5 Tips for Suddenly-Remote Working

If someone told you in January that you’d be working from home before the end of Q1, you’d have laughed your socks off.

Yet, here you are, living the dream. About now, you’re probably wondering how to focus. Working from home, it turns out, isn’t as simple as it looks.

I know because I’ve worked from home for a lot of my adult life. I’ve been a journalist, PR consultant and now I lead The Red Stairs, a content development agency that serves clients around the USA.

As a virtual team, we know there are days when it takes monumental self-motivation to do your work, but there are also days when you’d swear you were rocket-powered.

So, here a few work-from-home tips. I hope they help you find a sense of equilibrium as you get used to your new home working environment.

1. Shut the Door

Choose a dedicated workspace with a comfortable chair, a table that is the correct height and big enough for your working style. Make sure you have suitable window coverings to block glare from your monitor. Then shut the door to keep distractions out.

 2. Schedule Virtual Watercooler Time

If you’re used to being surrounded by co-workers, working from home may come as a big shock to the system. It can be hard to concentrate without the hustle and bustle of the office around you. The silence of being home alone can make you feel very lonely.

For background noise, try turning the TV or radio on at low volume in another room.

To have some daily human contact, set up a daily chat time with a few co-workers. You could have lunch together via Google Hangouts or Zoom.

 3. Make a List to Help you Focus

Jot down what you need to accomplish and then enjoy crossing off each item as it is completed. It is the simplest and best way to stay focused on what needs to be done. As a bonus, all those strike-throughs give you a sense of feedback.

4. Loop in the Loop

To avoid feeling like you’re working-blind, make a supreme effort to blow open the channels of communication. When everyone is remote, keeping each other in the loop with both work and social chitchat is vital.

Fostering connections will help get things done and lower everyone’s anxiety. For this, I recommend setting up a free Slack account.

5. Go Easy on Your Team

Working remotely can be highly productive, but what we’re going through today isn’t business as usual. Keeping focused on work while balancing everything that comes with this COVID-19 pandemic isn’t easy. Let’s face it, it would take a concentrated effort even if everyone was working from their usual desk.

Settle in and make your home office as conducive to work and as comfortable as possible because it sounds like this will be our new normal for a while to come.