6 Helpful Tips for Working from Home during the COVID-19 Pandemic

As the COVID-19 is spreading quickly globally, more and more companies allow their employees to work from home to practice social distancing. Working from home, without doubts, sounds tempting and exciting for anyone. You don’t have to wake up early to prepare or waste time on traffic jams or say goodbye to your lovely pets every morning. But be aware, you might put yourself in an isolated and unconcentrated situation. Low productivity or worse, no work is done for the whole day.

We have asked some of our in-house linguists who have experience in working remotely for over 5 years for 6 useful tips to work effectively from home during the COVID-19 Pandemic.

1. Set up your working space

What our linguists emphasize over and over again is never work on your bed or sofa. You will work for 15 minutes and end up lying on your bed or couch for the next 45 minutes. Try to find a comfortable spot (with natural light if you wish) with a proper table. It’s best that you can replicate your office working environment. If you have a box of documents, a small plant, and some frames of pictures in your office desk, try to have those at your home desk too. It helps you shift your mental mode from relaxing to actually working.

2. Sanitize your working environment

Safety first. After all, the reason you are working from home is to reduce the chance of catching the virus. So don’t forget to sanitize your working space. Your computers, laptops, mouse, phone, or any surfacing should be cleaned with proper sanitizer before you start working. (And don’t forget to wash your hand regularly too).

3. Get dressed

Wearing pyjama when working. Sounds comfortable. But will that create a working mood for you? Maybe not. Many psychological studies show that dressing like you are at work will send a signal to your brain: time for working. So even when you are at home, you should keep your usual morning routine and get dressed as if you are ready to go out anytime. It will be a great psychological booster for your day.

Of course, if wearing pajamas helps you feel comfortable and productive, just do it.

4. Make a plan

Even when you are working remotely, you still do the same amount of work, not less. To avoid distractions and keep productivity, try making a daily plan or a to-do list before working. Sticking strictly to the plan will avoid missing some tasks or deadlines. Besides, it helps your managers easily track and evaluate your work.

5. Utilize video calls

With complicated matters, you should use video calls for communication, instead of spending hours typing. Direct talking reduces misunderstanding and also, you will have a chance to talk with someone and feel less isolated in these self-isolating times.

6. Check-in with your team

At the start of the day, text your teammates to say hi and let them know that you are here and ready to work. At the end of the day, check-out and remind them that you are signing off for the evening. Just keep the manner like you were physically at the office.