Home-office like a Samurai
More and more of us are currently working from home and don’t really know how to deal with it. And that’s why here are a few simple tips and tricks for working from home.
First things first: No, you don’t need expensive equipment! Minimalism is your best friend here and prevents you from distracting yourself unnecessarily. Only the following things are essential for now:
- The right attitude and the basics
- The right routines
- The right tools and your work tool
- A working Internet connection
Everything else is largely optional.
The right attitude
Enjoy your freedom, but don’t let it roll you over. Your employer gives you a decent trust bonus here, so don’t leave it hanging and do your best. Are you getting lost in details far too quickly or distracted by your surroundings? So that this does not happen to you, it is very helpful to create a to-do list first, which roughly includes all the tasks you want to work on today. Ideally, you have prioritized the to-do from top to bottom, so that the most important task is now at the top.
Stay connected
Just because you are in the home office does not mean that you have to isolate yourself. In order to continue to strengthen the team feeling, so-called stand-ups help — for the short daily update in between. Thanks to tools such as Microsoft Teams, Skype or Slack, you can connect with your team at any time and collaborate with your team members — don’t worry, it doesn’t hurt and motivates immensely.
Prioritize correctly
If you don’t really know how to prioritize your task packages, the so-called Eisenhower Matrix can help you with this. With the help of the Eisenhower Matrix, you can quickly find out what is most important at the moment. If you’re really into it, you can still try to prioritize your ToDos à la SCRUM to develop a feeling of how much you can do in one day. It is best to write a numerical value to each ToDo according to the following weighting: 1 = done quickly, 2 = I need a little time for, 5 = could be half a day, 8 = 8 that will probably take a whole day, 13 = I can’t get anywhere here under two days.
“Psychologically, it is good and important for you if you mark a few tasks as done. This gives you a feeling for your progress and keeps you motivated.”
From a weight of 8, the alarm bells should start with you. Psychologically, it is good and important for you to mark a few tasks as done. This gives you a feeling for your progress and keeps you motivated. So try to break down large tasks into small parts to keep your motivation in flow. Large tasks often seem daunting at first glance and are little fun, so simply break them down into smaller substeps!
The right routines
That sounds strange at first, after all, you don’t want to do anything else than before, just remotely? Don’t be fooled: Your everyday life consists of more than sitting at your computer and getting started. Normally, you usually still have a commute to work that mentally prepares you for the challenges ahead. This is now omitted, which is why it will be harder for you to get into the right mood. That’s why it’s important to develop routines so that your mind learns to focus and doesn’t just rush from A to B without plan.
The start of the day
There are a variety of approaches here. It is best to think about what motivates you and gives you a kick start to the day in a quiet minute. For some it is coffee in the morning, for others maybe a short reading or sports session. Personally, I am a big fan of morning sports, because it shakes my body and mind up properly. Even a short walk around the block can help so that you briefly leave your familiar environment and then immerse yourself in your working environment (even if this is the same place) — The same applies, of course, to the end of the day. A short walk can send the right impulse to let go of work again.
It is important for your mind that you establish fixed routines and remain consistent in times so that you can get used to it and your mind knows exactly when to focus.
The noon
It’s time to release your focus and provide you with all the important nutrients try to eat as healthy and balanced as possible. Too much or even too unhealthy just makes you tired. A short walk in the fresh air, once properly ventilating or a small power nap can also work wonders. Set a clear time frame for your break so that it does not degenerate, but you still have enough time to recover.
The afternoon
Maybe you’re feeling a little like me here and you realize that the focus and/or motivation are slowly waning? Don’t panic, that’s quite normal! Focus is a limited resource and must first be built up. Similar to a muscle that you are allowed to train first. My favorite training partner is the so-called Pomodoro technique — no, there is no tomato sauce, you have just eaten.
Pomodoro for more focus in everyday life
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Pomodoro, this is how it works:
- You take one or two todos from your to-do list that you like to work on
- You turn off all distractions (by activating non-disturb mode on your mobile phone and computer)
- You set a timer to 25 minutes (e.g. B. Mobile phone, calculator or egg clock)
- You start your timer and really only have the relevant windows open on your computer to actively work on your todos.
- After the 25 minutes, you can listen to yourself and see if you would like to continue working or treat yourself to a short break of 5 minutes. Now you can check your Twitter or simply read your emails.
- After the 5-minute break, you can restart the Pomodoro cycle as often as you like ;)
The end of work
Please ventilate once! In order to be able to let go better, try to acquire a few routines for the end of the day. This is particularly critical in the home office, as you usually stay in the same environment here and shaking off is no longer quite so easy. A short walk, still doing the shopping, going jogging or consciously preparing dinner can help you switch off.
The right tools and your work tool
It doesn’t have to be fancy, minimalism is your friend here. The more you recharge, the less light-footed you will be able to work from home. Therefore, take a close look at what you really need and least distract or even stress yourself.
“The more you charge yourself, the less light-footed you will be able to work from home.”
Hardware
For some, an external monitor can be very helpful, for others rather a load. Personally, I approach it rather minimalistically. My SurfaceBook in combination with my noise cancelling headphones are my best friends — that’s all I usually need. I can change position at any time or just sit down in the café on the corner.
Software
Home office quickly becomes an ordeal without the right software. That’s why there is an excerpt from my favorites list here. Maybe you know any other tools?
OneNote
Great for working together on content and sharing notes. Also free of charge! I myself have been using it for 17 years and have fallen in love with versatility. OneNote offers you an infinite workspace where you can do almost anything. Inserting pictures, videos and notes are only a small part of the offer. My personal highlight is the search function, which can search your handwriting as well as your pictures and videos. If you don’t feel like Microsoft or would rather support the small developers, I can recommend the Notion app. Compared to OneNote, a more object-oriented approach that opens up new possibilities.
Miro
Live collaboration made easy. With Miro, you can create boards together and conveniently move your notepads back and forth. Great for workshops.
Trello
Stay organized with Trello, a great organization tool for all those who are more likely to work in Kanban. I am excellently suited to Trello. In order to keep the open tasks and thus the processes as transparent as possible, Trello can also be used well alone.
Slack and Microsoft Teams
Both tools are excellent for exchanging information, chatting and holding video conferences. Which tool is most suitable for you depends on which tools you are currently using. Do you use Microsoft Office 365 in the company? Then Microsoft Teams should be the first choice. On the other hand, if you use Google Docs, then you are well served with Slack.
Spotify
Without music, I miss something. I always find it exciting to see what others are listening to and then like to switch to it when my own music becomes too dreary for me. Here you will find a selection of my personal favorite focus playlists on Spotify:
Internet connection
More is better. However, how much you really need depends on your everyday life. As a rule, it is enough for me if I can stream a little music and the video calls run reasonably stable. This should be possible without any problems from a “stable” 10 Mbits connection.
Do you have any other tips that you would like to share or even feedback on my article? Then feel free to leave me a comment.
