This could apply to now during Covid or anytime. Work From Home Tip/Sanity Savers.
It’s one thing to be Safe In Place at home, it’s another to be Safe In Place AND working. That’s a lot of hours in home, with potential distractions or temptations to be doing things OTHER than working.
We have a family group text that is usually pretty active but now with SIP, it’s REALLY active as we span 4 homes across the state. D2 is a grad student now moved to online lectures and labs.
She just texted that when ever she has a break she sets the timer for 5-10 minutes, takes her medicine ball and goes up and down the 4 flights of stairs she has in her house.
I started a home project yesterday so today when I need a five minute mind break I’m going down the hall and taking a few strips of the God awful 2-3 layer wallpaper down from a room that I started yesterday.
I always start the day with some form of exercise - and end the workday that way too.
Do you have a at home tip or routine? A drink (not DRINKING!) routine? A mind clearing tip?
I don’t have any tips, b/c we’re not doing so well right now. Dh is fine since he’s been WFH alot already. He has his own bedroom converted to an office. As long as people aren’t yelling, he’s happy.
Little S hasn’t really started yet. We’ve moved his desk out of Dh’s office and into his bedroom. He’s done a few things online w/o any issues so far.
But S19 has been in class all of 90 min and is being a complete pain in the … !!
Both boys have noise cancelling headsets w/ mics that can be muted. Little S uses his alot and works well for him. Dh just ordered a set for himself as well. Why S19 can’t do the same and just calm down, is beyond me!!
I thought we’d be ok, everyone would just have to work together to make it work. Apparently S19 didn’t get that memo and it’s stressing me out.
What I’m doing is sort of against best practices for working from home, but these are different circumstances! I do have an office here in the house, but it isn’t a “work” office. It would be inconvenient to put my work laptop on one of the desk pullouts and be working on top of all my personal stuff. I set up on the kitchen island, which isn’t private and certainly doesn’t add to the decor. I thought it was just for a couple of days, but I sort of like being in the middle of the house. My husband stays in his own home office (retired) a lot anyway, and if I have a call where I need privacy or no barking dogs, I can retreat to a bedroom. I feel less isolated being in the kitchen. And closer to FOOD!
Our daughter was saying, “Hmm, now Dad has to stay in his office, working day and night. That means nothing has changed!”
We ARE lucky. Husband and I already work together and put up with each other 24/7. Our two home office policies are: 1. Sexual harassment is required and 2. It is mandatory to sit in the hot tub any work day when it snows (looks like that will be happening tomorrow).
We’re still getting requests to work on more engineering projects this week and last. We’re kind of surprised. We know the phone will stop ringing at some point, though, then we’ll be in trouble. We can’t collect unemployment insurance since we own the company.
One thing that’s been key for me is setting limits on when it’s okay to eat and when it’s not. I’ve been doing this for decades, but it’s looking as if H and S may need a fresh set of policies around food.
I’ve had my Apple Airpods for well over a year and haven’t used them all that much since most of my phone talking is in the car with bluetooth or at my office desk. They have been a lifesaver during this work from home stint.
We are all on different floor of the house. S is upstairs in the guest bedroom/office, I am in the family room on the couch and H is in the basement office. I am finding it hard to focus/concentrate with this setup. Also difficult to set time boundaries for work/home…
I do think it’s important to lay some ground rules - set up by everyone, not by just one person - if you have multiple people occupying the house. People are going to be taking food breaks, bathroom breaks or whatever at different times.
I think it’s important to not be rigid but to be respectful.
I’m LOL’ing - but also appreciating it - when my H who is retired and on the main floor is texting me with questions like “can I eat the leftover meatballs from last night?” - I appreciate that over someone shouting at me up the stairs!!!
We’re spread out here which helps. The children have desks in their rooms for online classes and my spouse and I each have a small office.
I’m eating at regular times even though I’m working from home. I eat breakfast when I normally would (before work) and take a lunch hour at roughly the same time every day. We’ve all been having dinner together too, so I have to quit work for that.
We’re all taking breaks to catch up on laundry, dishes, and to walk the dogs. And I’m trying to get some exercise in too.
I expect some people (particularly teens and young twenty somethings) might act out a little (be grumpy and disagreeable) because it’s a big change. My plan is to approach complaints the way I did when they were younger by asking them to brainstorm solutions.
I’ve WFH for past six years and now I have ‘colleagues.’ We (me, H, S and D) have each claimed our space and give each other a lot of distance in the mornings and afternoons during work/classes times. We eat together (more or less) for lunch but otherwise don’t spend much time with each other during the day.
My D is winning ‘best dressed’ award – dressed and makeup every day!
It’s cliche but wearing actual (albeit comfortable) clothes (and a bra!) has always made me feel like a real, productive person.
The dog is getting long walks. I am doing virtual happy hours a couple times a week.
I was glad the weekend did feel like the weekend – different routines and activities.
My work is less busy b/c of COVID and I’m trying to sleep more, lol. Don’t really need to start work as early as I usually do. That’s been a nice benefit in the search for a silver lining.
My daughter is feeling pretty confined working from home by herself in her tiny studio apartment. She is trying to leave the building every day for at least a walk (if not a food run). Hard to keep spaces separate when the total space is so small. She is physically packing up her work stuff (laptop, papers, etc.) in a canvas bag at the end of the workday. She set up a chair and laptop stand so she isn’t working either in her bed or at her kitchen counter.
I have been WFH one day/week for quite some time now.
-Agree on taking a break every hour to move around
-H recently talked me into setting up in an unused room upstairs (w/a desk) and it has been a game changer. I have a second monitor screen set up there permanently, can close the door and it’s away from the kitchen.
-Keep a set schedule if possible. At the end of the workday, power down and walk away.
-I set my usual alarm, and do my usual AM thing (coffee/paper then workout, then shower before work) . Only thing that changes is no commute.
I’m fortunate that H is very respectful of this. He has an office job, but not able to work from home. So he is home with pay (wonderful company), but has time on his hands.
Communication will be key w/ 3 people working in one small house (and a 4th, me, trying to be the referee/conductor in all this!). We had a discussion over dinner last night that we need to know when everyone has to be online so that we can coordinate. For example, tonight S19 has to be online 7-10pm. Dh also has to be online. So dinner has to be ready by 6pm and dishes done by 7pm. Little S is banished to his room for the evening, sorry dude but you’re loud. This would all be SO MUCH better if S19’s bedroom weren’t the size of a closet!! His desk in the open on the main floor is not working out well.
I get why S19 was freaking out, but he should have (1) communicated better and (2) used his headset!! We talked and hopefully it’ll be better now.
It’ll get better once we’re in the new house. Everyone will have their own spots and be far enough from each other to not be a distraction. Unfortunately, we’re moving in the week of S19’s finals. Too late to be much help by that point!!
The person having the hardest time with everyone home is ME! Lol!
I am a SAHM and used to having the house to myself all day. I have been going upstairs and cleaning out closets to give myself some peace and stay away from the 3 that are working.
We have two offices, H is in one, S is in the other and D alternates between the kitchen table and her bedroom.
We have been doing social distancing and only going out for necessities which is good because the governor made that mandatory today.
We have been going out for walks in the afternoon. Normally S doesn’t play any video games during the school week, but we are giving him some time in the evenings to catch up with his friends online since he can’t see them for school or sports.
It is going better than I thought it would under the circumstances.
Upgrade internet, spruce up study/home office, stock up on comfort snacks, shower and get dressed reasonably well. Go out for a jog when you can, swim if you have a pool, exercise, cook and keep your sense of humor alive.
One more thing – walking the dog has always been a good transition from work time to non work time. It kinda puts a period on the work day b/c afterwards we think about dinner.
I have been getting up and showering and dressing as if going to work. Except comfy knit pants and fluffy socks for my cold feet.
The thing I was most worried about was my retired husband interrupting me while I tried to work. Fortunately he is being really good. When I sit down to work he retreats to the den. So actually I am having less interruptions than a normal day at work where I am constantly stopping to help other people with stuff.
The hardest thing is getting my workspace right. I’m working at the dining table and it’s round so having things set up to where I have my workpapers and computer all within easy reach and sight is a work in progress. We may clear off the tall back of the couch table thing and put it perpendicular to the table so I have a sort of L shape workspace. The absolute most difficult thing is having just one monitor. I am remotely logged into my work computer where I have 2 monitors. Having to scroll back and forth between the 2 instead of being able to see them simultaneously is really slowing me down.
I’ve been eating on a more regular schedule. Just now stopped to have lunch with my husband. French bread and cheese, yum. Half the time at work I just forget to eat lunch.
I have a home office downstairs and a studio (for artwork) upstairs. But I’ve barely been using either. Really no work to do right now, and I’m having trouble getting to the studio. Just got some new watercolors, so that’s on my agenda for today. DH has always spent a huge amount of time working on his lap top in the living room that has not changed. He has zoom meetings in the bedroom with the door closed. We have always eaten healthily. I had some chips left over from a Feb 28 meeting I hosted. I’d forgotten all about them, but we had some of them while we were cooking for dinner on Saturday. Still lots left. I’ve lost almost ten pounds since Jan 1. There are just two of us, so lots of room to spread around.
