Here Are A Few Work From Home Tips
COVID-19 has forced us all to be in isolation. Public transportation is halted, no one is allowed to go out, offices are closed, and employees are being sent home.
As if the pandemic is not traumatic enough, there is an added burden of working from home. While some consider this change a privilege, let us not forget that majority of workers are not used to this kind of setup.
It may seem fun at first, but sooner or later, people will miss the energy, inspiration, and motivation that come with being in a conducive working environment and surrounded by colleagues.
With the virus scare and this big transition, there is no doubt that this lockdown can negatively affect an employee’s morale and work performance. This article will explore some of the best work from home tips that can keep you productive during this COVID-19 lockdown.
Work from Home Tips to Keep in Mind During the COVID-19 Lockdown
If the transition is already taking its toll on productivity and mental health, it’s about time that you shake things up! Below are some work from home tips on how to be productive during the lockdown season.
Plan, plan, plan
You may not believe this, but your productivity efforts should begin the night before. You must set your mind as soon as possible, so you are ready to work the next day.
To do this, set a schedule. Visualize what you wanted to achieve the next day and list down the activities that you need to perform to achieve your goal.
After that, prepare everything you need for work. If you can, create a work from home checklist, so you will have all the essential things you need to work efficiently.
Set up your workspace
Your working environment has a significant impact on your productivity. If possible, set up a home office with an office desk, ergonomic office chair, proper lighting, and all the tools and equipment that you need. This setup is the best way to simulate the environment in your office.
But if you don’t have a home office, the next best thing that you can do is have a designated workspace in your home—somewhere peaceful and with little to no distractions. It can be a desk in your bedroom, the breakfast nook, or a small corner in the living room.
When you are in your designated workspace, your mind will shift to work mode, and you will feel more productive. Moreover, it will signal to the other people in your house that you’re in a do-not-disturb mood.
Use the right tools
There are already plenty of programs and software designed to assist you in working from home productively. Microsoft 365 has all the apps that can help you with just about everything office-related.
While we can only enjoy limited Microsoft 365 services during the lockdown, it still has a lot of useful services. It would be best if you take advantage of it.
If you are having problems remembering details or taking note of important things, you can use OneNote, which is a basic productivity cloud app that allows you to take down notes on the go.
The Publisher app can help you create formal presentations while Powerpoint enables you to disseminate information in the most organized way possible.
You can also make use of Microsoft Teams to keep in touch with your colleagues and team members. Lastly, tools like Sway, Delve, and Yammer make remote collaboration as easy as possible.
Communicate with your team
When you work from home, you will deviate from your usual office routine. Because of this, the biggest challenge you will face working from home is establishing an effective communication channel since your team will be working in different places and at different times.
The best thing that you can do is to ask the team to notify everyone about their new working schedules. It is also vital that you keep updating each other about the progress in your assigned task.
With the help of Microsoft Team, you can post regular updates, so everyone will be kept up to date with any changes, progress, or new information regarding the project that you’re working on. This is also an excellent way to record all your activities in case the company requires data for project and performance evaluation.
Prioritize collaboration
Another hurdle you would come across is collaboration. How can you and your colleagues work on a document when you are far from each other?
This is what Microsoft Teams is designed for. This collaborative tool allows you and your team to have access to, share, and revise content in real-time. In this way, you don’t have to send, download, or upload a document every time it is revised. With Teams, all updates will be automatically accessible to everyone in your team.
The less time you spend sending emails, the more productive you will be!
Connect with your colleagues
Working from home will make you feel isolated. The feeling of isolation will certainly dampen your productivity.
A short face-to-face interaction with your colleagues can undoubtedly boost your morale if you’re feeling down, out, and mentally bogged down.
In addition to collaborative documents, Teams also allow you to hold online meetings that will enable you to bond, talk, and confer with your colleagues. For these meetings, ask everyone to turn on video so you can see each other.
You will be amazed at how doing so can help improve your mood.
Make The Most Out of Your Time Working From Home
There is no denying the fact that the COVID-19 outbreak will change our ways. The good news is it doesn’t have to be a change for the worse. Working from home can be a tremendous blessing, but that is only if you make the most out of it.
The work from home tips that we have provided you can help make your work from home experience as productive and fruitful as possible.
