Remote Work: Year Three
Friday, March 6th marked three years of working remotely out of my home office. In prior years, I've answered a series of questions, but I've been struggling to write this year's post.
Previously:
Of course, the last week has been The Week That Shit Went Sideways. With COVID-19 now a global pandemic, many people that have never worked remotely are now finding themselves trying to suddenly create makeshift workspaces in their homes as companies and even governments mandate a policy of social isolation.
I don't intend on writing some kind of treatise on the topic. People that have been doing this longer than I can share way more useful information. But I'll share a few things here in the hopes of being somewhat helpful.
Get a little bit of exercise and movement in whenever you can. I was surprised at how much physical activity my daily commute provided. You're just not going to get that in going from the couch to the kitchen table. Plus, it's good to get away from a screen, and from your work. And this is important because…
It will be difficult to separate home life from work life. Take care that your team doesn't turn Slack into an 14-hour meeting. It might seem counterintuitive, but you're typically more productive when you limit the hours you work. I try to maintain a strict 9-to-5 policy, and while I could be better about not peeking in to see what's going on with the rest of the team, I never let myself get involved with work outside of my working hours.
(If I could work a four-day week, I suspect my productivity —and quality of life— would jump even more. But that's a topic for another day.)
Interaction with people is important. Video calls whenever possible —even just to have a water cooler chat— are important. Increase communication and contact (from a safe distance) with friends and loved ones. The more I stay home, the harder it is for me to escape hermitdom. Force yourself as best you can to call or FaceTime with someone. Loneliness is bad for you.
Enjoy yourself. You're working from home. You're going to do your work, but you can do stuff to enjoy the day. Take your coffee break on the couch withy a guitar. Play a couple of levels of Super Mario World at lunch. Work one day without pants (but, y'know, keep it to yourself). Work the next day in a tux (keeping this to yourself is optional). Put a cool poster or some art in the background for your video calls.