If you had told somebody last year you were regularly working from home, they would have thought: “right, another lazy guy”. Now no one is thinking or saying that. Covid-19 has changed the world forever.

After our lovely wedding and honeymoon we came back home to the UK and felt already the vibe was different and something really big was taking place. The pandemic transformed everything we can imagine.

First Week

My initial week was challenging but not really because of the quarantine itself but the tiredness of being away for 6 weeks. It truly felt strange to come back and see e-emails, consume frequent news, having business calls and so on. You know how fast everything goes in London. It didn’t take me long to get back into the routine. But this time the routine was from home. Not a big screen, a powerful internet, a comfortable chair? The good thing is that I’ve prepared for this, probably for over 2 years when we purchased our house. This means, that I used to do a lot of “Friday WFH”. I have a dedicated studio at home with a sit-standing desk, a big screen, laptop and an ergonomic chair. Fast speed internet and peaceful area. My work was not going to be disrupted but I was a little part here. It was not just me working from home but everybody else. It was interesting to talk to clients, friends and family and see different layouts, challenges and stories.

Second Week

This is when things became much more serious and governments significantly stepped in. Literally 95% of my circle started to work from home and initiated self-isolation. This was undoubtedly the right thing to do for non-key workers. Key workers are people whose jobs are vital to public health and safety during the coronavirus lockdown. In my case, we started to use more tools like WebEx, Zoom and FaceTime for meetings to ensure business continuity. On the other hand, when talking to some friends and family it was clear to me that not everyone was ready to continue the day-to-day activities from their home.

This Worked For Me

  1. Invest in a sit-standing desk and a big screen. This is a game changer if you spend a lot of time in the computer.
  2. Use your wireless headphones and walk when having calls. This will keep you active and eventually help you.
  3. Have some healthy snacks to rewire your brain. No, this is not vending machine chocolates. This is fruits, nuts and veggies.
  4. It’s alright to mix your life and work. Kristina (my wife) is typically on the ground floor and I’m on the 1st floor working at home but we meet for some meals and we chat for a while on my breaks. Life happens too and especially during this outbreak.
  5. Make sure you use any of these virtual meetings apps. There’s a lot and many free nowadays. It’s still important to have face contact.
  6. Share working from home layouts photos with your colleagues. This is a lot of fun and you’ll be more honest and share the journey together. Remember, now it’s socially acceptable to work from home, so don’t fear those old school consequences.
  7. If you have kids, make sure you connect with other colleagues and friends and share your experience and best practices. This needs to be a learning opportunity for everyone.
  8. You saved countless minutes/hours of commute and it’s important to re-invest in something you enjoy doing at home. Whatever that is: cooking, reading, dancing or whatever you can do at home that is pleasant for you.
  9. Move yourself. Workout at home. Yes, even if it’s 10 or 15 minutes a day, it’s better than nothing. Now more than ever. Exercise will give you energy, will motivate you and make you happy.
  10. Meditate. If you don’t like this word erase it but the idea is to spend few minutes a day to train your attention, awareness to achieve a mentally clear and calm state of mind.

What’s Next

Unprecedented challenges are ahead for every human being, institution and industries. It’s crucial we all follow the World Health Organization guidelines as well as our local Governments recommendations. Let’s protect each other. Please stay at home if you can.