Our tips for working from home

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With everyone being encouraged to work from home where possible, we have outlined our top five tips we’ve come across and adopted for our days at work. Being in a position where you can work from home is brilliant at this time and getting your work done is important for your business. Staying healthy both mentally and physically is important for you. The tips below are what we have outlined for you to be able to get the best out of your days working from home and to remain with a healthy mind.

1.Get Dressed:

Would you believe it, something so small as getting dressed has made the list. As tempting as it is to sit in your pyjamas all day, getting washed and dressed to start your day will psychologically gear you up to be productive with your work. Ensuring you do this can have much more of an impact than you ever thought was possible.

2. Find the best work space:

Working from home can be tough as you are more prone to distractions. If there’s other people in the house, set boundaries (if possible). Set the times you can be approached and the times where you need to get your head down and work. Dedicate an office space and surround yourself with inspiration to work hard.

Ensure your home has a work free zone, none of us want to feel like the place where we work is the place we spend relaxing. Maintaining this divide can be crucial to keep a healthy work life balance.

3.Keep your routine:

Humans are creatures of habit. Having a routine is vital, whether its setting your alarm for the same time each day, going to bed at the same time to ensure you have a good nights rest or taking your lunch break at the same time you normally would at work.  Routines help us mentally and physically prepare for something. Keeping your routine the same even if you don’t physically go to work will help you gear up for the day ahead. Make the most of what would have been your commuting time and spend this doing something that will set you up to have a positive mindset instead and make this a new part of your routine for the time being.

 

4.Pick up the phone:

Working from home can be isolating, especially if you live alone. Where appropriate, instead of emails why not pick up the phone to a work colleague, client or customer to discuss the matter. You can always follow this up with an email detailing the topics covered in the call, but you’ve been able to have some interaction with others and they will probably benefit from this too.

 

5. Take regular breaks:

Finally, you shouldn’t spend all your day glued to your screens and It’s been said to be more beneficial to take short breaks throughout your working day. If it’s safe to do so, why not sit in your garden or take a short walk adhering to the government’s guidelines. Just like any working environment, giving yourself breaks is incredibly important to let your brain and body relax and keep your mind fresh.

 

A work environment that works for you

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We’ve covered blogs about the benefits of an office space as opposed to working from home and covered finding the right space for you, but we want to delve deeper on what the impact the environment you work in can have on you and the effect it can have to your productivity and work abilities.

According to a study found online we spend approximately 13 years and two months of our lives at work, not including overtime and the sneaky checking of emails on an evening and weekend.

When choosing a place to set up office or deciding on the wall colours, furnishings and finishing touches, it’s important to know the impact these can have. To make this easier for you we have identified these elements and an understanding of the impacts they can have.

 

Lighting:

Whether it’s, natural, artificial, bright or dimmed lighting, all of this can impact your productivity levels. If you work inside do you have enough windows? Is there space for you to be able to walk and take 5 minutes out in the fresh air when its needed?  It has been said that natural lighting is the best source of lighting to boost productivity and reduce mental health related issues. Bearing this in mind, don’t worry if you don’t have enough natural lighting flooding in, you can create this by the clever use of lighting and bulbs as well as keeping away from rich tones in the office.

 

Sound:

Finding the right level of noise in the office can sometimes be tough, especially when you have multiple staff members. Maybe you are someone who finds comfort in the radio playing low in the background or someone who can’t hear themselves think if the whole office is filled with noise. Both could even work for you. Understanding this and what works best for the people you spend your time in the office with can help to boost workflow and crate a happy office environment.

 

Colour:

There’s so much that can be found about the psychologies of colour. Colour is a visual experience that subconsciously affects the brain and how we work. Having subtle hints of colour could inspire workers at pinnacle moments and can encourage stimulation and motivation. There are many different websites that help you make the right choice for your office. A common colour often used within offices is blue. Blue is said to be an intellectual colour and promotes thinking. Whereas yellow is usually used in moderate to promote optimism and innovation. These pops of colour don’t always have to be on the walls, why not add bright cushions, mugs, mouse mats or even hang paintings on the walls.

 

Layout:

When planning the layout of your office and the furniture you want to buy its important to plan this properly, working with the space you have and the best furniture to provide comfort at work. Spending around 8 hours a day in the same office space is a long time, so you need to be comfortable. Thinking about desk space so you and any staff members have enough room to comfortably spread out. Do you have the right chair for your needs? Do you have a space for stand meetings? Meetings with staff can often go on tangents, stand-up meetings keep things short and to the point.

 

Within the Craggs business parks, we have a range of different work environments all in the beautiful countryside. We may look remote, but we are in fact in a prime location. We are only 10 minutes away from two local towns, Sowerby bridge and Mytholmroyd as well as being easily accessible from the M62.

With neighbours like Vocation Brewery, Alpaca comfort, Portelli dog spa to name a few, there are multiple different businesses you can interact with, why not come visit and take a look, we would be happy to show you around. Please contact, info@thecraggs.co.uk or 01422 888450 and we will ensure someone will be around to help you with all of your needs.