As Corona virus continues to spread throughout the world, all kinds of employees are finding themselves working from home.
The first time I heard about the whole “working from home” situation, I was really jealous! I wished I worked from home! I thought I’d be lucky to sleep an extra hour, work in my pajamas, have a proper breakfast and enjoy my couch! Now that I’m home, I take it all back!
Truth is that being trapped in an enclosed space with someone 24/7, could lead to a kind of distancing – especially if the couple were having problems before the quarantine started.
“We’re both shouting into our laptops, and there’s no noise cancellation,” he said. “I’m listening to his calls all day and he’s listening to mine, and I can see maybe after another week of this it’s going to get really interesting,” she said.
It’s a completely new routine and when you’re adjusting to a new routine, you’re going to have ups and downs. Here are some tips that might help you:
- Get structured, but not too much: It’s difficult to get into your groove working from a completely different environment. The fact that the place around you changed, it doesn’t mean that your habits should change too. If you were the kind of employee who liked to bounce around from your desk to a meeting room table and then off to the kitchen for a 5’ break to get your work done, you shouldn’t have to limit yourself to one spot in your home either! Separate the rooms in your house to “work-zones” and “work-free zones”. Find a quiet area to work for some deep thinking, while sitting outside on your balcony might work to respond to emails. Preserve some spaces in your home that you never work in as you’ll find it it’s very difficult to relax at night when you associate those spaces with work.
- Communicate your needs regularly: The best way to create a peaceful work-from-home environment with your partner is to communicate with each other regularly. I know it sounds simple, but it needs lots of practice. Try asking directly for what you need from your partner; don’t expect them to be a mind reader. If you’re in the middle of something and they’re talking to you bugging you, just say, “Hey, I’ve got to get this done, I’ll talk to you when I’m done.” A clear, honest answer might save your day!
- Build a routine together: We have no idea when the quarantine ends which means that your partner might continue to be your colleague for quite a long time. Having this said, it’s obvious that establishing a routine is vital. A sense of normalcy and a sense of routine are really important if you want to get out of this situation sane and still in a relationship. Follow the same routine when working from home as you do when going into the office: wake up, take a shower, get dressed, eat your breakfast and start working.
- Check on your partner’s mental health: It’s a very stressful period for all of us and during times of stress, it’s very easy for people to become overly absorbed in their work. This leads to nerve-wrecking conversations, awkward silence and fights. What you have to do is to encourage your partner to take a break. Take a break, stop working, have a quick chat and get back to work when you make sure that everything is fine. Open the windows and clear the atmosphere. Your mental health is important!
Figuring out how to work from home without ruining your relationship is difficult, but it’s not impossible.
I hope I helped a bit.
xoxo,
Andrea
