As we struggle to discover a “new normal” within COVID-19 fears and stay-at-home restrictions, we find ourselves moving our offices to our living rooms and dining rooms. Perhaps your office was equipped for high-tech success, with a dedicated internet connection, high-end software, an Intel Core i7 processor, and plenty of RAM. And maybe your home computer, by contrast, has been mostly for downtime recreation. This is just one adjustment. Working from home amid Coronavirus is the way to keep running business operations for companies, and continuing job responsibilities for employees.
Remote work or working from home (WFH), is an arrangement in which employees do not go to a workplace like an office building. It is also known as telecommuting, mobile work, teleworking, and flexible workplace. Some people also consider these terms different. But the common ground between all these terms is the ability to work away from a central office.
Beyond technical issues, working from home can be a challenge on a good day. And it can be even harder with your spouse and children at home with you. It is not easy to stay focused and productive during COVID-19. But with a few adjustments, it is possible to efficiently work remotely. By making these changes, it is manageable to successfully keep providing Information Technology Services through the Coronavirus pandemic.
Establish a Dedicated Workspace
If possible, try to designate a space that will function as your office at home. Understandably, not everyone has an extra room in the house that can double as an office, and that’s all right. Just try to avoid high-traffic areas that are prone to noise and distractions. Sometimes just sectioning off a corner of the basement or bedroom (or even moving into a large but underutilized closet) is enough to allow you to get your work done for the day without disturbance.
Also, one of the biggest distractions in working from home can be looking around and seeing nothing but clutter. Before getting down to work, it’s a good idea to give your chosen space a thorough cleaning. If you have accumulated a lot, you may even need to rent a dumpster. So that you can discard any old, broken, or unnecessary items. Start your journey working from home with a fresh and clean slate.
Set Yourself Up Online
You likely already have a reliable internet connection at home. But if you are going to work remotely, be sure. Talk to your internet provider to ensure your connection is fast and secure enough to handle the workload that you are about to throw at it. Will Wi-Fi be sufficient, or will you need a VPN? Many businesses use speedy T1 or T3 Internet lines to keep information flowing.
Keep your company in the loop about your status and ask about expectations in terms of speed. Your company may express concerns about your capabilities of working from home amid Coronavirus. If this is the case, then check with your supervisor about the feasibility of an upgrade, and the company’s willingness to cover the cost.
Check Hardware & Software Specs
Try to make your workspace as similar to your office space as possible. To begin with, you must be sure that your operating system (OS) is equipped to handle the kind of work you typically do at the office. Does it require a hi-resolution monitor? Do you need a dual-screen setup? Does your hard drive have enough speed and storage to handle your assignments?
If there is a big gap between your office hardware and what you have at home, see about upgrading your PC or laptop. Connect with someone from IT support at your workplace to help you out. And then ask if your company is willing to pick up the tab for work-related upgrades or not.
You may need to add a monitor, an external drive, or some speakers and a wireless mouse. If you are working from home in a high-traffic area, noise-canceling headphones may allow you to focus on the task at hand. If you expect to do a lot of video conferencing from your workstation (as opposed to your phone), check into a headset microphone and camera.
And what about your software? Nothing is as frustrating as silently fidgeting through a video call, waiting for someone’s work to load. So, also check the software specifications. Your company may have specialized, licensed, or proprietary software not normally used on a home PC or a notebook. If it needs to be downloaded or interfaced remotely, get your company’s IT team to help with installation.
Create a Schedule — and End It
When doing remote work, it is very easy to watch minutes blend into hours, which then convert into days. Avoid this situation by creating a schedule for working from home amid Coronavirus. Make sure that you schedule everything that must be accomplished for the day. But also include some downtime for yourself. You will also schedule time for lunch and a break. So that you can stay mentally and physically sharp for telecommuting.
Also, as manically tempting as it might be to work through the night, set a definite end time to your day. Just because your laptop and mobile phone are within reach, it does not mean you have to stay connected at all hours. Disconnecting and checking out from work at the end of every day, will keep you mentally prepared. It will give you plentiful time to recharge to tackle tomorrow head-on.
Preserve Your Contacts
Stay safe during Coronavirus by maintaining physical and social distance from others. But it does not mean that you have to cut off communication completely. Keep in touch with your clients and customers during the quarantine and let them know that you are thinking of them.
Ensure your customers that you care for them, by creating customized gifts bearing your company logo and sending to them. This way your customers will continue to think of you even through the COVID-19 quarantine. Chances of their doing business again with you will improve once the pandemic comes under control.
Use Collaboration & Productivity Tools
Be sure to stay connected with your team. Chances are, your co-workers might be struggling to work from home, just like you. Schedule a time to chat remotely by means of an online video conferencing service available. You never know when someone might have a suggestion to share that could help others adjust to working from home.
Utilizing the collaboration tools facilitates teamwork among the colleagues. Similarly, using other productivity tools improve efficiency of teleworking.
Analyze your Financial Health
The uncertainty of Coronavirus has us all concerned about the future. Keep your head in the game by nailing down your finances as best you can. Living from paycheck to paycheck is hard under normal circumstances, but it is downright impossible during a global pandemic. Check your bank accounts and create a household budget to help you stay on track.
Next, examine your credit score and make sure you are in good standing. If not, there are plenty of ways to improve your credit rating also. which can help you get better interest rates on loans in the future. You never know when you may need to borrow.
Conclusion
COVID-19 has certainly thrown a wrench into daily life as we knew it. Navigating the uncharted waters of this pandemic is scary and strange. It is perhaps especially difficult in a high-tech environment. But with a few adjustments, some upgrades, and collaboration with your colleagues, can help you in easily undergoing these changes.
Taking care of all these tips can make your working from home amid Coronvirus quest relatively simple. If it is difficult for your company to do mobile work. Then you can opt for IT outsourcing to continuously run your business operations.
Staff of Techliance is doing remote work through COVID-19. You can outsource your Software Development and related IT Services projects to us, and can be sure of quality services without any disruption.
