How to deal with working from home during self-isolation for covid-19

Wednesday March 18th 2020 - These last few days have been a rollercoaster both personally and professionally as I try to adjust to working from home in self-isolation during COVID-19. Keep reading to find out more about my current upside down work from home life and how I am trying (day-to-day) to deal with it.

I live and work in Spain, where on Friday March 13th the Spanish government announced a state of emergency and strict self-isolation rules. In particular, children are not allowed outside. Worldwide, the remote community is reeling from the impact of COVID-19; read Matt Mullenweg from Automattic’s take on this in his “work from home experiment no-one asked for” post.

Life in strict self-isolation: My family and I are confined in a 70meter square apartment, with a small terrace. Our daughter is 6 years old, she wants to go outside, go to school and she is confused and emotional. On a physical and emotional level, this has been very difficult for us all. In relation to the COVID-19 crisis, each day brings a wave of emotions as we are hear sad and upsetting news from friends and family. Read a longer analysis of the situation from another Spanish remote expert, Maya Middlemiss.

Furthermore to add in (any kind of) work commitments to the mix - in theory my husband and I are lucky that we can keep working, however we also have home-schooling commitments daily to facilitate for our daughter. It is most certainly a challenging time. On the afternoon of day 3 of this whole new process I am exhausted, frustrated and overwhelmed. It is not the work practice I am used to. A few weeks ago I wrote about my RoRemote work routine and how I structure my day……little did I know that it would be a distant memory a few weeks later! Now, everything is new, unpredictable and making me feel vulnerable.

So, I sat down, lit a candle (more on my self-care favourites below) and wrote down what I know about (and recommend in my teaching) about finding productivity working from home. I reminded myself about the importance of: routine, regular review, physical workspace, over-communicate, reflection and self-care, see how I am applying these (it may change, remember you need to review it!) below:

Agree a flexible routine - I have agreed with my husband that we take regular 2-3 hour work shifts during the day. So one of us can be with our daughter and the other can work. We are discussing and adjusting these daily routines regularly. Moreover, I am a natural early bird, so I have been getting up around 7am and getting an hour of work in before everyone else.

Have regular reviews and check-in’s - yup, every few hours that routine can change and so far it has! Maybe one of us has an emergency call or our daughter needs us. Accepting that nothing is certain except constant change, actually helps me move on.

Make the best of your physical workspace - our home office has now moved and it is in a new location which is quieter but also not it’s original location. Therefore, I have improved what I can, starting with my ergonomics to make sure I am comfy and have good posture and also moved all that I need around me. Make the best of what for many will be a “makeshift” set-up.

Over-communicate with everyone - including yourself (see below for further self-care tips). Communicate with family, friends and clients and work contacts. This is time to be explicit, repeat yourself, use different channels and be conscientious. Likewise, use video channels to ensure you are seeing and hearing to support full visual cues and to look people in the eye. We are all in this together! For many, It is a terrible and frightening situation so make that call to a trusted friend; acknowledge, share and vent your frustrations honestly. From there we can truly support each other and feel heard. Show compassion and empathy for all, especially yourself. Read Roberta Sawatzky's pertinent reminder on good communication practice.

Make time to reflect - I use my regular breaks in the day to reflect. Try setting a timer for the end of work periods, adding them to your diary etc. so you are taking breaks throughout the day and leaving your screen. I have a separate notebook I use for simple reflections and thinks to consider and contemplate. I find that gentle exercise and household chores like cleaning are often when I do my reflective thinking.

Mind yourself (Self-care) - so you have read this far and within all of the above is a hint of self-responsibility and self-care but to focus your attention, I suggest your write a list of key self-care items for you and pin it up somewhere prominent in sight. Or use the list above, from Lisette Sutherland, which can be downloaded here. My self-care list includes: take a bath, light a candle, call a friend for a chat, read a (non-work!) related book, listen to music, do some crafts (I like to sew), ask for a foot rub etc. In these trying times, remember to treat yourself with small rewards.

Remember, you need to mind yourself first during the current situation, before you can mind anyone else. So why not start now and write your self-care list for tomorrow, what will you do to take care of yourself?

Further Resources to support your mental wellbeing:

Coping with stress during the Coronavirus outbreak from the WHO

Mind, Mental Health at Work - Coronavirus and self-isolation; supporting yourself and your colleagues

RoRemote services - Check out my services page for the list of webinars I can provide to your company.