Getting S^!% Done and Staying Sane When Working From Home
Thankfully, I’ve been able to work from home (WFH) for the past four years. My last two positions were strictly from home with lots of travel. It has its benefits and drawbacks for sure.
Now that we are all WFH or attempting to, I think it’s important to stress: You should still be working. This isn’t a vacay. Yet how much you work is important too.
Let’s back up first.. when Hurricane Harvey hit Houston in 2017, my all-office-all-the-time friends rejoiced! Their companies simply hadn’t set them up to be able to get work from anywhere. As they were day-drinking the hurricane away, I was hunkered down at a friend’s house.
Our annual user conference was two weeks away. It was a crazy-time. Making things worse, my colleague, Karen who was in charge of the entire conference, was directly affected: her house and belongings, gone. It was up to my Head of Marketing and me to keep the show on the road. Throughout the conference hysteria, I’m watching the water rise above the street lights on Montrose and Allen Parkway (a block away from my first floor apartment); I still worked and worked and worked. And didn’t take care of my mental health. I was in a space with three dogs, two other people who loved discussing Game of Thrones constantly, and focused solely on making the show go on (not GOT). Really, I packed two bags of clothes in case we flooded and I still had to go to conference. That was all the my mind was on.
In the end, it was for nothing. Hurricane Maria was moving towards Florida where our conference was to be held in a few weeks. We made the decision to reschedule even before Harvey’s waters receded. It was devastating. I was exhausted, taking the next week off to get over this crushing blow but also to rest and reset.
An “act of God” as it is called. While lawyers are still arguing if this global pandemic qualifies, it reminds me of Harvey – of overworking, of being extremely exhausted, of not taking care of myself. Yet it also reminds me of those who weren’t used to working from home.
Here’s some tips and tricks to keeping work positive and your head in the game when you’re at home.
1. Don’t take advantage of the situation.
You have so much more independence working from home. When you are new to it, slipping into producing less would be easy. This is the time your boss is looking. Show them you are able to work from home right now, and I bet you’ll be able to do the same more often in normal circumstances. It’s all about trust, and communication.
Keep weekly meetings, plus a chart to know you are keeping on task. Stay up to date with your higher-ups, whichever way they prefer to communicate. Check in daily with phone calls, others multiple during the day times via Slack; whatever it is, I assure you as time goes on, the check-ins will become easier and easier.
2. Alter your hours to suit your schedule - if your boss is ok with it.
I’m not a morning person. One of the best things of working from home is that you don’t have a commute. You can get some extra sleep-in time, or start working earlier. An old boss of mine, Kevin, used to say, “As long as you get things done, I don’t care where you work.” I also worked my booty off there, so he knew I wasn’t taking advantage of what I would call a privilege.
Seriously, just make sure your boss is ok with it and hours match up with meetings. For instance, I used to work with West coast sellers and teams. So I’d typically work 10am – 8pm to fit their schedule but it was also perfect for me.
3. Communication is key. You aren't on an island.
Enter: Video conferencing. Yes, you have to look presentable (party on the bottom; business on the top?). This is the way to get things done when working from home, truly. It makes you drop what you are doing to have an actual conversation. It’s as close to face-to-face as you can get. And ensures both of you truly engage in the conversation. If your organization embraces it, you’re golden (right now, you could be the Champion for it wink wink). I love Webex, but Zoom is a nice second option. Also be available on Skype, Slack, etc to answer any questions throughout the day.
Don't forget, people are only a phone call away. So many bosses and colleagues appreciate a phone call. Millennials like me are used to simply texting; showing you can pick up the phone goes miles.
4. One word: Breaks.
It’s ok to step away from the computer. This one is H-A-R-D for me. I can work for hours at a time. Now I set blocks in my calendar for when it’s time to take a break, like going to the gym at lunch.
You’re also more flexible in your schedule which I love. Go to the doctor or out to lunch (maybe a picnic with social distancing right now); you’d do the same thing when at work, right? It’s all about communication with your boss. Some of my previous employers liked me letting them know what I was up to via Skype but honestly most didn’t care once they saw I worked hard.
5. Rome wasn’t built in a day. Know when to close the laptop.
As a single dog-mom, I could work all day and night. I think it’s one of the reasons start-ups like me; they knew I’d be willing to work all hours, specifically since I was servicing West Coast sellers. I had a VP in Silicon Valley whom constantly called later at night, “realized” what time it was for me, then continued to talk after a brief apology. I gave into it; I wanted her to like me and thought that was the key.
You have to set boundaries. Whether you are single, have kids, you name it, your time is your time. Especially when you’re working at home and have worked all day. If it is not urgent, do not give in!
6. In any catastrophe, you have to focus on yourself, too.
Self-care is always important. With some dealing directly with this catastrophe – from communications to legal to the front-lines — it’s hard or impossible to step away, to think of what will happen if you don’t get something done right NOW. Guess what? The world will go on. Don’t wear yourself out. You’re better off being in good health than making yourself sick from this. Seriously, I’ve worked too hard and ended up with a lower immune system. Now is not the time for that.
7. Get your goals done, the end.
Really, it all comes down to if you are getting your work done. Most likely, without the distractions of the office, you’ll get projects done faster. I used to work in an open-concept space; I couldn’t concentrate on writing whitepapers or blogs with the amount of noise and distractions going on. Let's be honest though, half the time I was a part of the distractions.
That is one thing I miss about being in an office: your peers. Try to do a virtual Zoom happy hour or something fun to keep up teams' spirits. Dress up, get balloons, be silly for a bit to lighten the load and reconnect.
Where was I? Oh yea, distractions. Without them, I could get double the work done, seriously. But then I kept going. I kept working (see #4!). I kept getting further and further ahead. I’m not saying to do that; simple to keep in mind that goals will still be measured. Surpass them. This could be the start of a new, beautiful working relationship.
Remember, we’re all in this together! Have other tips to working from home? Let me know in the comments below.
Stay safe,
Maddie
