Interview from your Sofa! Work from your sofa!

It is now very possible to find your dream role at your dream company without leaving your house! I don’t mean literally, obviously a supermarket trip is probably necessary, but it is very much now becoming the norm to be able to change jobs whilst staying at home. I actually really want to reiterate the high possibility of starting a new job or career from home. I have seen lots of negative articles about companies putting recruitment freezes in place due to the current climate however that doesn't mean ALL companies have done so. Of course there will be companies that have been severely affected, and so that may well be the case, however during lockdown, from 1st June 2020 to just last week (6th July 2020), 4 out of the 5 people in my household have all changed jobs. Manic I admit, but the perfect time for a fresh start I guess! 

None of us were furloughed or made redundant, we all worked in one job at the start of lockdown and have transitioned into another during this time. I guess the reason I wanted to reiterate this is, is to prove this is not down to luck or coincidence, we all work in completely different industries to each other and have all managed to do so. We just used this time to research and understand what we wanted to do and have either found a more senior role, changed career completely or just progressed into a new role/company. So, I hope that it is evident it is still possible to do so despite what has been going on.

My experience of interviewing from home

A unique experience. You don’t have to worry about the nerves you would usually have when interviewing in an office. How firmly to shake their hand? How to stand in the lift? Instead I worried about whether I was being judged on how good I am with tech. How do I set up a video call with people I have not met, on a software I have never used? Tech is definitely not my strong point and so logistically this was a test for me! This experience was daunting however with no worries about interview attire, or how I would be perceived this did settle my nerves slightly. For me personally I actually found it hard that there was no real human connection, this made it hard to read how the other party was feeling/thinking. I think it is hard to use your interpersonal skills/ relationship skills (which I would say is one of my stronger points) and with the lag in the video calls, the awkward moment when you both speak at the same time continues to remain awkward now! It was also extremely sad to hand my notice in from home. With no real goodbye, it was very strange to be working in one job on Friday and another the following Monday!

How have I found starting a job from home?

The only word I would use to describe this, is strange! There is no one to get advice from. It is a learn as you go process. Again, I still struggle with the lack of human connection, I love the fact I no longer spend 20 hours a week commuting however for me personally a happy medium is needed. Without an office, it is hard to build relationships with colleagues whilst making a coffee in the kitchen or heating your porridge in the microwave. If you have a minor IT issue there is no one sitting next to you that you can sneakily ask for help, it instead takes your 3 hours to fix at home yourself! That being said, as people have more time on their hands and people seem to feel a sense of “we are all in this together” this does mean people seem to go out of their way to help you. I genuinely appreciate all the people that have gone to the effort to have 1-2-1 calls with me. I do wonder if you are more connected within the office or from home, I have been on calls with the president of a company in his living room, can you really get any closer!

Something I have really struggled with is headaches! Whereas you would normally go for a coffee for a catch up, instead there are lots of video calls. I know this is common in many jobs when working from home, but within an on-boarding process you really do have no choice as you have to learn! This does also make it extremely difficult to switch off. Because I am learning, I personally find it harder to differentiate between my work life and my home life as I always feel like there is something to learn. This is something I am trying to balance out, and so any advice would be much appreciated! I feel extremely lucky that I got to start my position with Eva Pang, and so the experience of starting a job from home, has been made so much easier for this reason. It is refreshing knowing that someone is in a similar situation to you, and so the standard coffee chats have instead become Skype ones which I love! 

I think the main thing to take from starting a job from home is: 

• Expect everything to take longer, it does for everyone so you are not alone
• Wellbeing is important so make sure you do maintain a work life balance
• Enjoy not having to wear make up or having to panic buy a new work wardrobe 
• When you feel anxious because there is some small background noise on your video calls, remember how your colleagues feel when they have kids screaming, dogs barking and cats hanging around their neck. Everyone feels the same and understands! 

DB

Read More on Aimee Ker's experience of WFH