JA Worldwide Staff's Best Work-from-Home Advice
April 2, 2020
It’s safe to say that life has changed for everyone in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. Among those changes is a shift in the daily work routine—many of our commutes, for example, have gone from rail, car, or bus to taking just a few steps from one room to another in our homes. But while we may be wearing slippers instead of shoes under our desks, the JA Worldwide team is still hard at work, pursuing our organization’s mission every day.
The JA Worldwide staff on our first all-staff Zoom call.
The JA network is no stranger to working from home offices, with around half of the JA Worldwide staff based outside of our Boston, Massachusetts, USA, headquarters. For some of our staff, working remotely is a brand-new experience; for others, it’s part of the usual routine. With remote work and social distancing new to many workers around the world, we wanted to share some tips and helpful hints from both expert work-from homers and those new to it. Here’s how we remain productive and upbeat when working from home:
““Set up an office and make sure it’s not near the kitchen! Otherwise, you WILL make more trips to the fridge than you should.””
““Avoid looking at and working out of your inbox all day long. Focus on one priority at a time and complete it as much as your function allows, and then go on to the next priority. It is hard (for me) to do anything well if I am trying to do five different things at the same time.””
““Find a great playlist. This helps keep me focused and motivated! I also listen to my Fitbit, making sure to get my steps in, even if it’s just walking up and down the stairs.””
““Get dressed every day before you start work, even if that just means changing into clean leggings and hoodie, and maintain a morning routine (wash face, brush teeth, comb hair . . . ). It puts me in the right frame of mind each day.””
““Place a piece of paper over your keyboard—even if you’re just leaving for a minute—to deter the interest of curious pets, especially cats.””
““How do I leave work behind when it’s always right there in front of me? My best solution has been to dedicate a room to work and close the door at a certain time every night and on weekends. When my office hasn’t had a door, I power down the computer and put away notes and other evidence of projects when I’m done for the day or the week. In both cases, I also stop checking work email on my phone after a certain time. This helps me to have a time in my life that’s totally focused on work, and time that’s totally focused on anything but work.””