6 Best Practices for Working from home

6 Best Practices for Working from home

Working from Home – During a Lockdown or any long period of time can be challenging. As we adapt to this change, here are a few tips to help you work from home (WFH) with ease:

 #1. Have a Daily Routine:

Your daily routine of waking up early and travelling to work has now changed, but make sure some things still stay the same. Wake up at a fixed time, take a shower, have a healthy breakfast and ensure you are ready for work at the normal office time. Aiming to start on time and end on time, gives your day the structure it needs to allot time for other activities, like spending time with family, personal hobbies and exercise. Working from home might give us some liberties, but, don’t take them.

 #2. Create a perfect Work Environment:

Setting up an office-like environment is very import while working from home and it should be comfortable if we work for long hours. For instance, identify a separate table which will be meant only for office work. Always keep a notepad and pen ready on the table as you might have to discuss on the phone and take notes or you might remember something to do and you need to note it down so that it is not forgotten. Try to avoid noise and disturbance as much as possible – Keep it silent like you are watching a movie. Before starting the work daily, we should clean our work essentials like table, laptop, notepad etc. at least once. In summary, make a home office setup which will help you focus and concentrate on your work - It is not to be a sofa in front of the TV.

PRO TIP: Choose a desk close to a plug point and use a multi-plug socket to ensure all your devices are charged while you work.

 #3. Stay connected with your team:

Interacting with the team is another important aspect we must take care while working from home. We can easily forget to talk to each other and loose track of the project goals. This is because we are at home and there are many other things to distract us. Before starting the work for the day, we should always setup a call with the team or the team leader to communicate what is the plan for the day. We should discuss the problem we are facing, sharing thoughts on the project, etc. During the day, just pick the phone or chat or WhatsApp or slack or any communication channel and talk to the other team members too. Crack a joke, laugh, have tea-time discussions, etc. Communication renders a positive energy while you work alone at your homes.

 #4. Setup Goal and Timings:

Setting up daily goals with timelines is very important. Before jumping into the work set a goal for the day. Goal is not only the work assigned by your superiors, but other things are also important: like learning a new tool, writing a complex logic, solving a problem, etc. Setting up a goal and trying to achieve it without planning the timeline may not give you a positive feeling at the end of the day. So, don’t leave it to chance. One should always analyze the outcome with respect to time. We should force ourselves to work the same number of hours a day as you would work in the office. One way to ensure you do this every day is to use the notepad and pen kept on the table and write down all the activities for the day, priorities and then start the work.

A very important aspect to finish the day is to state what was achieved during the day and let your team lead know so that planning gets easy for the next day. If there are things missed or slowed down during that day, have a conversation with your team lead or members and see if you can get help from them remotely. Please remember that when you are in office, this happens automatically as you look over your shoulder and ask for help. Do not forget this trick, as it is THE MOST IMPORTANT thing to do to ensure working from home is no different from working at the office.

 #5. Avoid Distractions:

Many of us do have a habit of a quick-check of our social media tools like Facebook, Tiktok, Instagram, WhatsApp etc. Well, that is a good thing to do, but, don’t overdo it at home. Do what is needed for you to go through the day effectively. If it is becoming a distraction, always logout or mute from all these things before focusing back on work. TV, Social Media, Radio, Kitchen, guests etc. are constantly there as distractions when you work from home. Don’t ignore them as they are there to stay. Work around them. Some of these might need a little attention and plan it in your work.

If you are alone at home, then there is another important aspect. Planning your meals and tea breaks during the day are critical. These are not distractions, but, are essentials. Some of you might need to prepare the meal or tea or coffee. So, plan on time to do these things and have timely food and breaks, just like you would do in your office.

DON’T MISS THIS: Eat your meals with your family if they are at home. Don’t eat alone. This is an important aspect and we should see this as an opportunity to spend quality time with our loved ones.

 #6. Move Around:

As we get busy with work, do not forget the rest of world. You should always take a break in between. Get up from your chair and go to your balcony / kitchen / living room and talk to your parents, relatives. If you are alone, stand-up for some time and take a walk or look out of your window, breathe some fresh air etc. Recharge yourself with some positive energy and resume your work.

Staying positive and focused during long periods of working from home (remotely) is a challenge. Doing some of the above will help one balance work and life. It will also help one do those things that are done in the office but missed at home. To stay positive and be productive is equally important to you and your team. Happy Working!!

                                   -Anurag Dhiman