Work From Home & Keep it Fun

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Not long after the coronavirus appeared, the whole world started working from home. In the beginning, I loved it. I had no more travel time, could stay in bed for 2.5 hours long, and didn’t have to dress properly. Now, almost a year later, I’m starting to see the downsides as well. In this article, you can read how you can keep working from home as pleasant as possible.

The first 10 months of the corona crisis I worked from my parental home. My mother was suddenly my direct colleague and my brother took care of the work irritations by sprawling on the couch watching series and movies.

It was pleasant because you always have someone to talk to, the coffee breaks are pleasant and you don’t have to have lunch alone. I have now been promoted to an office for myself (read: my own house) and working from home has suddenly become a lot less pleasant. Fortunately, there are many ways to keep it as nice as possible. You can read what those are here.

Good workplace

When I was buying my interior I shouted very loudly that I would just work at the kitchen table. That’s fine, of course, but I still had a piece of wall left that could easily accommodate a desk. My savings were not finished yet, so I chose to create a place for myself.

This way I immediately prevent the dining table from becoming a mess and I can just leave my things. In addition, my body requires an ergonomic working posture, so who am I not to listen to that. To make my workplace even nicer, I have a laptop stand, a separate keyboard, and a mouse.

Read Also: 4 Tips for Comfortable Working from Home

Walk across your town

The old neighborhood where I lived was not really exciting. Always the same houses, the same route, and above all the same people. A walk quickly became boring or I was walking so long that I was already exhausted halfway through. Fortunately, this has completely changed with my new house. Living in the center of the city, which makes the walks a lot more exciting. I’m still exploring the area a lot, but I’m sure that if I walk around every day I still come across new things. In addition, a street art route starts near my house and I can indulge myself.

Homework routines

The first weeks I loved getting out of bed crumpled and in my chill outfit behind my laptop. After a while, I didn’t even bother brushing my hair anymore and was sitting in front of my laptop like Hagrid. My colleagues then started to discover the team meetings which often meant that I had to run upstairs at the last minute to make my head and hair somewhat acceptable.

To prevent that, I now have a fixed routine. My working day starts at half-past eight and my alarm goes off at half-past eight. Previously this was at 5 o’clock. I make sure that I immediately shower and demonstrably dress up. This makes a difference when my manager calls unexpectedly.

To avoid sitting in front of my laptop all day, my mother and I have some coffee moments. We then move five minutes to another part of the house so that you still have your coffee machine moments. I want to honor this in my new house. Maybe I should video call my mother over a cup of coffee?

Move enough while working from home

When I’m focused or stressed, I sometimes tend to sit in the same position in front of my laptop for hours. An occasional walk because I need to go to the toilet or want coffee, but that’s it. This often causes me to have extreme pain in my neck and shoulders in the evenings and so I can’t do anything for my freelance work. Fortunately, because of my neck complaints, I ended up with a good Cesar therapist.

He gave me some exercises that I can easily do behind my laptop. This way I am still busy with my body and relaxation, but I don’t have to leave my workplace. Of course, it’s always better to get away from your laptop and move for ten minutes, but in my case, that’s not always an option. Even more important than exercise is taking time to rest. I sometimes tend to skip my breaks, which is of course not very convenient. I have a 45-minute break a day. I now divide these moments over the day, so that I get enough rest.

Planting / Gardening

Are you looking for a reason to stuff your home office with plants? Then look no further! I know enough. The benefits of plants in your home (and office) are endless. Thus ensuring plants for oxygen and thereby increasing your concentration and productivity. You also experience less stress and you seem to start typing more of it yourself.

I personally think it is important that a plant has an air-purifying effect. If I walk on the street I already ingest enough toxic substances, then I naturally want to limit that in my house. Plants known for their air-purifying effect include Epipremnum (the Aureum is a great hanging plant), Calathea, and Monstera. Let those three plants just now belong to my favorites.

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