Sara’s WFH top tips!
Luckily, at Fearless Futures, we have a very flexible working arrangement at the best of times. In fact, we believe it’s an important facet of any human-centred, inclusive organisational culture — the option to wfh from time to time. This means wfh is super familiar for many of us. As my role involves a lot of international travel — I am actually rarely in the office and often wfh or working from a hotel room (or by the pool, if I’m so lucky!). Here are my top tips:
- Get up and about.
Don’t work from the same spot all day. It’s not good for your body or your mind. I start my working day in the kitchen with coffee to hand and move to the living room after lunch. The environment we’re working in can inform how we feel and work and I find shaking up where I’m working helps keep me focussed. Even if I’m staying in the living room all day, I swap chairs and sides of the room or move towards the window after lunch. Light is so important for concentration and focus! And sometimes just going from sitting on a chair to sitting on the floor with my laptop is the change my body and mind needed to refocus.
2. Avoid death by VC!
VC meetings are magical — you get to see colleagues and stakeholders faces and talk through things. However, VC after VC after VC can get tedious. Sometimes it might be necessary though. How to avoid losing the will to live? Firstly, I like to walk around while I’m talking. I’m quite a restless person at the best of times but also my mind works better when my body is moving. If you’re the same — make sure to turn your camera off and stay within hearing-distance of the laptop/phone! Secondly, I try to make sure VC calls don’t end as another is due to begin so that I have time to make a cup of tea and do something else (probably mindlessly check Twitter!)
3. Know how you work best.
Some people really thrive from, and their work in turn benefits from, human interaction — so when wfh, picking up the phone and talking to someone or setting up a VC is really useful. Some people need stimulation and noise to get in their groove — so playing music while they work (hello to my neighbour on the right-side!) is something they should always do. For me — I know what works. Silence, no mess at all around me and time. So I make sure I work where it’s quiet, I tidy any space before I work and I make sure there’s time blocked out properly in my diary for a task (so people know what I’m up to and can wait to get in contact). Spend time finding out how you work best and implement that in a disciplined way.
