Work from home tips
With the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve all had to change our work lives.
For a short time, we will be adjusting to a new way of working that many are not used to.
As an independent designer, and business owner, having discipline is key. I would not be successful at my job if I didn’t run my business with intention.
Over the years, I’ve hired other consultants to work with me on large projects, and we would each work at our own offices, and communicate online or by phone, and meet when necessary. As a business owner, it’s challenging to know whether your employees are putting in their workday hours. It’s also a learning curve to know if you’re setting the right expectations for a job.
Here are a few things I’ve learned to have a more successful work from home life:
1. Trust your employees/contract workers: There is nothing worse than spending your day worrying if the people you hire are putting in 8 hours. First, being an employee once myself, I doubt I sat at my desk and did my job for eight hours straight. Be an inspiring boss, give space to your team to do their job without micromanaging them, set boundaries, and expectations. If they do their job better at 8 p.m. then so be it. If your team are meeting deadlines, submitting high quality work, and doing what you need them to do to have a successful business, does it matter? If you’re style is to see daily accomplishments, then at least provide expectations of what you need from your team on a daily basis.
2. Set expectations and boundaries: If you’re someone who likes structure then outline your expectations to your team. If you want a document or a design by 5 p.m. then let your team know. If someone said to me, I need this design on Thursday with no time frame, I would just give it anytime that day. If that doesn’t work for you, then provide specifics.
3. Face time/Zoom meetings: I love being able to see my clients or factory partners. The days of just sending revisions via an email is dated. Adding some face time is a game changer because you can actually review product, revisions, sketches, and/or material reviews via a face time meeting. I then follow up with an email. It’s a great way to make a connection with the people you work with.
4. Calendar It: I’ll be honest, until about three months ago the idea of a calendar seemed daunting. I worked with teams that had a google calendar invite for everything. I resisted the concept. A few months ago, I started working with a business coach, and she asked me to consider using a calendar because laying out your goals and allocating it by the day and hour would ensure accountability.
I took her suggestion and realized I can get a lot more done when it’s planned out, and time is allocated to accomplishing goals I have for my business, and personally.
Create a weekly do list either by writing your daily/weekly goals down or on a digital notepad (I love using notes on Apple because it connects to all my devices.) Once writing your goals, allocate the actions that need to happen daily on ical (you can also use google calendar). Some of your goals may be a few weeks or longer but setting time aside for it will keep you accountable.
Also, if you want to make sure your team attends meetings or meet project deadlines sending them a google invites will help your team, and yourself get organized.
5. Have a regular work schedule: This is something that I incorporated from day one of freelancing. Having a daily routine, and working regular hours helps feeling like you’re working when everyone else is working in an office. Sometimes I may work later, and sometimes if I am meeting a deadline, I may pull an all-nighter, and start working late the next day. Most of the time, I keep work regular business hours, and much more.
6. Dress for work: This can be challenging because putting some comfy sweats while you’re working is awesome. I have work from home wear that is comfortable and casual, and sometimes it allows me to just throw on a pair of heels or boots that I can run off to an in-person meeting. In general, make the extra effort daily (whatever that looks like for you). Also, if you’re face timing, be aware that maybe you want to look a little more professional.
7. Take breaks: Make sure to walk away from your desk at least for lunch. Take a lunch break, coffee break, walk your dog, or take a water break. It’s good to walk away from your desk and do some short self-care.
8. Practice interval focus time: It’s so easy to check emails, then look at your phone, do some work, check your phone again, or get distracted by a notification from your phone. I have made a concerted effort to allocate time to all of that. Check emails twice a day, focus time for one hour, then take a short break, then go back, etc. It’s a good way to just focus on what you want to accomplish, and not let other distractions get in the way.
9. Clock out timely: One of the downsides of working from home is that you can keep going. It’s harder to walk away from work when your home. It’s easy to say, “Oh, I’m going to work on this little thing.” Two hours later you’re still at your desk. Make sure to clock out timely so you have some separation. Managing burn out is key.
10. Have fun after work, and whenever you need it during these stressful times: With the stress of the pandemic, it’s very hard to not feel the anxiety of what we hear from the media. For people who have not worked from home, this can be a huge adjustment. I know for me, as a freelancer, I used to leave the house for a coffee break, lunch break, or do an evening work out, or meet friends for happy hour. Now, I’m not doing any of it. Some suggestions are taking a walk with your dog, take an online Pilates class, do happy hour with your co-workers thru Zoom, eat dinner with friends thru Zoom, or just face time with someone who makes you laugh. It’s important to keep connection and find unique ways to have fun during this trying time.
Working from home is our future. Over the years, I have seen more and more companies hiring people all over the world to bring diversity, and talents to a team.
It’s a great way to reduce your carbon footprint by less travel and driving. Working from home allows people to work at their own speed, in their own element, and comforts. With the pandemic, family and connection has been brought to the forefront of our lives. People will consider life over work, and companies who encourage this balance. It’s a trend I’ve slowly seen evolve.
How are you dealing with work from home life? Have you been working from home already? How are you managing your teams, and yourself? I would love to hear if you have any other tips.