With the global pandemic raging on without an end in sight, most of us have now gotten used to the concept of working from home and accepted it as our normal for the months or even year going forward.
You may already have set up your home office and have had a few months of remote working done and dusted, but given that the working situation doesn’t seem to be changing any time soon, you may be better off evaluating whether you’re comfortable sooner rather than later. Are you tired of working from home? Do you have time to spend with your family? How are you coping with the stresses of isolation?
Here are some valuable tips that can help you make the most of this unforeseen situation. Here’s how you can make WFH fun and manageable.
1. Make Time for Yourself
One thing that the coronavirus pandemic has given most of us is time. The time that was spent traveling to work, or driving to the grocery store, or going out with friends – suddenly, all of that is free time for you to put to good use. Just because you’re stuck at home doesn’t mean you can’t do something exciting!
That hobby or passion that you’ve been wanting to try but have had to put off for years, now’s the time for it! Want to be more present in your family and children’s lives? Now’s the time for it!
It’s true that people losing their jobs all around you might make you more anxious, make you feel like you have to work extra-hard, extra-long, to keep yours. But driving yourself into the ground isn’t going to do you or your employer any good!
2. Make Time for Positive Gossip
Isn’t it always a fun part of the workday when you get to catch up with your co-workers in the break room or a hurried bit of conversation when you bump into each other mid-day? Well, with social distancing and remote working, that’s not exactly possible anymore. But that doesn’t mean you have to give up that stress-buster entirely. How? Well, whatever else was social media – and zoom, to an extent – made for! Keeping in contact with others will make you feel more connected in a time of isolation.
3. Accept the Reality
Working from home isn’t all roses, isn’t it? You might have wished you could do so before being forced to stay at home for months on the end, but the reality of being stuck amidst a pandemic is enough to stress anyone out.
But, it does you no good to dream about going back to work soon or even other “future possibilities” that have been put out there, like shorter workweeks and the ability to choose your working hours. Right now, you have to continue working as you are. Take it one day at a time and the rest will follow.
4. Give Your Boss a Call
If you thought it was hard to be noticed at your workplace, boy, does remote working make it seem impossible! But one of the best ways to make sure you are on your boss’s radar is to keep in constant contact with him/her. And by that, we mean actually speaking to them through the phone.
Regular emails are all well and good, but they can feel impersonal, like just another bit of routine work. So, make sure to stay in touch by either sharing your daily work reports with your seniors or being a more visible and active participant during group meetings. This is a surefire way to cement you as an integral part of the team.
