Our team decided to go full remote 2 weeks ago to protect ourselves and others around us from COVID-19. We’re still getting used to working from home and we imagine you are probably also going through the same transition to remote working
Our team at Nestor works around the clock to build new features to make teamwork & collaboration easier. Here is what we’ve concluded in the past 2 weeks while working with remote teams and experiencing a fully remote work environment.
We are experiencing a shift from in-office to remote environments. Most of us face this transition in a hard way. Getting access to business information and enabling remote collaboration is critical for businesses to stay alive and keep their operations up and running. Accelerating cloud deployments so that remote co-workers can get access to the organization’s networks, undertake their normal day-to-day activities and make them feel productive is a must these days.
Now is the time to accelerate team collaboration and bring increased flexibility to organizations.
What to consider when Working From Home?
Remote is a chance for us to rethink how we live and work. It’s up to us how we make the situation to be to our advantage and lets be open to unleashing our imagination to turn it into a great experience.
Here are some tips that can help you while working from home:
1. Stay focused. Set up a dedicated workspace
Plan and prioritize your things for the sprint, for the week and make your ToDo list every day. If you don’t know what your goals are, clarify them with your teammates and your manager.
If you can, use a dedicated space or room for work. It helps avoid burnout.
2. Don’t expect the change to happen like magic. This is a process
It takes a bit to get to normal. Take time for you to adjust. Communicate with your team as you go. If you have questions, ask them. If you have issues, speak about them. If you identify communication gaps, offer solutions to them.
Don’t stay blocked if something comes up, ask for advice from your teammates or within your organization.
3. Engage with your teammates and your manager
Working from home doesn’t mean you have to drastically change your daily routines. You just need to adapt to the new style:
- Have 1-on-1 conversations with your manager at least once per week.
- If you were used to having a coffee with your teammates, then you can schedule a coffee chat instead.
- Keep communication channels open with your teammates.
- Organize team meetings.
- Jump into video calls and socialize – you can create an always-on video conferencing room (that’s OK!)
4. Separate work from life
Setting working hours is important. Share them with your family – especially if you are a newly work-from-home employee and you have your family in the home around the clock. If it helps, set reminders to start and finish work, and even take breaks.
5. Find a routine that works for you. Be flexible and embrace change
Don’t replicate everything that you would do on a normal in-office day. Be open, experiment new things and try to find what works best for you. Find a routine that makes you healthier and puts you in a good mood – you can exercise, rest, connect with your family, find time to cook something, read a book, etc.
At the end of the day, you want to have the feeling that you are productive and efficient.
Stay Safe & Be Well!
