5 Tips for Working or Studying from Home during COVID-19
Working from home can be difficult and at the same time it can be wonderfully productive. For many this is new and new can be scary and intimidating. And that’s ok. We can all take a deep breath acknowledge the giant elephant in our home workspace, for me it’s my toddler, and then try to find the opportunities in what at first glance appears to be an obstacle.
Here are a few tips we’ve found useful while working from home.
1. Daily Rituals: I start my work time by lighting a candle under an essential oil defuser and I end it by making sure the candle is blown out (or most days has burned it’s full 6 hours). Something as simple as a candle and a fresh scent has helped me set my focus on work while at home.
2. Set Reasonable Goals: In our experience working from home in the midst of a pandemic has not proven to be the best time to complete ALL the things on our unspoken to-do lists. Let’s face it, whether it be a good day or a hard day the uncertainty of the season can be a heavy burden to carry. Be kind to yourself and set reasonable, even bite-sized goals for your day and then be surprised if have the energy and time to get done all the musts + declutter all the pens on your desk.
3. Think Outside of the Desk: Our Communications Director, Becca, begins her day on her treadmill turned “desk.” Within her first hour of work she has gotten in her exercise, boosted her endorphins and energy and already started or knowing Becca, finished a number of tasks.
4. Design Your Space: Our Distribution Coordinator, Lisa from our US office just converted her daughter’s old bedroom into her workspace. Lisa and her husband love to listen to music when they work so their turntable and album collection has a center spot in their office. (Also, how cool are they?!) Lisa loves doing little design jobs in her home so quarantine has given them just the time and reason to begin making over this room.
5. Take Brain Breaks: At the office brain breaks happen naturally when someone comes to chat or offers to order a round of coffee (Oh how I miss those Chai orders). While working from home this has been something we’ve had to do for ourselves. Some on our team take a break after finishing a task, while others set alarms on their phone to remind them to take breaks multiple times a day. Here’s a list of our top brain breaks.
Home Office Brain Breaks
– Stand up and do 5 minutes of stretching or hop on the stair stepper (brought back from it’s garage grave thanks to COVID-19).
– Walk around the house while listening to a song.
– Send an encouraging text to a few friends.
– Join the kids for a quick dance party, activity or snack.
– Playing a word game on your device.
– Take on a quick decluttering task. We’ve found doing one drawer or one shelf at a time is a perfect 15 minute brain break.
-Just breathe. Take 5 slow, deep breaths and practice gratitude by writing down 3 things you’re grateful for.
We’d love to have more brain break ideas. We do these multiple times a day. If you have a good one please share it with us in the comment box below and we’ll try it out.