Working from home is the new norm
At Ascent Global Partners we’re predicting the Corona Virus pandemic to last for the foreseeable future. It is going to be very difficult for any of us to plan for a return to normality and so you should plan accordingly.
1. Try to keep your morning routine the same as when you were going to the office
Whether it’s the gym at 6:00am, getting dressed or your homemade cappuccino, you need to maintain discipline and routine at home as well as you do at work. In the past there was
2. Can’t focus because of background noise? Listen to some relaxing music
Depending on the task at hand of course, this may not be feasible but I’m a fan of relaxing piano music when I’m writing emails or doing technology related work. It’s difficult for me to concentrate when I hear music with singing in it so I prefer to stick with instrumental music and often music that’s not that involved. Relaxing music is scientifically proven to reduce anxiety and boost your mood. Get yourself a good pair of headphones. They’re cheap and well worth it.
3. Working with kids at home?
We have a complete section dedicated to this on our blog.
4. Create a work space at home
Psychologically you need to separate work and home. Create a space that’s just for your work. This will help you separate and compartmentalize your work life from your home life as much as possible. Our advice would be to go the extra mile and really decorate your work environment with a comfortable chair, the latest and greatest creation your kids have drawn for you should be hanging proudly from your pin board.
5. Keep track of your working hours
If you’re logging onto work now at 6am instead of 9am and finishing around the same time, you need to accommodate for things that you probably took for granted before. This may include your walk to work, your morning coffee at your favourite café or listening to a podcast. You need to take time out of your work schedule and still do these activities.
6. Good time to reduce the amount of hours you’re spending on social media?
The news, media and social media can be depressing at times to look at. If you’re clicking the refresh button on the COVID cases page you may have a problem and you’re just going to stress yourself out! Now is a good time for reflection, step away from what’s not important in your life and focus on what’s really important in your life. Reducing the amount of stress in your life, focusing on your family, friends and overall wellbeing is crucial in the current environment.
7. Watch some comedy
Comedy is known to release endorphins and help against depression, anxiety and other mental illnesses which has been well documented. As if that wasn’t enough to get you motivated, laughter has been proven to boost your immune system. By decreasing stress hormones and increasing immune cells and antibodies which overall improves your resistant to disease.
8. Communication
It’s important in the current environment to communicate frequently with your co-workers, friends and family. Keep people up to date on what you’re doing, whether that be baking sourdough or the solo to stairway to heaven that you just nailed, it’s important to stay relevant. Social media is a great way to push out your latest activities and engage your friends. Lastly, it might also be worth thinking about catching up with your family on a group video chat, your college buddies or your long lost uncle in darkest Peru!
9. Develop a new hobby
Had your belly full of Netflix and PS4? Now is the perfect opportunity to learn a new hobby. Perhaps something you didn’t have time for before? Hobbies can be a great way of reducing stress. These may include:
- Gardening
- Knitting
- Cooking
- Writing
- Arts and crafts
- Learning a new language
- Learning a new musical instrument
- Yoga, pilates or other indoor workouts.
10. Socialize
Although we are blessed with current technology such as skype or zoom, there is nothing quite like meeting a friend for a beer, coffee or some great food in person. Sharing a laugh together or talking about work, football, shopping or your better half. Although it may be more work than in the past, it’s more crucial than every right now.
