Work from home tips: avoid feeling isolated

While there are many benefits; just think — who wouldn’t enjoy avoiding the rush hour commute — there can be obstacles to maintaining your productivity. Home working can cause feelings of isolation and being physically disconnected from a team can hinder collaboration.

Here's a collection of unique tips and insights from our Workplace Creator, Lizzy Sleeman, who worked from home for almost seven years.

Time keeping

For many, the challenge of home working is a lack of 'normal workday' structure. So, what’s the best way around this? Pretend you’re going to the office even when you’re staying in. Having a similar time management plan or establishing a routine can help keep you focussed on tasks at hand.

Set your alarm, get up and get dressed, make a coffee and start your day just as you would if you were leaving for work. Another tip to help you keep on-track and productive throughout the day is to establish rituals. Start with making sure you’re making a morning coffee, tea (or having breakfast) at the same time each day to keep yourself in-check. Otherwise, time can quickly start to slip away from you, and before you know it, it’s midday and you’re still in your PJs. Try and keep to a similar lunch or break schedule as you would in the office, which can help with maintaining structure, too.

Set a budget

An added benefit of working from home is you save on your daily commute to the office. While lunch out may be a treat when you’ve already paid for your daily transport, you’ll be in the same financial position if you spend the money saved from your commute on supporting local businesses. Visiting independent cafés and shops will help decrease the feeling of isolation and foster a sense of community. You might be surprised to find a lot of people remotely working in your local café!

Mirror yourself

Here’s one for when you’re working by yourself or you need a little more privacy than a permanent FaceTime link offers. Bring a little vanity or shaving mirror from your bathroom into your study or workspace. This may sound odd, but hear us out here — seeing your reflection, even in your peripheral vision can help abate feelings of loneliness. We’re not suggesting starting to talk to yourself, but seeing a familiar face can often help and do wonders for wellbeing.

Don’t watch box sets

But put them on! Having familiar chatter on in the background can help emulate the murmur of your office background. Put on your favourite (or maybe third favourite) box set or TV channel if you like that background chat. We’d recommend streaming on a secondary device so it can’t steal too much of your attention.

Wilson

Finally, if you’re really feeling like you need company, locate and name your favourite volleyball!