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Home Working

It feels as though we are entering a new business working paradigm,  but it’s not just business;  it’s Homelife, family life, social life everything. With school’s closing last week and further measures to come we all are having to change the way not only we live and work but also how we connect with co-workers, family and friends and how we interact with each other going forward.

As a regular homework myself I love the solitude and simplicity of working at home. However, now we have family members working at home as well as children home from school this all adds another level of complexity to what was once a simple solution.

My early solution to this complex challenges ti try to be disciplined and carve out specific times in the day to work and times to play with children or do school work with children and support elderly relatives who might be staying with you. We don’t know how long this is going to go on for so I am looking to try and can maintain some level of routine in our lives. The main thing I would say is to focus on clear communication around expectations both with your family and those at home and also with your coworker,  bosses and staff. You might need to get some of your work done once the kids are in bed, but don’t think you can work all day and work all night you will burn out quickly so you still need to take proper breaks, eat nutritious food and make sure you practice proactive daily self-care.

Also remember to keep up your activity levels, if you use the gym and are not able to do so now think about connecting into digital apps such as FIIT or Apptiv and there are many many free workout session is on YouTube.  You can always get into your garden or local park away from others to have a jog around or even just put on some music and have a boogie around your bedroom…  Try as hard as you can to keep your vibe high and to connect with those around you while doing so.

Also consider listening to podcasts, if you find the constant news feeds on the radio make your anxiety levels jump, think of switching to other digital radio stations like serenade or simply tune in to podcasts – they are great ways to listen to people talking about things you love. My personal favourites are The Power Hour, The Good Wolf and The Gratitude Podcast and of course the nation’s favourite Fearne Cotton’s Happy Place.

At the NHIC we are running digital drop-in sessions to support members to help their staff customers and colleagues during this unprecedented time. If you feel something like this would be of help to you just get in touch we are happy to connect even if you’re not members.

And so,  here are my 20 top tips for home working for newbies feel free to share, and if you have any other top tips or life hacks for working from home please do get in touch I’d love to hear them.

This guest blog was written by Anna Scothern, Chief Executive at NHIC

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