Working from home - curse or blessing?
In a recent virtual coffee break for business friends, we discussed the trials and tribulations of the home office. My personal conclusion is that the current working situation is a blessing, as clients and business partners are now working more in sync with how I have been working for over a decade "in the shed", but many people miss the work banter and socialising at the coffee machine (hence the online-drop-in 3 times a week).
Whilst home-working has lots of advantages, people miss office socialising
Digital communication by messaging and tel/video conference has become the new norm. A noticeable change to the occasional Zoom meeting of the past, though, is the breakdown of the sometimes quite artificial "working" atmosphere that had been the unwritten rule. It's now far easier to relate to Professor Robert Kelly from that famed BBC interview and no longer dread the kids running into viewpoint, or the dog barking for attention. We've definitely broken some paradigms and are growing closer together.
There are some fairly obvious and well published tips for working at home, like securing a quiet place to work (away from family, if possible), mastering digital communication tech, making your bed and dressing properly, avoiding vices like streaming and social media feeds during the day, taking breaks and virtual coffees, sleeping, having a routine, etc.
Less obvious tips for a productive day in the home office
But there are also some less obvious anti-procrastination tips that help you be highly productive, maybe even more productive than in the office, for example:
- Take pleasure in menial tasks and reward yourself, proportionate to achievements
- Carry out thorough debriefings with clients and partners in order to "close" a project and declutter it from your desk and mind
- Socialise with business friends (the main thing people seem to miss from the office)
- Don't cram your day with meetings like in the old days, but take time to reflect and plan. And, if you're the host, make those meetings shorter, no one will complain.
- Enforce screen-free periods and don't let every notification steal your mindfulness
- Have a mentor/partner/colleague to "report" to, exchange ideas with, get feedback and "check" your behaviour
- Mix the "type" of work to make sure you strategise as well as complete tasks, and complete your day with a tally to see how balanced your routine was at week's-end:
How much of this New Work will we keep?
For sure, home working is not for the faint hearted, especially if you live in an apartment and are home schooling at the same time as trying to write those reports. But it also has distinct work-life advantages and is better for the environment. No more rush-hour traffic jams as commuters try to beat time to get that last parking place. No more artificial rules on what to wear, or being over-conscious about putting yourself in the right light. And no more meetings that go on for hours and hours and hours. I wonder, once the office is open again, how much of this will we retain?