable, but stylish. A black or white t-shirt can look dressy enough for meetings, especially with a cardigan or jacket, and from the waist down you can do what you wish. As long as it’s not your dedicated loungewear, you can wear it to work. It’s about the mind. If you wear leggings around the house, buy yourself a dedicated pair of “good” or “work” leggings to get into when it’s time to start work. Jeans are extremely versatile, but not so much for sleeping in. If you have a pair of denim that you love and are comfortable in, wear those.
It’s part of the routine of waking up in the morning. Some people wake up while watching the news, some wake up while putting on their makeup and some wake up while they’re getting dressed.
