A lot of people are now working from home (WFH) / remotely, either voluntarily or forced due to #coronavirus. I'm WFH full-time since over a year now and want to use this thread to share some tips and experiences that might help some people who are new to this. 1/n
Note: I'm working for a tech company, so the tips I give here might not fully apply for everyone, but maybe you can pull something useful out of it anyway, even if you work in a different area. I'll try to split this into several categories to have it somehow organized.
#1: Workplace - try to get a space in your house/apartment as dedicated to work as possible. Don't try to sit in the living room on the couch or at the same desk you have your gaming setup. Make room on a separate desk (or even buy one), dedicate this desk to "work".
Even better if this is in a separate room. Try to minimize distraction and overlap of private and work space as much as possible. Once you're done for the day with work, close the door of that room / turn off everything on this desk, so you can also get personally disconnected.
#2: Work Computer - (this highly depends on your companies way to remotely connect) - have a dedicated work system. Don't login to private profiles (Mail, social media etc) on your work machine (you generally shouldn't do this). Again this is about minimizing distraction.
You very likely want to get an external monitor, mouse and keyboard (if you are working from a Laptop). Don't think "I can work like this for a few weeks". You can't. Setup the system in a way you can work as equal as you can do from your usual office system.
(this might be a personal preference): Don't use TV, YouTube, Twitch, Netflix or similar. Prefer audio-only entertainment, as everything visual *will* distract you from work. I personally also use headphones, even if I'm alone, just to really be disconnected from surroundings.
#3: Family - (if you have one :) ) - set clear rules: If you are working, you shouldn't be asked questions, smalltalk etc. If you have a separate room, close the door. If you don't, consider even putting up some visual barrier so you don't see people walking by your desk.
#4: Work schedule - Don't be tempted to work more or less than you would in an office requirement. If you have a tough time focussing (especially when new to this WFH thing), try to work in bulk: 2h focussed work, 30m break, repeat. Take breaks!
Don't be hesitant to take a 2h break to go outside for a walk and enjoy the nice weather (if your work schedule allows it, e.g. because of timezones). Just compensate this time the *same day* (don't say: I'll just work more *tomorrow*).
In general don't try to push stuff to the next day. If it can be done today, do it. If you have errands to run, try to do them on a single day. Rather spend 4h of Monday morning taking care of errands, instead of doing 1h each day.
#5: Health - Don't eat junk food. Try to not have snacks at home and avoid delivery food. Try to cook for 2-3 days or do meal prep on the weekends. Congrats if you have family that can take care of this or support you :-) Remember to hydrate!
Have a large bottle of water (or something similar healthy) next to your desk. E.g. I have a 1.5L bottle at my desk that I mix water and some juice in and my goal is to drink at least one of those every day.
Remember to take breaks for stretching, standing up etc. If you have to take a phone call, walk around during that. Optimally your work desk can be converted to a standing desk (again, this is for long term WFH).
#6: Social - (this might be less relevant in the current situation with #coronavirus, but I'll include it anyway for the future :) ) - Don't get socially disconnected. Meet with friends and family. Keep social connection to your co-workers as well.
#7: Weekends - Don't touch your work equipment. Stay disconnected over the weekend, enjoy your free time, hobbies, spend time with friends and family. If you don't have a real hobby, get one :-) It really helps to recharge over the weekend.
#8: Sick time - If you are sick, don't work. Don't think "oh, I'm at home anyway, so I can also work if I don't feel well". Yes, you could, but it will just exhaust you more and you will very likely not be able to perform well anyway. Rest up until you feel better.
#9: Performance - WFH can work for some, but it certainly is not for everyone. If you feel really uncomfortable with this situation, be open about this with your manager. Tell them that your performance might be worse than expected over the next weeks.
Maybe try to focus on "light" work, like writing documentation, sorting data, commenting code, writing unit tests ( ;-) ) etc. As this situation is likely temporary for most, this might be an easy but still productive way to bridge the time.
#10: Summary - This should cover the most important bits. Let me know if you have any questions and I'm happy to answer them and add to this. Also, please share your experience and tips if I missed something important (I most likely did :-) ).
I wrote this thread out of recent discussions with friends that are new to the WFH situation and am more or less struggling with it. I hope this helps one or the other to adept to this new situation. Stay safe and healthy! 🖖🤟
