Are you taking on a job working from home? Here are our top 10 tips to keep you on track while looking out for your wellbeing.

Working from home or ‘remote working’ has its benefits (no commute, PJs optional!), but there are also plenty of distractions. That’s never more evident when the whole family are home! It’s also easy to get bogged down in work and can be difficult to switch off.

Obviously these tips won’t work for every household or every work situation. If both you and your partner are working from home, you’re a sole parent, or your other half is an essential worker, then you’re going to need to implement some shift work or adjust the time of day that you work.

For those that are used to working from home, there’s no harm in looking at how you’re working to ensure your own wellbeing while balancing family commitments.

Ten tips for working from home

1. Have a dedicated work space, preferably with a door so you can shut out the kids/partner/Disney+ on repeat (PS get those kids on the Disney+ 7 day free trial!)
2. Set clear boundaries with the family and kids for when you need to be working, based around your commitments. If they need to communicate with you ask them to text or message not come in.
3. Try to keep to usual work times as much as family/commitments will allow so that any issues can be fixed relatively quickly within your work team.
4. Communicate: Without face to face conversations, online scheduling tools like Trello or video conference sites like Zoom are great for keeping everyone in the loop.
5. Avoid making assumptions of people’s tone based on their messages. Sometimes people are in a rush, stressed, or just not thinking things through. It’s hard to convey the right tone in written word so remember not to overthink the intention.
6. Have a lunch break! Move away from the computer, have a proper lunch, engage with the family, talk a walk, etc.
7. Take regular breaks. Go for a walk in the garden, sit in the sunshine for 10 minutes, join the kids in a quick game.
8. Every 20 minutes, stretch and move around for a minute or two – focus on something other than your PC screen, paperwork, or phone.
9. If you’re finding it difficult to stay on task, set a timer for 20 minutes and work on one thing on your to-do list.
10. Set a definitive time to finish work, then pack up and move away – avoid constantly checking back in.

What’s your best working from home tip?

See more:

• 5 online education resources for curious minds
• Understanding the COVID-19 alert levels
• What you need to know about coronavirus

Written by Julie Scanlon

Julie is Editor for Kidspot NZ and our MVP. Her hobbies include laughing uncontrollably at her own jokes, annoying her family by asking questions about movie plots, and never taking anything too seriously. She speaks a little Spanish and a lot of Yorkshire. 

Favourite motto to live by: “It ain’t nothing but a thing”