How to Effectively Work From Home

So, DevX is back with making the Lockdown more effective! This journey of coping with the household chores and managing work at the same time, is a reality that we have to accept while we continue staying home! Every small change makes a difference that affects our productivity. Also, with the kind of news we receive about the pandemic every day, it is a bit challenging to focus on things and stay effective!

How to avoid distractions during WFH?

On this, Rahul mentioned how he feels that social media, considered one of the biggest distractions, is not a problem if not used excessively. He also mentioned the fact that you must schedule your work and set a timer for your work to avoid those distractions. He insisted on setting up your workflow routine which will help you in staying productive and effective. Further, he added, that you can indulge yourself with these distractions during the free hours. Proper time management makes a major difference. Lastly, he mentioned to focus more on your work priorities and set them accordingly.

Addressing the same question, Hardikmentioned about his daily routine and schedule. He focused more on planning your work daily so it becomes a smooth process. You must also keep verifying the work done to know how much has been accomplished. He further added that a dedicated space for work is a must. Setting up DND for the distractions from social media would be of great help.

How can someone manage a business that requires physical presence?

Madhav took to this question and pointed out two important things; Firstly, companies can use social media platforms to showcase their services/products/designs to the clients if they are the kind of businesses that require physical presence. Secondly, they can use e-mails to communicate and send their designs to the clients as an when needed.

Nitya also gave her opinion focusing on two points. First is the physical presence and the other is to meet clients. Both of these are important to any business. She mentioned how technology can be helpful in meeting the client’s needs and fulfilling their requirements during such times. She also focused on how decision purely depends upon the behaviour of the clients and their feedback. Lastly, she also mentioned that we must be well prepared as to the change we are going to see in the customers’ needs & expectations.

How effectively can people invest in developing new skills?

Discussing upon this question, Hardik suggested of various ideas such as interacting with different people, learning new things to improve something that is needed upon, identifying new things and understanding how it affects you and in what ways will it prove beneficial for you. He also emphasised on the importance of giving equal time to work and family and to consider this as an opportunity to be clearer about your goals.

How can you track if your team’s productivity?

Prachi was of the opinion that it is very important to organise inter-team meetings from time to time. Scheduling your work with your team needs to be done as an when needed. Daily calls and planning are essential to stay updated with their work. Also, taking regular feedback from the clients about the work must be mandatory.

How to manage the sleep schedule while working from home?

As per Rahul’s opinion maintaining a strict schedule for your work helps you manage your sleep schedule also. Distributing teamwork makes it an easier task.

Some useful time management tools and techniques mentioned by Madhav were Trello, Google Planner, Sticky Notes, and other similar online tools. But the main factor remains the same – Discipline! Distributing your work into multiple sets of tasks helps in time management. He also mentioned that spending time with yourself refreshes you, instrumental music can also be of use to take a quick break & refresh your mind. Also, a Lockdown Learning Approach helps in exploring and learning new things.

A very common question lingering in most of our minds being what are the activities to stay motivated to work amidst this boredom?

Addressing this, Nitya mentioned that it always differs from person to person. Learning new courses, cooking recipes, some motivation from social media would definitely help in creating productivity. She also mentioned that you must do something that brings you joy; that will help you stay motivated. Also, fresh air makes you energetic in many ways.

Whereas, Rahul’s way to staying productive is by keep himself physically active. Exercising keeps him active & motivated and also in some ways will help you in breaking the monotony and staying energetic the entire day.

Concluding the entire session, the speakers shared some highly effective methods to balance working from home. The numerous suggestions & ideas could be summed up as follows:

• Self-discipline is a must
• Stay as much organised as possible while working from home
• Adapt the digital opportunities and do more quality work
• Keep brainstorming for ideas
• Read some good books to reduce the stress
• Get out of your comfort zone and push your limits
• Identify new clients & get in touch with them online
• Use the time to reflect upon your goals
• Avoid fake news & rumours
• Consider the positive out of every situation possible
• Experiment new things and be creative in your work

To further listen to the views of our panelists on effective ways to WFH, here is the sneak-peek.

Let’s make the most of this time & utilize the lockdown (or rather staying home safe) into new opportunities to reflect upon how we can improve our work!