Working From Home in 2021

Working from home is no easy feat, but with best practices, it’s possible

By Andrei Virabean, Front-End Developer, Cognizant Softvision

While 2020 is in the past, our reality hasn’t changed much. Of course there’s general optimism now after the news about the vaccine and that in the near future we could return to our offices and drink that morning coffee with our awesome colleagues.

But what about NOW? We’re still working from home and even after everything gets back to a sort of “normal”, many of us will decide to work (at least a few days a week) from the safety and comfort of our homes.

I want to share some tips and tricks on how to be productive and still have a good work-life balance while working from home.

Productivity

It’s your home, your tasks, your time — you’re the manager.

A dedicated workspace

Try to create your own working space. It will help you disconnect and keep your work life and home life separate. In the best case it should be a separate room with an office table and a comfortable chair (preferably adjustable for your height).

Try to organize your desk to have only things required for your tasks and maybe a photo or two of your beloved ones.

Set a schedule

Setting a working schedule and sticking to it is a vital component of working from home and at the same time being productive.

You now have that commute time, so you can get up later and have the same working schedule as before.

Find your sweet spot, when you’re the most productive, for me, my “best hours” are between 7:30 AM — 12 PM, that doesn’t mean that after 12 I’m procrastinating, it’s just that I need to put more effort into focusing. I’m an early bird, they say.

Use your calendar

There were some times when my calendar notifications saved me, and I consider myself a well organized person.

Use the calendar, set meetings — sprint dailys, sprint plannings, sprint retros, community related meetings or any other meeting you may have and let technology be your ally!

Use a task list

I tried using different tools for my task and time-management but in the end — nothing beats the old paper and pencil.

Everyday I turn a new page in my awesome Cognizant Softvision agenda and divide it by drawing a vertical line, in two parts — “Job” and “Me”.

• In the “Job” section I move all the unfinished job related tasks from the previous page/day and add the new ones for the start of the new day.
• In the “Me” section everything I have to do that day for myself — to exercise, to call my son and ask him about his day at school, doing laundry, to pay the bills, etc.

It’s a very rewarding feeling to scratch something from the page when it’s completed. It also gives you at the end of the day the confidence that at the job you did your best and you can now disconnect and focus on your home life.

Don’t multitask

You can easily lose focus when jumping from one task to another. You may feel like you’re getting more done, but you probably aren’t.

Prioritize and dedicate 100% of focus for the most important task of the day. After completing it — move to the next priority. After all its quality we’re aiming for here.

Say NO

Learn to say no. In this article I shared some thoughts about time-management, and the most important one is — “You’re responsible for managing your time.”

Be confident in your estimates. Trust yourself. You must be determined to give your managers the best information you can, and sometimes, this could mean saying “no.”

Set boundaries

Setting clear boundaries with members of your family is the key to a good work from home experience. Having everyone know that you’re at work, even though they can see you — will help a great deal.

Set strict rules for yourself — you may be tempted to do some house chores while “being at work” but avoid that and postpone chores to your lunch break or after work. Remember — you’re still at work, your career depends on it.

Similarly, set boundaries with work, when your working schedule is over — disconnect and enjoy your free time.

Working Securely

The most important advice I can give is — lock your computer when away from the keyboard so your cat won’t start meetings.

Work with cybersecurity in mind. Be sure to read and understand all the security protocols and rules set by the IT Department.

In some cases work ethics courses can be required. Remember that you have a responsibility for the devices you’re working on — it’s called a working station and not a game station for a reason.

Reward yourself — You did great today!

Be kind to yourself and acknowledge that you might not be as productive as you usually would be when working from the office. This is why an agenda with completed (scratched) tasks can help visualise how much you’ve accomplished today.

You’ve missed a bug that was caught by the automation suite — it happens, this is why we have so many layers of testing in our software development process. This is why we’re a TEAM. Do not let that bug bug you (pun intended)! Do not let that bug erase all the great work you did today!

Look again at your agenda — it was a full working day, you did your best! I’m proud of you!

If your company has a gamification system — take a minute and send some rewards to the people who were supportive to you today. We’re all humans, colleagues, friends here — a thanks never hurt anyone.

“People Who Feel Good About Themselves Produce Good Results.”, The One Minute Manager, Book by Ken Blanchard and Spencer Johnson

Mental health

Working from home is the new reality and it can present new challenges to your mental well-being. Here are some tips on how you can stay healthy.

Get dressed and use your best perfume

You heard me — your best perfume! Who’s the most important person in your life? It’s YOU.

I’ve often noticed that we don’t really give ourselves the importance we deserve — we cook fancy dinners only when we have visitors, we dress ourselves just when we have an important event in our life or if we have a serious meeting. Stop it. You deserve the best, here and now! You worked for it.

Dress like you’re going to your office — get that amazing dress and your colorful socks and rock it!

Nothing can boost your confidence in the morning more than a hot shower and a few drops of your best perfume. It’s your day — today and everyday!

Social isolation

When working from home you can easily feel a bit too alone, so it’s important that you take responsibility for your own social life.

On our project we have daily coffee breaks. That’s right! Just like in the office — every day at noon we drink our coffee together, laugh, share good vibes and charge ourselves for the rest of the day, with caffeine and with a good mood.

Meetings and calls are our new and in many cases the only method of communication — be human, use your webcam, laugh, smile, let people know that you’re still that funny colleague with crazy cats on your head.

When feeling alone — reach out to someone, everyone needs a break now and then and can cheer you up.

Create your hygge

Hygge is a Danish and Norwegian word for a mood of coziness and comfortable conviviality with feelings of wellness and contentment.

Here are some ways that you can incorporate hygge into your lifestyle:

• Use candles — the glow of candles creates the perfect atmosphere
• Enjoy a good book — a book and cup hot cocoa can heal a body and soul at the end of the day
• Make a fire — or use a TV to stream fireplace on it for hours, combining it with fragrance/incense sticks will create an atmosphere of coziness and calmness.

Google “hygge” and enjoy!

Escape “the routine”

When working in offices we meet different people on the street, bus, parking lot, even at the office you hear different stories from colleagues.

When working from home, days can look similar to one another and you may find yourself trapped in a time-loop, just like in the “Groundhog Day” movie.

To break the routine, be inventive, here are some ideas:

• Dress differently
• Read different genre books
• Watch different movies (you can start by watching the IMDb Top 250)
• Cook or order something new — I recently started eating mostly only cooked food and it has so many pros! I can cook simple recipes now and I’m learning new ones, it’s more healthy, it’s fun and it’s financially more efficient than always ordering food to go.
• Start a new hobby — puzzles, board games, painting by numbers, diy projects — anything you have to move to “another time”.
• Call your school friends and refresh those friendships

Get a pet, or maybe two

In 2020 I adopted two cats, Loki and Pixie. You may have seen Loki in multiple Cognizant Softvision videos, like this one — “A Day In The Virtual Work Day”. He’s my little Hollywood star.

I just can’t get bored with these two, they are always so joyful and eager to play. Sometimes when they see me with my serious face, they just come and rub their noses on my hand or head, giving me a sign that it’s time to smile and take a break, just so I can come back 10 minutes later with more energy and a fresh perspective on my tasks. They are not my pets, they are part of my family.

Seek help if you feel the need

Just so you know — there is no shame in seeking professional mental health help.

When talking about therapy, in my head always pops up a name — Michel Phelps. He is the most titled swimmer in history and the record holder of medals won at the Olympic Games, with a total of 28.

In January 2018, Phelps revealed that he was battling both ADHD and depression, even thinking about suicide after the 2012 Olympics.

So if one of the strongest and most successful humans out there was struggling with something like that and went to a therapist, why don’t you go if you think you need it?

Physical health

“Mens sana in corpore sano” — is a Latin phrase, usually translated as “a healthy mind in a healthy body”.

Exercise

All of us miss the days when we could go safely to the gym and exercise. We have to adapt — small walks, running and exercising in the nearest park or a home workout can help remain in good physical condition.

I managed, with help from Santa Claus (take your letters to Santa more seriously kids!) to create a small gym at home, and asked a professional trainer to create a fitness routine for me. It helps a lot — getting my body in shape (it will take some time) is making me more healthy, increasing the good mood and boosting my self-confidence.

With this pandemic out there — we need to keep and improve our health as much as we can.

Keep to healthy routines

Drink water. Stay hydrated. You’re working, so you need fuel. I’m sure you saw at least one social advertisement to drink at least two litres of water each day.

Try to eat healthy food and at regular times. Snacks won’t help you and sometimes you will feel hungry and irritated in the most wrong times, such as an important meeting for example.

Take vitamins and eat fruits and vegetables. Or even better — consult a nutritionist for a professional and personalized opinion.

Taking regular, short breaks from the screen can keep you energized and focused, and will also rest your eyes from continuous screen time. Make a cup of tea, get on the balcony and get some fresh air or just play with you cat.

Sleep is very important. It’s the way our body and mind rest and prepare for the challenges of the new day. So always ensure that you get enough sleep — seven, eight or maybe nine hours, whichever works for you.

Do health checks if needed

Just like cars get serviced regularly, we need to care about ourselves and get health checks at least once a year to ensure everything is fine with our health.

Even if you have no known health complaints or issues, it is important to do regular health checks. There are diseases such as diabetes, heart diseases or even some forms of cancer that if are diagnosed early, treatment can be effective.

It was hard

2020 was a tough year. Definitely. But we were strong! We learned, we adapted, we did and we are still doing our best. As 2021 continues to ramp up and show its teeth, we can bite back and be ready with a new working from home best practice guideline.