The COVID-19—or Coronavirus—pandemic has resulted in a work from home (WFH) for everyone who can. Sounds exciting when you spend about 4 hours in travel daily, but it is infinitely less appealing when you actually do it.
A lot of us WFH for several reasons but this one’s different, for obvious reasons. There’s anxiety and a bleakness around. We’re away from colleagues and our commuter friends, and the reason is not a happy one. And there is no immediate end in sight. At a time like this, productivity can take a hit.
Coming right up, therefore, are suggestions (with inputs from colleagues who’ve WFHed— I invented this term—for longer) to ace that productivity game during an extended and enforced WFH.
- Don’t panic in an uncertainty. It affects productivity. Stay calm and communicate with your team about potential issues. Find a solution together. Be considerate. Due to COVID-19, most offices have implemented WFH, but as an emergency and unplanned activity. Everyone needs time to find their grip at a time like this.
- Stay connected to your colleagues. Laugh and crack jokes virtually. Call your colleagues. Don’t isolate yourself. It takes the fun away. One really cool thing about WFH is that you’ll start liking your colleagues even more 😊.
- Dress up for work like you’d always do. This is important because it sets the tone for your day and maybe for the entire duration of the WFH. Working in your joggers sounds really cool, till you actually start working in them.
Dressing in and out of work clothes are mental signals to start and stop. Don’t suit up, but don’t wear clothes that make you want to sleep.
- Try keeping the routine you would on days you went to office. Having a routine helps. And, since you already have one from going to work every day, why not leverage it the best you can?
All of us shoulder a different set of responsibilities at home. Factor all of that in when you modify your schedule. Find your tune and sing to it.
- Working in front of that TV is easier said. Developments to safeguard people against COVID-19 are in progress at the national and state levels. Something makes the headlines ever so often. Working in front of the TV at a time like this may not help.
Instead, take regular breaks to catch up with the news. That way, you get some downtime and stay updated too. Win, win!
- Wrap up when you are done for the day. Pack your laptop and put away all your office stationery. Your brain needs a signal that it is time to stop.
- Take advantage of the time you save in WFH. Don’t spend the time you save working extra (does not mean that you leave work incomplete just because…).
Indulge in a hobby, exercise, cook, do whatever suits your fancy—but indoors. Value the extra time. Now is the time to get those 8 hours of sleep, to start reading.
This will also make you enthusiastic about getting back to work the next morning.
While you may be able to spare just an hour or two every day, remember they say it takes 21 days to form a habit, and there’s enough time now to start. Once you’ve formed a habit, you’ll know how to alter it when we get back to our previous lifestyle. - Don’t doubt your productivity (unless you are on Netflix for half the day). It is easy to think that you are not doing enough when you are WFH, because there isn’t a mental start and stop like at the office. Be honest with yourself; that is the only solution. Make a to-do list every morning or the day before, without being overambitious.
WFH is different, not difficult. It is difficult being cooped up indoors. But perhaps thinking this, in the current situation, will simplify things: The only contribution our country and fellow citizens need from us today, to fight this crisis, is that we stay at home. Surely, we can do that.
Tell us in the comments what you are doing to keep up your productivity as we stay quarantined. Meanwhile, stay safe everyone!