Working From Home: 5 Top Tips

We are sad to be closed at the moment and are missing you all terribly. Staying productive while working from home is hard, so here are some insider tips.

1. Routine

When our days are full of distractions, whether that be the kids, the doorbell going or even just the fridge and the wonderfully chocolatey goodness inside, it is really important that we keep to a routine. Try to get up at the same time each day, get out of those PJs and into something smarter and find somewhere quiet in your house to work. If this is easier said than done, then how about putting your headphones in and listening to some background music to keep you focussed? Some people when working from home struggle to work enough, while others sometimes forget to keep a work-life balance. Set yourself working hours as if you were in the office and keep to them. Working from home is a great opportunity to spend time with your family, so make the most of it!

2. Videocalls

Have you noticed how much office chatter goes on every day and how much you miss it? We are social beings and are programmed to love interaction with others and sometimes working from home can leave us with a social void in our lives. Here at The Consult Centre, we are feeling this too. So, we have made sure that we stay in touch via Zoom as much as possible, we have a laugh, catch up on isolation tales and stay positive.

3. Fresh air

When we are free to work by our own schedules and there is no train to catch at the end of the day, we can be tempted to work non-stop. PLEASE DON'T! We all need a break and this uncertain time is stressful enough without the added burden of burn out. Take some time, go for a walk, sit in your garden and breathe in the fresh air and absorb those rays of sunshine!

4. Close the fridge door!

You are not hungry… you are bored! If you find yourself wandering to the kitchen multiple times a day searching hopelessly for the choccy biscuits you could have sworn were in the cupboard somewhere, then go back to your desk! We all deserve a tea break and a shortbread, however, try not to let this distract you. We need to stay productive now more than ever. If you are bored, take an hour to take a course and up-skill yourself or learn something new.

5. Plan

We don’t know when we will be back to our normal, hectic lives so take some time to sit down and ask yourself what you would like to achieve by the end of this lockdown. You could set goals or even just choose a theme that you would like to focus on and note down ways to achieve this. For example, choose the theme of productivity. You can follow this through by sticking to your routine, doing a workout in the morning and planning meals in advance. Or, if you are a stickler for detail then set SMART targets and keep track of them every week.

We are all in this crazy situation together and I am sure you all have great advice and experiences to reflect on too. If you have a tip or are finding working from home a challenge, then please comment. Let's continue brainstorming, staying connected and keeping positive as a community.