Working from Home in the Winter: What to Expect
With the transition to working from home that many of us have faced, we are now saying goodbye to the sunny months and moving into the cold winter. There will be upsides and downsides as we move into the final quarter of the year, with some of the key benefits below.
Benefits of Working from Home in the Winter
- No need to scrape ice off the car
- No commuting in bad weather — in fact, no commute at all!
- Set the heating to what you want, the money you save in travelling to work is usually greater than the increase in household bills
- No more leaving the house in the dark and coming home in the dark
- No worrying about sitting in traffic for hours when there has been an accident
- No more wearing inappropriate footwear in snow/ice
- No more struggling to get from the car park/public transport to the office in bad weather
- No more being late due to delays in public transport caused by adverse weather
- Being able to prepare and cook a warming dinner during your lunch break
Above are just of the few benefits I’d expect from working at home during the winter period, but there will be negatives/downsides as well.
With World Mental Health Day taking place recently on the 10th of October, this year’s theme was about increasing investment around the world in much-needed services, as reports are showing an increasing number of people of all ages suffering from social isolation and mental health issues globally due to the pressures of the COVID-19 pandemic.
A big drawback I feel personally will be the lack of personal interaction. At Version 1, we’ve identified a few tips that have helped when working at home, which we expect to lean on even more during winter when the days are shorter and the evenings darker.
Tips for Working from Home in the Winter
- Get dressed and ready for work
- Use the time saved on travelling to walk the dog, make a phone call or to meet a friend for coffee
- Don’t start work until you need to i.e Don’t start looking at your work emails before you even get out of bed
- Sit by a window for natural light
- Keep the radio on for background noise
- Make an effort to talk to colleagues — pick up the phone instead of always using IM
- Go for a walk at lunchtime so that you step away
- If you need to concentrate don’t be afraid to put your ‘Do Not Disturb’ status on for the likes of Teams, Slack, Google Hangouts, etc. Don’t be afraid to make yourself unavailable just because you’re working from home
- Try to have a separate space that you can walk away from when you finish or if not possible put work things away
- At the end of the day turn off the computer and ‘finish’ work, do something for a few minutes to distance home from work
- Make plans for the evening which ensure you stop work
- Don’t be afraid to say no
- Cherish your downtime and don’t let your job become your life
- If you are too busy, don’t be afraid to decline a meeting
- Reach out to your team and peers for a social non-work related chat, not being in the office doesn’t mean you can’t catch up whilst you drink your coffee
- If you are a manager/employer, reach out to people that work for you to make sure they are ok and that your door is open
- As an employee, don’t be afraid to reach out if something is bothering you
Overall, our advice for working from home happily and successfully throughout the winter months really revolves around embracing the fact that you are still fully entitled to a work/life balance — regardless of where you are working from. It’s important to build up boundaries to protect your rest and socialising time and set out goals and activities for yourself to make sure you are happy, well and regularly speaking to your colleagues and friends throughout this challenging period.
About the Author
Joanne Kinnaird is an Operations Manager for Version 1 and has been part of the company since the acquisition of Beoley Mill Software in 2016. Joanne heads up the Version 1 Schools initiative and Employee Engagement for the Redditch office.
