Here’s some information from our friends at Jobsora about tips on working remotely. Great article but just a note that the Children and Pets section will NOT work with a Newfoundland. We will never get used to the situation. Thanks guys, great info there.

How to effectively build a working day on remote work with family and children at home.

In the context of the global COVID-19 pandemic, many employees were sent by employers to work remotely. This is due to a reduction in the risk of infection in public transport and in crowded places, such as office spaces. There is a separate category of workers called freelancers. They are already accustomed to work at home, without any problems they are engaged in independent organization of the process. But for those who are accustomed to the usual routine, interacting with colleagues and even their chair, it is extremely difficult to get used to the children running around and the lack of necessary tools.

In this article, readers will be able to get the most effective recommendations. Do not despair, because the modern world with its mobile communications and access to the global network provides unlimited opportunities.

 Five critical steps

1. Ergonomics of the workplace.

Here you need to be a little selfish, taking yourself the best table and chair. Children can draw in the kitchen, and one needs to give way to the main work force and source of income. Eliminate sources of unnecessary light, use an adjustable lamp with even illumination at dusk. Elbows should not hang from the countertop, otherwise the shoulders and shoulder girdle will be very sore. As you work at home, gradually adjust the parameters, do not tolerate inconveniences. It is not known how long the quarantine will last, and you can develop problems with vision or back during this time.

An ideal option would be to work in a separate room, but not everyone has such housing conditions. Even if it comes to pulling the curtains and setting the screens, the presence of someone nearby should not distract.

2. Collecting working tools.

Everything you need should be at hand. Drawing accessories, related documentation, books, disks with computer programs. Any departure from the workplace can distract. None of the members of the family will think that a real work process is now going on in the house. You can minimize distraction by solving tasks in stages. The less you leave your chair, the better. Pencils must be sharpened, the phone - charged, and a glass of water, and preferably a bottle, should be near.

3. Establish productivity.

Here it is necessary to break down the task into its component parts, and then solve each of them sequentially. You won’t be able to figure it out without self-control. Here is an example of thinking:

“I have almost done this stage, it is necessary a little more, and I can get up. Already done. I wonder what in the next part? I’ll fix it, set it to work, and then I’ll leave. Or maybe make a small segment to make it easier later? Yes, I'll do it".

So you may not notice how eight hours fly by in half the time. You must constantly be the driving force and the driver in one person. If you do not pull yourself together, then the plans will be frustrated. If you are tired, no one stops you from going to bed during the day to restore strength.

4. Correct the psychological aspects.

Psychologists advise constantly praising and encouraging yourself with exhausting homework. Made 50%, and that's half. And 51% is already more than half, and then start the countdown. You can’t call the work boring, unpleasant or uninteresting, constantly complaining about large workloads. Promise yourself a reward at the end of the day, for example, watching a movie, and then, enjoying, repeat that you really deserve it. It is extremely difficult to evaluate your own contribution; ask someone from the family, wife, husband or adult child to do this.

5. Introduce an effective schedule.

Breaking the old regime is not worth it. If you are used to getting up at 7 in the morning in order to get to your usual place of work, then do not lose this ability. It’s easy to spoil yourself and then start waking up closer to dinner. It will be extremely difficult to return to the usual system. It is necessary to precisely regulate the lunch break, as well as to accurately think out breaks and occupation for these periods of time. You can water the flowers, just look out the window or do a little workout. But do not be distracted by movies or social media communication, it can drag on for hours.

It is advisable for each type of work to provide an approximate deadline for execution. This requires planning the next business day every evening. If it turned out to be done faster, then this should be considered as an advantage. And even if it’s not possible to go outside under quarantine conditions, you can use this time to good use. What is usually spent on the road can be folded into a single package, and also add +2 hours daily. And it turns out that in 4 days we spend 8 hours of travel time spending and squeeze out the same amount of extra long daily time. In total, a five-day work week can be closed in three days. If the management allows. Or they can just raise your salary.
 

The main stumbling blocks

Those who try to create a working atmosphere at home most often complain of a number of inconveniences. Consider how to overcome them most effectively:

• Children and pets. You can explain everything to the child, but the cat lying on the keyboard cannot be reasoned with. You need to have a preventive conversation with the kids. One of the best ways is to completely immerse yourself in loud favourite music with headphones, and then just ignore requests. In 3-5 days, everyone will get used to this situation.

•  The temptation to go on a smoke break or drink tea. Here you will need to establish strict prohibitions for yourself. This will help the smartphone timer. Earlier calls are not allowed to go anywhere. The lunch break can be arranged for the whole family, and drinking coffee is easily transferred to the desktop.

•  Fast fatigability. It is caused by laziness, an uncomfortable chair and monotonous work against the background of sounds at home. Headphones and music will also help here.

•  Constant distraction on people walking nearby. Here it is better to use a screen or put a partition. It can even be a piece of a large cardboard box, but moving objects should not fall into the field of view.

•  Low labour efficiency. To eliminate it, you need to compare the process in the office and at home, and then draw the appropriate conclusions. Lack of computer programs, uncomfortable chair. Is it possible that this is just a desire to watch your favourite videos? What can be done in 8 hours is easily stretched to 12-14. These are questions to one’s own organization skills. You need to ask yourself questions, scold yourself inside, divided into a boss and a subordinate.
 

Incomparable benefit

When everything is set up and debugged, and the management no longer doubts the effectiveness of remote work, you can switch to a similar mode in cases of emergency. Outside of a pandemic, a seasonal illness may come, but experience will allow us to switch to a remote work in any force majeure circumstances.

Also, before starting work in this mode, we do not suspect to what extent each of us is disorganized. Self-discipline and adherence to the rules will be useful, those will allow you to intensify self-control. And this is a step towards your own business or the beginning of work as a freelance professional.

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