Working From Home And Learning It

Lessons I’ve learned working from home and hints to make this process an easier experience

I'm pretty sure that for some of our colleagues working from home is as exciting as having ice cream in the summertime (well, at least I L-O-V-E it). I mean, how extraordinary is it to be able to sleep a little longer, since we don't have to consider the commuting time home<->work? Or waking up a bit earlier to join an online yoga session before jumping into our first Teams call? How about having a long lunch break because we are essentially free to work slightly longer in the evening? All these things would sound just amazing if it wasn't for one thing: we are going through a world health crisis. A global trauma. A pandemic!

Working is no longer as it used to be and if I'm allowed to guess, it will never be the same again (hopefully better!). Not that I'm an expert in "Working From Offices", quite the opposite. I have joined Accenture Interactive in March 2020 and just two weeks after my Onboarding, bam, lockdown. I have never had the opportunity to meet my colleagues in person - apart from our team lead, Hessel (hi, Hessel, if you're reading this!), during the interview process. So, to be honest, I don't know how is it to work from the office.

Nevertheless, I do know how is it to work from home and I know how difficult it can be. I still have rather tough bits working from home but I have been also learning how to make it work and live this process. I would like to use this space to share with you some hints to make it an easier experience if you're not the “having ice cream in the summertime” type of person (like I'm also not). 

1) Be kind

Be kind to your co-workers and be extra kind to yourself. Remember what I said about global trauma? Recognizing that we are going through difficult times will help you to manage your work relationships and might avoid a lot of stress. Maybe your colleague is not that productive working from home and needs help? Or perhaps they lost a loved one to Covid? We don't know what might be going on on the other end of the thread and it is important to be kind and support each other. It's also important to be kind to yourself. You're doing great! If you can't do everything, do everything you can and it should be enough. 

Nobody was prepared to know how to dealing with a global pandemic and entirely working from home. Not your junior colleague, not your leadership. Be kind. 

2) Listen to music

Music is a home-office must for me. I must admit that I enjoy the silence when I spend the whole day in calls but usually, music is my partner when I'm working. Here are some of my home-office favourites: 

• Khruangbin
• Tame Impala
• Jungle
• Alloinyx
• Breakbot
• Mac DeMarco
• Men I Trust

3) You don't have to keep it positive and this whole thing is not normal

You are entitled to feel sad and you don't have to constantly be positive. Nobody owns your positivity and it's ok to feel whatever you're feeling. Allowing yourself to just be is also being professional (as long as you're not overlooking hint number one). And no. Everything that is happening is not normal. We don't have to act like it is. This is all too absurd and sad and we could not see it all coming. It's not normal. It is, in fact, all very strange. 

4) Communicate

Let your colleagues know about your needs and the hurdles you might be facing. I acknowledge it's difficult to open up to, in some cases, people you have never met in person but allowing yourself to be vulnerable and share what's happening on your side might have a magical effect. 

5) Have long weekends

Since travelling is not recommended at the moment it might be a good idea to use your vacations to have long weekends. These breaks might have a powerful impact and help you to keep the mental and physical energy up.

My Conclusion

I understand that all of that is easier said than done but I wish that sharing insights, feelings and opinions can bring some comfort during these unknown times and put us all somehow together. We see you and we are there for you, as colleagues and as a community. In the end, we are not really strangers.