Remote work, tips for working from home

Working from home can be very pleasant, until your cat throws up on your computer or until your neighbor across the street, who you couldn’t have guessed was creating a time machine, starts turning on all sorts of electrical equipment and deafening materials.

For many professions, COVID-19 has made remote work a necessity rather than a luxury. But which setting between the home office and the corporate office, helps us be more productive?

Your co-workers are potentially quick to help you constructively. But they can also be a hindrance to your efficiency. They come to your office, start a discussion with you and invite you to lunch. Other times, it is you who solicits them. Office friendliness makes life smoother, but if you’re easily distracted, it can interfere with your productivity. Again, it’s all about finding the right balance.

Family members can be a distraction from working at home, but they are not, let’s be honest, the only threat to our own productivity. Indeed, aren’t we our own worst enemy when it comes to working from home? No one is watching us when our office is our living room, we are no longer carried by the collective work atmosphere, we have to find the motivation within ourselves.

Set « rules » with the people staying with you at home

Working from home doesn’t have to mean being alone. During work hours, make sure roommates, family members and your pets respect your space. Even if you are at home, in real life you are at work.

You may need to re-establish ground rules about meeting times, sharing desks and chairs, and quiet time if you’re sharing your space with another adult working from home.

Take a break!

As a telecommuter, it’s easy to get distracted and become aware of it, which can lead us to stop taking breaks. Allowing yourself to rest for five or ten minutes doesn’t have to be hindered by the guilt of working in the same place you sleep.

Instead of just watching a few comforting videos on YouTube (a potentially extremely time-consuming activity, by the way), use your breaks to get away from your workstation. Get some fresh air, stretch your legs, or have coffee with others who may be at home, as if you were in the office.

Interaction with other people is essential

You’ll probably miss the informal socializing with colleagues that you’re used to when your workplace becomes your own home. You don’t have the small talk and other activities that make every day different in the workplace when you work from home.

So what are your options? Communicate!

By regularly communicating with other colleagues, you can avoid boredom and loneliness. Reach out to them via video chat, through applications like Zoom or Slack, or any other way your company uses.

Keep in mind that you are working from home, not from the thousands of kilometers. It is normal to interact with other people throughout the day, even if they are not your colleagues.

When you spend most of your time working alone, it’s good to see other people during the day. Therefore, take advantage of your breaks to socialize with others.

It is better to prepare your meals in advance

When you’re at home, it’s easy to get carried away and spend hours cooking a good lunch. The hours fly by and your work rhythm gets lost. Don’t waste too much time cooking your meals on work day; opt for something simple to cook, or prepare your meals the night before or even earlier (we invite you to learn about the « batch cooking » method).

Preparing meals in advance ensures that you will be able to eat on your own time and not waste time on unprofessional tasks on your work time.

Set up a schedule

Working from home may make you feel like you have a better work-life balance, but that’s not necessarily the case.

Working from home can lead to losing track of time; bathed in the comfortable atmosphere of your home and absorbed in your activity, the hours can fly by surprisingly quickly.

At home, there are no more colleagues to remind you to pack up and leave the workplace. If you’re the type of person who doesn’t count the hours, you can set an alarm at the end of the day to signal that your regular work day is coming to an end. You don’t have to stop at that particular time, but knowing that the workday is « officially » over may help you stop working at odd hours.

Get enough sleep and eat healthy food

For some people, especially gourmets, gourmands and other cooks, having unlimited access to their own kitchen is one of the most important benefits of remote working.

When taking a break, isn’t it instinctive to head to the kitchen for a little something to eat? Too much snacking undermines it. Keep in mind that a poor diet (too rich or deficient in nutrients, too fragmented, etc.) can reduce productivity and deplete the energy needed for work. Try to establish healthy eating routines as much as possible. Don’t think of it as a constraint, the objective is to reap the benefits of this eating routine, which simply consists of eating at a fixed time in reasonable quantities.

A regular rhythm and frequency of sleep is the other routine to install in your daily life. Reserve the weekend for binge-watching series or yield to the joy of pre-dinner drinks. 😉

Remote working can be a tremendous success in terms of productivity and personal growth. Eating a balanced diet at regular times to maintain energy levels and getting enough sleep to rejuvenate your body and mind will always contribute to this success.

Conclusion

Working full-time from home can be beneficial on many levels, even if you miss the workplace and the warmth of group life.

You won’t have to worry about traveling every day, no more commuting, no more traffic jams, no more boring repetition of the subway-work-sleep! You will save time for yourself and for your loved ones.

The tips scattered throughout this article are here to help you take advantage of any remote working situation. Try one of these tips or even more and you’ll quickly see that working from home is just as productive as working in the office and that remote working can even contribute to well-being!