5 Tips for Working from Home for Newbies

It has finally happened. You are now allowed to work from home.

No more traffic.
No more having to wake up early.
No more dressing up.

You can watch Netflix while working.
You can work in your PJs.
You can spend more time with your partner or kids.

Or can you?
Is working from home really that simple?
Can you really work while working from home?

If this is the first time you are working from home, here are a few tips to help you actually WORK from home.

1. Pick a space where you will work and make that space sacred.

You might think that working at home means you can work in bed, in the toilet, or just about anywhere but if you want to be productive while working at home, you need to find a space that will get you in the right frame of mind to work.

Trust me on this. I tried working from my bed before and because I am in my bed, my mind wasn't working because it was programmed to be in relax mode, not work mode.

2. Cut down on the distraction.

Your cat, kids, partner, the neighbor, Netflix, Spotify, and whatnot are all distractions. It's worse than your office coworker who loves to chat because you can be formal and businesslike with your coworker to make them walk away but you can't do the same to your family, friends, or pet.

To make sure that you won't be distracted so much, establish that there are hours where you're "working" even if you are at home. This needs to be established to minimize wasted time.

Also, stay away from your phone. 

3. Put up a sign.

If you will be on a conference call, video call, or one on one meeting, put up a sign. It could be that if you are wearing a visible headset, people at home shouldn't call you. If you have a certain item beside you, people shouldn't be shouting around you. Whatever it is, make sure that everyone knows that it means you need a bit of quiet time so that you can conduct business.

I make sure my cat Yang is in the bathroom when I have con calls or else, my teammates will end up looking at her during meetings because she loves to place herself in front of the camera if I don't lock her up.

4. Have your To-Do List.

It's so easy to get up, grab a coffee, have a chat, and what not when you're at home. Having a to-do list will remind you of what you need to accomplish for the day so it's important to have a reminder on your designated workspace.

5. Schedule your breaks.

This is important because if you don't, you will feel burnt out fast. Make sure that when you are on break, you are away from your designated workspace. Never eat in front of your laptop because you will end up working and then you won't be able to differentiate between working from home and just being at home.

There are still many more things you need to know but this is a good start to surviving working from home. If you can be truly productive in this scenario, then maybe you can use this as a case that you should be allowed to work from home in the future once the Covid 19 scare is over.

PS.

Make sure you have a strong internet connection. Connectivity is crucial if you want to work at home successfully. You will need to be as dependable as ever, with the ability to perform the tasks that you do in the office and communicate with your coworkers with ease. A slow connection is a productivity killer.

And because PLDT Home knows that many of its subscribers are going to stay at home in the next month, it’s rolling out another round of free speed boost for PLDT Home Fibr Plan subscribers 1299 and 1699 in Metro Manila, Rizal, Bulacan, Laguna, and Cavite. From their usual 10mbps and 20mbps, they get to enjoy up to 25mbps of internet speed from March 15 to April 30.

While PLDT Home WiFi Prepaid users will continue to enjoy their favorite P199 prepaid pack double the data promo (from 12GB to 24GB) until April 30. If you don’t have a PLDT Home Prepaid WiFi yet, you can get a brand new one for only P995.

PLDT is your partner in maintaining your dependability. When your internet connection is strong, your coworkers will be able to count on you.