Working from home during Covid-19

Working from home during Covid-19 – contributed by WBA Membership Assistant Kellie Foskett

I’m sure all of you reading this will agree that at the beginning of the year we would never have envisaged a vast majority of us being forced into working from home during Covid-19. In fact if someone would have suggested it we would have thought they had gone mad!

Here we are few months into 2020 having to adapt to this strange new world.

I’m sure plenty of people have had the same struggles as myself but adapt we must if we are to be productive in our work.  I’ve compiled a short list of what I have found helpful to overcome the new ‘normal’.

Working from home during Covid-19 – Tip 1

• Make sure you respect your ‘work time’ boundaries

Make sure you ‘get dressed’ for work.  I find this a must to start the day, act as though you are leaving for the office, get your brain thinking it’s going to work!

Give yourself regular breaks, just a few minutes every couple of hours to get up, stretch the legs and have a quick walk around.

We all know how easy it is to slip into our own time when you get engrossed in your work but you must stick to a schedule. At the end of each work day, log off, switch off emails and notifications, work phones off etc, make sure you still get your time at the end of the day.

Working from home during Covid-19 – Tip 2

• Make sure you have the right tools to work remotely

I’ve found that having a room that is solely my office has been really useful, somewhere quiet that I’ve been able to close the door during meetings etc has been really helpful, no outside distractions.

Make sure you have the correct workstation to keep you comfy, I made sure I brought home both screens, laptop, sit/stand desk and office chair.

Working from home during Covid-19 – Tip 3

• Staying social and connected

Isolation can be really tough for some.  I have found it really helpful to stay connected with people. Been missing people dropping into the office? Make sure you keep in contact with all your regular work colleagues/acquaintances even for just a catch up.  Jump on Zoom and keep those connections active.

Arrange ‘work drinks’ on a Friday evening via Zoom, great way to stay connected, no work talk allowed!

Working from home during Covid-19 – Tip 4

• Health and wellbeing

The most important one for me has been to make sure I finish the day with a long walk/run/cycle. Being stuck indoors all day and night isn’t good for anyone.  We are lucky in WA to be allowed to exercise as often as we want (sticking to the guidelines of course!) Blow the cobwebs away and get those endorphins working!

Working from home during Covid-19 – Tip 5

• Finally, this isn’t forever!

Take this time to be planning what you can be doing when we come out the other side of this.  Whether this is personally or professionally, keep that motivation going!

I am already looking at holidays for later in the year, giving myself something to look forward too.

Get in contact with friends you’ve not spoken to for years, I’ve loved catching up, as well as setting up family WhatsApp groups and organising quizzes

I hope this will give you some tips to survive working from home during Covid-19.

Can’t wait to catch up with everyone soon!

Kellie

Learn more about Kellie on our Meet the Team page