Five Tips for Staying Productive & Positive Working from Home &
Remotely
Let’s face it. We are going through unprecedented times and focus can be tough. Personally, I can work from anywhere, any time. However, when given the choice, my work preference is on-site and in office. I find the face-to-face interaction with colleagues, office space and a commute where I listen to audio books therapeutic. In 2020, Coronavirus interrupted this preference. States mandated stay at home and companies followed suit.
So how do you stay productive and positive in these times? The following tips help me and perhaps, can help you:
1. Curb some of the Chaos: Wake up, exercise and take a shower like normal. Yes, gyms are great but the truth is core exercises like push-ups, sit-ups and many others only need you and determination. Go through your typical routine or adapt new interim workout routines to stay sharp. This will give you a rush through your body in the form peptides, which activate the body's opiate receptors. It is proven to relieve stress and helps towards shaping positivity.
2. Consider Your Audience: With audio only, you can wear whatever you want or nothing at all. Truly, up to you. With video and audio stream, the dynamic changes. You should give heavy consideration to the audience and how they are consuming your dress. It should always be your audience over your comfort. The bushy hairdo, unshaven self, t-shirt and sweatshirt presentation may not be the best look.
3. Assess & Prepare Your Environment: How’s your office environment? Is it quiet? Is it free of distractions and noise? Additionally, what are you projecting in the background? Yes, you can use the blur tool on most programs but if not, whatever’s going on behind you says a lot about you. Tell the kids no pillow fits while you are broadcasting and make sure your wall decorations are projectable.
4. Test The Technology: “The biggest challenges for remote workers during hybrid meetings are interruptions/being talked over (67%) and IT issues during meetings (59%). “ (Owl Labs) So, knowing this, Why wait until you need it? Test your remote work and technology on a friend or colleague. I’ve called friends and colleagues to ask how is the background, the lighting and what else they see. There are a number of different platforms for remote work. I like Microsoft Teams, which is also used at our company and Zoom.
5. Task & Timing List: Task list are a great gift to you. As you accomplish them and check tasks off there is a sense of accomplishment. When you place times to the completion, you have a directed approach. When you look back, you can chart your productivity and gain a sense of accomplishment.
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