Working from Home: PJs Aside, Some Helpful Tips
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Nothin's gonna break my stride, nothing's gonna slow me down...
Working from home is not for the weak. I have to do it on a daily basis and it takes structure and discipline to manage your time effectively. I know some of you are thrilled to be working at home during this time but are you prepared to be distracted? To sit for long periods of time? To eat everything in the house?? Start with a plan. Here is an example of some helpful tips.
SPACE. Whether it’s your home office or on the patio, find an area with the least amount of distractions and by NO MEANS do it where there is a television present. You will get sucked into a “Love is Blind” abyss. I tend to do a one hour show during my lunch break, right now being a rotation of This is Us, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Good Girls, and Outlander (don’t judge).
GET UP. This is the hardest challenge I have daily. Once I get in the zone, I will unwittingly sit for hours on end. So I decided to implement a new routine. Every hour, I get up, and do a ten to fifteen minute workout or I get more coffee or I do a chore.
GET DRESSED. I know it sounds dumb since you finally get to test out the durability of your pajama pants, but getting dressed puts you in the mindset that you are going to get something accomplished today, at least put pants on!
FRIENDS DON’T LET FRIENDS get off track. I do this. I like to text on my computer, which in all fairness is part of my job, but when the MEMES begin, the work ends. Isn’t it nice to finally get to catch up with friends without having to be on the clock. I get it, I miss them too, but keep it to a minimum and no matter if they have golf clubs or Prosecco on hand, just say, “Let’s see where I’m at in a few hours.”
SCHEDULE APPROPRIATELY. We always have to be aware that during this time, things will come up and we can’t always stay on task. Allow yourself a reasonable schedule for all the things you have to get done during the work day. I have a tendency to say, “Ok, from 10-noon I’ll be working on this.” What usually happens is I’m working on it for six hours. Keep track of your time.
CHECK IN. Even though I’m an independent contractor, I really enjoy checking in with my co-workers, just to talk about what everyone is up to and to keep morale going. It keeps your head in the game. Take this time to connect with your clients. You have time to see how they are doing or to touch base to see if they need anything. This is a grand use of this time.
GO OUTSIDE. Take yourself outside for a few minutes. Fresh air refreshes you and so does direct sunlight. You’ll tend to get cabin fever if your only solo time is in a room with four walls.
CHILDREN. I don’t have this issue, but a lot of you do especially right now with everything being shut down. Make sure you have that conversation with your kids. A neat trick I learned was to make a door hanger for when and when they shouldn’t disturb you. Here’s a better idea — get THEM to make it for you! Crafts, check. No Molestar, check. Do make time for them though. How wonderful that family time isn’t cramped into just at the end of the day.
SNACK. I will say, working from home, makes you eat more. Be smart and healthy about your snacking during the day. Pre-make some little snack packs and get the fam create their own “delivery service”.
GO SOMEWHERE. Go on a walk, go to the store, go to the bank, doesn’t matter. It’ll give you a chance to let your mind rest and a short time of decompressing before getting back to it.
LADY J’S HOME OFFICE WORKOUT PLAN
So here’s some added bonus I wanted to share with you. I do two things to help pass along my day of working from home. Sometimes, I set an alarm to every hour, to make me get up and do:
100 Jumping Jacks
15 Pushups (I’m getting there people)
25 Crunches
It’s a great simple thing you can do to get your heart pumping and out of your chair. The second thing I’m going to start implementing is 52 Card Work Out.
Get a deck of Cards. Divide them into five piles with one pile obviously will have 12 cards instead. Add the jokers for additional fun. Every hour take one pile and begin by flipping the first one. Whatever that card is, is a set of exercise. For instance, 2 of Hearts I will dedicate to push ups (cause I hate doing them!), the next card is 7 of Spades, I’ll now do 7 burpees. I’m sure this is on the internet as well. You can also divide up your exercises by suit as well, ie. Spades = squats. Remember Jacks, Queens, Kings, and Aces = 10. Good luck and have fun! When the CV is gone, you’ll be thanking the gym membership fee I just saved you, oh and you’re welcome for the toned abs.