NEWS & VIEWS

Brightworkers at Home: Tips for WFH

by Brightworks Marketing Team - May 14, 2020

It’s hard to believe, but it’s almost been 2 months since quarantine lockdown began.  Long gone are the days of boardroom meetings, lunch and learns and white-board working sessions…well, at least for the next few months. It goes without saying that we miss the Brightworks office and all the smiling faces, loud laughs and funny stories that came with it.  Fortunately, we’re all still able to work together (and share some funny stories via Zoom!), while keeping safe at home.

Separating work from home life can be challenging under normal circumstances – now, the separation is almost non-existent. While it’s important to stay productive, taking time for some self-care (physical and mental) is more important, now than ever before.  Here are some WFH DOS and DON’TS from our team.

DO:

Keep a routine: “Maintain as much of your previous daily habits as possible – make your bed, dress for the workday, and keep your regular meal/snack times”

Create a separate workspace: “Separate your workspace from your living space to create a physical boundary between work and home. This way when you are finished work for the day, you can unwind and relax. If you have a partner or roommate also working from home,make sure your work areas don’t overlap and figure out a ‘conference room’ situation for those times you’re both on a call”

Stay active: “Do a quick workout before work in the morning (even if it’s just 30 min). It keeps you energized throughout the day and makes you feel a bit better about sitting around at your desk all day”

Take a break: “Take short breaks and take some time to go outside – at least to your balcony or backyard”

DON’T:

Wear the same clothes all day: “Don’t work in your PJs! Dress for work as if you were in the office – this gets you in the right mindset for work.”

Work non-stop: “Keep your usual work hours and enforce a hard limit at the end of the day”

Mix TV with work: “No TV at all. Even if it’s muted, you’ll likely still watch it. Save TV time for pre- and post- work – not only will this help you separate time in the day, but it will also keep you productive”

Change the time you wake up: “Wake up at your usual time and get ready as if you’re going in to the office. This will leave you with a bunch of time to catch up on new shows or read a book, which would normally be spent commuting to the office”

We hope you can put some of these tips to use! By the look of things, we’ll all be working from home for the next little while, so it’s important to set up those good habits now.  While our team can’t wait to get back to the office, we can say that we’ve adjusted to the new normal and are thankful that we’ve had the support of one another to get through it.