The A,B,C’s of Working From Home

We’d like to think by now that we are working from home (WFH) pro’s given the amount of time we’ve spent in our houses this year. For a lot of us, our working space is now the old family spare room, or if you’re lucky enough, the kitted out office space you made years ago which has finally come to good use! Regardless of whichever room space you’re in, one thing is for sure, we need to look after ourselves more than ever, and give ourselves a little extra TLC when working from home. 

We wanted to make things a little different when helping you out with this, as the WFH advice can sometimes feel a bit, well, dull. So, we’ve decided to create the ABC’s of working from home to spice things up a bit. Feel free to sing along!...

Activities, activities and more activities. When you’re spending most of your day confined in your own four walls, it can sometimes feel like all you do is repeat the same boring routine. Try taking on a new activity during a lunch break, or when you’re feeling uninspired to boost your creative juices. This doesn’t have to be something difficult (or unrealistic) it can be something as little as making lunch from a new recipe, or practising your latte skills. Whatever it is, just take some time out of your day to mix things up. 

Boundaries can be extremely challenging whilst working from home. We all know it’s way too easy to roll out of bed 5 minutes before your first zoom call and spend the meeting time on mute whilst making your morning cuppa. Well, we’re urging you to start making boundaries! Here’s a couple ways you can separate your personal and work life; set your working hours for the week, put some clothes on you feel professional in, fake a commute (spending time listening to that podcast you usually would on the ride in) and finally set dedicated working areas! Trust us, just by setting these boundaries you’ll find yourself feeling that little bit more sharp and happy working from home. 

Don't get me wrong, Virgin, Sky, BT are vital players in this one, but your personal connectivity is also important. When we work from home, we miss out on those tea breaks in the kitchen area and those toilet trips which turn into a little catch up. Make sure you set aside some time in the week to hang out virtually with your friends. This can be a casual 10 minute call with coffee to catch up about the weekend, or you could be the coordinator of the group and organise a fun quiz for the gang. Whatever you fancy, make sure you take the time to have some conversations outside of the work jargon and talk about the little things, they’re important too!

This one doesn’t sound as fun, but having discipline is super important for you to stay motivated and keep your concentration. Self-discipline starts with having a plan and sticking to it. Ensuring you are sticking to the plans and goals you set gives you structure and keeps you on track. We know how hard it is some days, but sticking to your rules means you can separate the different parts of your day, helping to make it feel as normal as possible. When you’re disciplined, it also helps your friends and family plan around your schedule too. 

Joe Wicks, also known as The Body Coach,  has certainly turned into a household name this year, but for good reason. Joe dedicates his time to helping everyone across the country keep fit. His videos are extremely diverse and inclusive to all fitness levels and abilities. He even has YouTube videos dedicated to home workouts during the global pandemic. His fitness videos have really created an online community, so even if you hate exercising, his videos are fun and can be done with friends or with others from all around the world. Taking a break to do some exercise in the day will give you more energy and release endorphins which we could all do with right now! 

Did you know that fresh air can improve your memory by up to 20% compared to regular air? Good news for anyone with a manager who likes to tell you 100 things a day! This isn’t the only benefit of fresh air, it can also help reduce blood pressure and heart rate, improve your energy and mental focus and digestion! And if that's not enough, the more fresh air you get, the more oxygen you will breathe which will increase the amount of serotonin (the happy hormone) you inhale, consequently making you happier. The verdict? Get yourself outside even for a 5 minute breather and capitalise on all those benefits! 

We don’t want to give all of our best tips away in one week, so stay tuned for next week's blog where we continue the ABC’s of WFH (Ooo we love a good acronym!) If there are any tips or suggestions for next week's letters, leave a comment below and let us know!