Hi there!
Let’s be honest. Social isolation and working from home, combined with a pandemic, can make anyone feel stressed and anxious.
It’s not the time to strive for excellence. You need to give yourself some time to adjust to a new environment where you might even be sharing space with kids or a spouse. You have to figure out how to work effectively and deal with your new distractions.
It’s OK to acknowledge that you might be feeling like you’re working 24/7 without a structure, that you’re left alone with little support or that you’re simply overwhelmed by the speed of changes. Taking care of your mental health in these uncertain times is as important as checking off tasks on your to-do-list.
So please, take care of yourself! You can start by going through this list of things:
- Create a morning routine that you will enjoy. Take the time for your favorite coffee, write in your journal, dress up, watch something that makes you laugh, and stick to the plan!
- Set an alarm clock to remind yourself about breaks. Hop on a call with your favorite people, do virtual lunches together, or take quick naps.
- Arrange space for work. Put some effort into arranging a space that your brain will associate with work and that will feel comfortable and nice.
- Practice the art of saying “no”. Make sure you know your priorities and you stick to them. Anything else that comes along the way? It’s ok to say “no”.
- Take the day off if you need. Our friends at Buffer have “unsick” days, and you can have one too. If you feel like you need to unplug from work and take care of yourself – go!
- Take care of yourself. Try to avoid binge eating or too much sugar, as it can impact your mental health. Stretch and get some fresh air if you can.
And most important of all… BE PATIENT.
We’re all in the beginning of a learning curve on how to work during the pandemic, and we are all new to this situation.
If you feel like you have the space and time to learn more about managing remote teams and join a global community of remote managers, we still have a few spots left for the next Class of Certified in Distributed Management. If you don’t want to miss it, hurry up! We start next week on 31st of March.
Stay safe, wash your hand, and remember… it will pass!
Best,
Remote-how team
Enjoy your weekly dose of fresh remote articles!
REMOTE-HOW blog
The Importance of Remote Team Building
Team building is an incredibly important part of managing and developing a team. In case you missed our recent guide on team building for remote teams, here’s an article that summarizes the most important aspects and gives a few examples of team rituals you can implement today.
REMOTE team
How to Manage Remote Employees: An Open Letter to Managers Leading Distributed Teams
It’s on the manager to implement a strategy that balances communication, priorities, and flexibility. In this article, Iwo Szapar Remote-how CEO & Co-founder shares his best practices for managers who are struggling with managing and leading remote teams. Especially if they are managing “newly remote teams” due to the current situation.
REMOTE transition
A Leader’s Transition Guide to Working From Home
Connie from Product Maestro shares insights on three aspects enabling her success when working or leading from home: 1) Home set-up, 2) Company Culture, and 3) Tooling. Although it takes time to transition, she explains how to take it slowly step by step and set yourself up for success.
REMOTE communication
9 Immediate Ways to Improve Communication in the Workplace
It’s almost always step number one when addressing persistent issues that hold you back, as well as what helps you move from good to great. Better communication increases understanding, fosters trust, and stands out as the essential ingredient for getting things done. But how can you improve on it? What steps can you take? Well, you can start here with this article.
REMOTE workspace
Building Your Home Office (From Scratch)
One productivity benefit from a home office is the subconscious cue to enter “work mode.” But how do you build a space that will serve you and your work? Your choices range from a simple desk in the corner of your room to an extravagant outdoor building – which should you choose? Read this article for tips about arranging your space.
