Nearly the entire nation is working from home during quarantine. While it is nice to know that we are all in this together, motivation could be lacking. It can be tempting to stay in your pajamas or workout clothes all day but, experts believe that you should stick to your normal, everyday routine. Here are some tips on how to keep morale up while working from home.
Dress for success. In order to maintain a certain level of professionalism you must dress for the part. Especially if you are participating in virtual video meetings, it is necessary to ensure you are maintaining a professional appearance. For us, we tend to wear one of our bodysuits like the Jacqueline bodysuit and throw the Chloe blazer on over it for our Zoom calls. This can also help your own productivity as you dress for success in your home office. A study from Human Resource Development Quarterly, presents that if you are dressing in everyday work wear while working from home, this dress code can make people feel more authoritative, trustworthy, and competent.
Working from home and just relaxing in your home can get confusing during this time if there is no distinction between the two. Wearing your normal work clothes while working from home can help decipher between the two and alert others at home not to disturb you while you work. Founder of the motivational YouTube channel called Better Ideas, Joey Schweitzer says that if you are getting up, eating a nice breakfast, putting on clothes that make you feel your best, you're going to have a good day. It is good to stick to your everyday rituals. For example,Julie Morgenstern, an organization and productivity consultant recommends that if you have a commute to work, use that time to get grounded or have family time. Do not work during what would have been your normal commute time.
As this is an extremely stressful, anxiety ridden time for everyone it can be hard to focus on work. The social isolation and anxiety we are all feeling can affect our performance at work immensely. Getting dressed in the morning before working as well as sticking to your normal schedule can give a person a sense of control and normalcy- something we are not feeling everyday due to the pandemic. If we are dressed in our work attire we can feel more motivation -as well as normalcy- to work rather than wearing what we wore to bed. For us, we make sure to at least change our outfit from our workout clothes, and throw a little mascara on. This just helps us feel a bit more ourselves and changes the perspective. According to the head of content for a company called Honest Paws, Chelsea Rivera, you should have a routine very similar to the one where you actually go into the office. She recommends getting dressed like you are going into work to increase productivity. Get up, get dressed and get after it.
Another aspect that can be lacking in your life at this time could be the motivation to exercise. It is important that we are not only keeping our minds right during this difficult time but our bodies as well. Natasha Withers, a physician at One Medical Group provides some advice on the best ways to work from home. Withers believes that you should set a schedule and stick to it. We know this can be extremely hard especially when you have kids. But even a few minutes a day or a walk around the block will do. This will not only benefit your mental health but make time for other activities you wish to do. Withers also suggests setting a specific time into your schedule to exercise. She believes that you should be setting aside time to exercise as you set time aside for meetings.
Stay safe and healthy.
Christine Grey, CEO & Founder