So you want your staff to work at home?
SAInternet offers advice and support to the tools and knowledge in making the transition to rented space to productive home space for your staff.
The global spread of COVID-19, the novel
coronavirus, is keeping people at home. Major conferences, including Mobile
World Congress and Google I/O have been canceled to decrease the risk of
infection. Some employers are encouraging or requiring people to work from home
for an indeterminate amount of time. If you're new to the work-from-home
lifestyle, whether due to coronavirus or because you've managed to find a
remote-based job, you'll need to change some of your habits and routines to make
working from home a success.
As the owner of SAinternet, I've worked 100 percent
remotely for more than 15 years, and I have some friends and colleagues who've
done it, too. We all face unique challenges, not only because we have different
personalities, but also due to our various lifestyles and the type of work we
do. Still, many of the core issues we face as remote employees are the same.
Here are some tips to give your staff when embarking on the benfits of working from their homes as apposed to fighting the traffic and over powering managers
Everyone who works remotely has to figure out when
to work, where to work, and how to create boundaries between work and personal
life. What about office equipment, career development, training opportunities,
and building relationships with colleagues? Working remotely, especially when
working from home most of the time, means figuring out these issues and others.
Call us to to complete the 20 point check for leading a better and
more productive remote-working life, based on my experience and what I've
learned from others.
Maintain Regular Hours
Set a schedule, and stick to it...most of the time.
Having clear guidelines for when to work and when to call it a day helps many
remote workers maintain work-life balance. That said, one of the benefits of
remote work is flexibility, and sometimes you need to extend your day or start
early to accommodate someone else's time zone. When you do, be sure to wrap up
earlier than usual or sleep in a bit the next morning to make up for it.
Automatic time-tracking apps, such as RescueTime, let
you check in on whether you're sticking to your schedule. They can also help you
figure out what times of day you're most productive versus when you slack off.
You can use that information to your advantage by reserving your hours of high
focus for your most important tasks.
Create a Morning Routine
Deciding you'll sit down at your desk and start work
at a certain time is one thing. Creating a routine that guides you into the
chair is another. What in your morning routine indicates you're about to start
work? It might be making a cup of coffee. It might be returning home after a
jog. It might be getting dressed (wearing pajama pants to work is a perk for
some, but a bad strategy for others). A routine can be more powerful than a
clock at helping you get started each day. I say "morning," but not everyone who
works from home follows a nine-to-five schedule. Yours might be a "getting
started" routine at another time of day.
Set Ground Rules With the People in Your Space
Set ground rules with other people in your
home or who share your space for when you work. If you have children who come
home from school while you're still working, they need clear rules about what
they can and cannot do during that time. Additionally, just because you're home
and can let service people into the house or take care of pets doesn't mean
other family members should assume you will always do it. If that's how you
choose to divide up the domestic labor, that's fine, but if you simply take it
all on by default because you're home, you may feel taken advantage of, and your
productivity may suffer.
Schedule Breaks
Know your company's policy on break times and take
them. If you're self-employed, give yourself adequate time during the day to
walk away from the computer screen and phone. A lunch hour and two 15-minute
breaks seems to be the standard for full-time employees.
Take Breaks in Their Entirety
Don't short-change yourself during breaks, especially
your lunch hour. You can use an app, such as TimeOut for Mac and Smart Break for
Windows, to lock yourself out of your computer for 60 minutes. Or you can just
launch a simple clock or timer on the screen when you take a break. If you
return to your desk after only 40 minutes, walk away for another 20.
Try not leave home
You don't have to eat out every day, but try to leave
your work space regularly. The same advice applies to people who work in
traditional office settings, too.Enjoy your home space and gardens. Your body
needs to move. Plus, the fresh air and natural light will do you good. You don't
have to go to crowded public spaces to get away from your solo workspace. Take a
walk. Weed the garden. You get the picture.
Don't Hesitate to Ask for What You Need
If you're employed by a company or organization that
supports your work-from-home setup, request the equipment you need as soon as
you start working from home, or within a day or two when you realize you need
something new. It's extremely important to set precedents early that you will
ask for what you need to get your job done comfortably, including the right
monitor, keyboard, mouse, chair, printer, software, and so forth. Organizations
that are accustomed to remote employees often have a budget for home office
equipment. Ask what it is and how often it's renewed. It also doesn't hurt to
ask whether there's a loan agreement or who will pay for return shipping or
disposal of outdated equipment. If you're working from home unexpectedly due to
coronavirus, ask for what you need within reason. You could be working from home
for weeks on end and you should be comfortable, but ordering a new office chair
and desk might be asking too much. Consider a mouse and keyboard, plus a
back-supporting cushion instead.
Keep a Dedicated Office Space
In an ideal world, remote employees would
have not only a dedicated office, but also two computers, one for work and one
for personal use. It's more secure for the employer, and it lets you do all your
NSFW activities in private. But not everyone has a separate office in their
home, and keeping two machines isn't always realistic. Instead, dedicate a desk
and some peripherals only for work use. For example, when your laptop is hooked
up to the monitor and external keyboard, it's work time. When it's on your lap,
that's personal time. You may want to go as far as partitioning your hard drive
and creating a separate user account for work.
Maintain a back up Power Supply
With the loadshedding that is constant in South Africa
ensure that you have a generator or Invertor to keep your computer and
conneection to the internet available at all times . You cannot rely on mobile
connectivity as the cell towers are no longer able to keep a constant charge
due to lack of time to recharge between loadshedding schedule.
Use a VPN
Use a VPN whenever you're connected to a network that
you don't control. That includes Wi-Fi at co-working spaces, cafes, libraries,
and airports. Some organizations have their own VPNs that off-site employees
need to access certain servers or websites that store information meant only for
internal use. In those cases, you'll also need to use a VPN at home. In any
case, it's a good idea to get into the habit of leaving your VPN connected as
often as possible because it's always safer to have it on than not.
Socialize With Colleagues
Loneliness, disconnect, and isolation are common
problems in remote work life, especially for extroverts. Companies with a remote
work culture usually offer ways to socialize. For example, they might have chat
channels where remote employees can talk about common interests, meetups for
people in the same region, and in-person retreats. It's important to figure out
how much interaction you need to feel connected and included. Even if you're
highly introverted and don't like socializing, give a few interactive
experiences a try so that you're familiar with them if you ever decide you want
them. If you're not at a company with a strong remote culture, you may need to
be more proactive about nurturing relationships.
"Show Up" to on line Meetings and Be Heard
Certainly, you'll take part in video conferences and
conference calls, but it's a good idea to attend optional meetings sometimes,
too. Be sure to speak up during the meeting so everyone knows you're on the
call. A simple, "Thanks, everyone. Bye!" at the close of a meeting will go a
long way toward making your presence known.
Keep up with new technologies
If you find newer more productive conferenceing
equipment, tell your team about it experiment with a team member. For those
unexpectedly working from home who are also trying to reduce face-to-face
contact, set up a video call with your colleagues or manager once a week to
check in. What Is Microsoft 365 Teams, new additions to Zoom etc.
Take Sick Days
When you're not well, take the sick time you
need. If sick days are part of your compensation package, take the time off that
you need. Not taking it is like throwing away money. If you're a freelancer who
doesn't have paid sick days, it can be very easy to fall into the opposite
time-is-money trap and try to power through illnesses. Keep in mind that
sometimes it's best to rest and get better so that you can be your most
productive self in the long term.
Look for Training Opportunities
When you're not in an office with your fellow
employees, you might miss out on training and skills development courses that
are taught in person. Your company might even forget to add you to its online
training courses. It can be tempting to regard this a dodged bullet, but you
might be missing out on an opportunity to learn something useful. Speak up and
make sure you're included. In addition to top-down training, you can request
online or in-person courses, training, and coaching if you need it. For people
who work remotely 100% of the time, look for learning opportunities that are
taught at the company's headquarters or your closest office. That way, you get
training and face time with colleagues.
Over communicate
Working remotely requires you to overcommunicate. Tell
everyone who needs to know about your schedule and availability often. When you
finish a project or important task, say so. Overcommunicating doesn't
necessarily mean you have to write a five-paragraph essay to explain your every
move, but it does mean repeating yourself. Joke about how you must have
mentioned your upcoming vacation six times already, then mention it again.
Be Positive
I like succinct and clear messages, but I know that
the less face time I have with people, the less they know how to interpret my
tone in writing. When you work remotely full-time, you must be positive, to the
point where it may feel like you're being overly positive. Otherwise, you risk
sounding like a jerk. It's unfortunate, but true. So embrace the exclamation
point! Find your favorite emoji :D. You're going to need them.
Take Advantage of Your Perks
Every week, endulge in your hobby for an hour or so.
Why? Because you work from home and you can. Plus, I enjoy it. When I worked in
an office full-time, I struggled to find the time to do that quick repair or
maintenence . Working remotely comes with unique perks. Take advantage of them.
You deserve it.
Don't Be Too Hard on Yourself
The most successful remote employees have a
reputation for being extremely disciplined. After all, it takes serious focus to
do any full-time office job from an unconventional space. That said, everyone
lets their attention drift sometimes. If you find yourself working one minute
and booking flights for your upcoming vacation the next, don't reprimand
yourself too harshly. Instead, ask yourself whether people in an office setting
do the same thing. If the answer is yes, cut yourself some slack, then get back
to work.
End Your Day With a Routine
Just as you should start your day with a
routine, create a habit that signals the close of the workday. It might be a
sign off on a business messaging app, an evening dog walk, or a 6 p.m. exercise
class in your garden. Something as simple as shutting down your computer and
turning on a favorite TV channel will do. Whatever you choose, do it
consistently to mark the end of working hours.
Make It Personal
Above all else, figure out what works best for you.
Sometimes the answer is apparent, but other times you might need some
inspiration from other people who are in the same boat. A supportive community
of remote employees does exist, whether you find them in your organization's
Skype channel or online with whats app or facebook.