A Typical Day Working From Home
Wednesday, October 7, 2020
We are all in a race to adapt, amidst the uncertainty, as we acclimatise ourselves to our new work environment.
I’m no different. Since March, I’ve made it a point of duty to acquire the right tools, replicate my office space, and re-orient myself to work from home.
I’m blessed to work in an industry that champions remote working and a job that enables me with the right tools to facilitate it. Without trying to sell my company, I’m a marketer, working in the cloud-communications industry — we are tasked with providing the right solutions for business continuity.
Back to me, I’ve been working remotely, once a week, since last October.
I’m fully-adjusted now. Life has gotten busier, between planning a wedding, a move and a renovation. My day is full of adventure. Which I relish!
Well then, step into my world, as I give you an insight into my typical day working from home.
I usually keep a diary of my daily activities; I picked this Wednesday as it’s a perfect reflection of my daily schedule. Wednesday is technically mid-week; not as chaotic as Mondays, or dull as Tuesdays; Thursdays, for me, is reserved for meetings — and Friday, well, is Friday.
Anyway, welcome to Tailand (get, it?).
Wednesday, 6th of October, 2020
My days are perfectly structured. I usually get up around 6:00 am. I’m quite the early riser! Not because I’m a motivational-merchant, get-up-and-grind preacher; it’s simple, I sleep early, I wake up early!
I’m not into any TV shows, I don’t play video games anymore, I’m not as invested in sports like my teenage years (well, now that Arsenal are pants).
By 8:00 pm, the show is over, and I have my AirPods in, listening to the political interview of choice for that evening.
Morning
I got up, did around 10 minutes of deep breathing exercise to calibrate my mind for the day ahead. Brushed my teeth, had a quick rinse, headed downstairs to my workstation.
We are in the middle of a renovation, so I have reverted to the kitchen as my office.
Turned on my phone to check the news (I’m a journalist, remember!). First the WSJ, then Irish Times. Lastly, the breaking news from the night before — more Corona Virus news. Give me a break!
8.00 a.m
I scrolled through my Evernote app then proceeded to open my journal, glanced through my notes and to-do list.
Noon
Checked the analytics report in our CRM, tweaked a few ads, then headed for lunch.
Lunch
I had some chicken kievs and sweet potato fries. My diet is in the dumpster at the moment, but I will figure it out over time. I hope.
Afternoon
I spent my afternoon researching topics, creating content and building a knowledge repository. I believe now, more than ever, is the time to take up the mantle of leadership.
Guiding businesses on how to adopt the right tech to facilitate the digital transformation that ensures business continuity and sustainability is my goal.
Remote working is trending now, but no-one is an expert on this paradigm shift in work culture. The best way to proffer solutions is to listen to the concerns of businesses, in different industries, and find a way to design a value-based offering that helps them excel in their new business reality.
My job is to communicate that to people — be it through compelling graphics, digestible content, any other medium that that nurtures them through their buyer’s journey.
Evening
I spent my evening preparing a brief for the next guest of my Instagram series: On the TLA; On the TLA is an Instagram-Live series that aims to inform and offer insights into industries, trending topics and social commentary. I have used my network of friends and relationships forged over the last few years to build an impressive guest list.
Past guests have included, Devan Hughes, CEO of Buymie, an online grocery delivery platform; Akindele Philips, Co-Founder of Farmcrowdy, a Nigerian-based Agritech Company, Shane Fleming of Fleming Real Estate and many more.
Later in the evening, I reviewed the budget for our wedding.
We have secured our location and wedding planner — roll on 2021!
I took my medication at 9.00 and retired to my bed — see you tomorrow!
We are all on the pursuit of a perfect work/life balance; you can attain it by creating a conducive environment that improves your productivity.
The key is discipline and having the right tools to enable your remote working lifestyle. Here are some tips for maintaining productivity while working from home:
- Make sure you have the business tools and tech to power your remote work lifestyle.
- Keep your daily routine: If it is not broke, don’t fix it! Take the same breaks, and work your regular work hours.
- Plan your days out: Make a to-do list of work tasks then figure out how to ration out your day to complete them. This keeps you from veering off tasks when distractions inevitably present themselves.
- Minimise online distractions: Like in work, avoid the rabbit hole of social media. As a marketer, I have to glance through our social channels during the day, but I confine myself to our marketing page during work hours.
As the country went into lockdown initially in March, I began investing in my home office set-up. I’m in the middle of a move and a renovation, so I have to innovate and maximise my space, especially my home set-up.
What has been a mainstay are the apps that keep me organised, productive, and accessible. These apps are the anchors of my daily tasks, they are:
Evernote: I use Evernote to jot down my notes, draw up my to-do list, clip web articles for research and so much more.
It’s also become an invaluable resource for my wedding planning. There is a free version; but if you can, invest in the feature-rich subscription for €6.99 a month. A great tool for creating a structure for your work-day.
Microsoft Teams: This is my default platform for all things comms. My company provides a phone system integration with Microsoft Teams, that enables my external calls, and internal calls to my direct business line.
Spotify: I’m always in a creative space. Music helps to stimulate my creativity. I’m currently into Jazz, and my favourite artist Sunny Ade.
I’ve created a playlist for my working hours, which can be found here.
