The coronavirus pandemic not only dominates the headlines, but also our everyday lives. Due to its rapid spread, national borders remain closed for the time being, public life is severely restricted, and events in the economy have developed briskly. Both employers and employees are facing unknown challenges. The working world is being digitalized in a jolt and employees suddenly find themselves in home office – true to the movements #stayhome #socialdistancing and #flattenthecurve.
We at Coopers support the measures taken and encourage employers to offer their employees home office solutions and flexible working hours. The new situation is particularly difficult for working parents who now have to organize their work at home and at the same time look after their children, especially at the beginning.
At present, the majority of the Coopers team also works from home – with all their energy. As we are old hands at dealing with home office, we want to provide the usual Coopers service quality in recruitment even in these difficult times.
We advise employers to rely on trust and performance rather than control and (online) presence. Maintain communication with your employees and to ensure that they feel they are not alone.
In the following section, we would like to give employees who suddenly find themselves working from home a few tips. The usual recommendations fall short in the current situation. Very few people will be able to quickly set up an ergonomically correct workplace or prepare elaborate meals in addition to work, household and childcare. And even those who are familiar with working from home will probably not be used to working exclusively from home (perhaps even in quarantine). Below are our 5 tips for mastering everyday life during Corona times and working productively from home for the entire week.
Working productively from home in times of the coronavirus
1) Create routines and plan working hours
Structure the day and create routines. Especially families, who also have to organize child care, should agree who is responsible for which tasks and when. Have each other's backs!
Even if the commute is currently reduced for many from bed to the laptop in the living room, it is advisable to have familiar procedures to get into a flow more easily.
Therefore: set your alarm, keep your morning routine and work at planned times. By the way, working in sweatpants sounds tempting, but it's easier to switch to work mode if you dress accordingly. There is no need for fancy suit shoes or an elaborate make-up, but a refreshing shower and clean clothes help to kick-start the day.
By the way, we listed some good apps for time management before. Surely, they also come in handy organizing yourself when working from home.
2) Categorize your work
Clarify your upcoming tasks and categorizes them. Which tasks have to be done in coordination with others, what can be done alone; what requires silence etc. The latter can be done "outside of your working hours", for example when your home calms down.
3) Keep up the communication
As mentioned in point 2), there are tasks that require coordination with colleagues. In order for this to be go smoothly, it is important to define which channels are used for communication – email, Skype, WhatsApp, intranet etc.
Constant (digital) communication creates solidarity, especially in times of crisis, and replaces – at least to some extent – the social coffee machine in the company kitchen.
Tip: A contact list breaks down communication barriers and should include contact details for technical support in addition to internal contacts.
Also great: Some communication tools and apps are currently provided free of charge for several months, as this article summarizes.
4) Stick to your breaks – and your closing time
The lack of separation between work and private life when working from home throws many people out of rhythm. That's why breaks are an important part of a well-structured daily schedule and should be fun and relaxing.
To ensure that your valuable time is not lost on cooking and cleaning up the kitchen, a meal plan for several days is very helpful, or a schedule for family members to take turns in taking care of lunch/dinner. Tasty, quick recipes can be found here or here, for example.
What applies to your breaks also applies to your closing time. The lack of spatial separation makes it difficult for many people to actually switch off. Therefore, it is best to get some fresh air, for example when taking a short walk or go for a run. There are also exercising apps that are currently available for free, for example for yoga, HIIT etc. Physical balance is good for body and soul.
5) Last but not least: let go of perfectionism
Given the current circumstances, many are brought to their limits – with or without children. Don't just hope for flexibility by your employer, also don't be too hard on yourself. Something just doesn't work out at all despite your well thought-out daily schedule? Technology is not playing along? There is again only pasta with sauce for lunch? Take a deep breath, accept it and/or make new arrangements. At the end of the day, this will make things way easier than clinging to your plan. We all have to get used to this new situation and nobody's perfect.
We wish you all steady nerves and that you will stay healthy throughout the corona crisis. We hope to meet each other again in person soon. Until then, we are looking forward to your calls or emails.
Your Coopers Team
PS: If you hum "Happy Birthday to you" twice while washing your hands, you have completed the recommended 20 seconds ;)
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