For many of us, we’re now in Week 2 of suddenly working from home and/or homeschooling, and it’s a learning process. What’s worked for you so far in balancing it all? Has anything?
Also on childcare: saw something online and immediately adopted it to stave off the constant "I want a snack" demands: letting them choose a selection of snacks at the beginning of the day, putting them in a basket, and letting them choose them at their leisure. When they're gone, they're gone.
Working: having each of them write an essay on why they should get a dog. exchange essays. write feedback. Making my kids and parents prepare a powerpoint presentation on something they didn't know about before and present to each other.
not working: me. I'm not getting nearly enough work done. I should be doing work now but I'm watching both kids do online lessons and intermittently answering questions. It took me like 10 minutes to type this.
I was working at home 2x/week before the Coronapocalypse, so I had some semblance of an idea of what this would be like, but it always felt...temporary? Ad hoc? I was mainly working at the dining room table, so the monitor and keyboard were always there but could be easily relocated. Now that this is more permanent, I retrofitted some stuff from the utility room into a "desk" in the guest bedroom, bought a giant mousepad (seriously, get a giant mousepad, they're about $13 on amazon), and am now in a room with a door. The main difference is with our daughter, because this gives her some idea that daddy is working and shouldn't be bothered; she knows this is different than before, so she's able to take care of herself a little more easily (my wife is still home, so it's not like Moana is her babysitter).
I normally WFH 2 days a week - my best advice is try some different things and find what works best for you. There's no one-size-fits-all approach, in my mind. For example, I'm not one of those people that gets up and showers and goes about my normal routine before work. I prefer to log on right away work a little and organize my morning. Then when I have a ten minute break, take a shower and stuff. However, I have found that making sure I'm working at some desk-like structure helps a lot; sitting on the couch does not. Take frequent breaks, walk around. Take advantage of not being cooped on in an office or cube. I also liked having something on in the background in the mornings (s/o Lebetard and Stugotz) but not so much now.... And the biggest thing, to me, simply closing my computer when it's normal quitting time.
I hope the one positive people can take from this is how good WFH can be (in smaller doses...!). But also, I think we should all cut ourselves some slack. I've seen so many posts about how to maintain productivity. These are not normal times. We should do our best, but don't beat yourself up if you're not as productive as you want to be. We'll all get through this with some patience, understanding and empathy.
Pomodoro technique (25 minutes focused, 5-10 off) has been really helpful in staying productive. Lot of 10 minute guided mindfulness meditations in my day now.
I've been working from home for years. Have established a good routine with the dog to make sure he gets what he needs, but he's been on a hair-trigger for about a week after soaking up our anxious energy. Been doing several walks a day instead of just kicking him into the back yard. I think it helps us both.
I’m keeping up with my half marathon schedule despite the race being postponed. Running always relaxes me, now more than ever. I’m still walking my dog and playing fetch with her. Also, I’ve been playing the new Animal Crossing (which is very relaxing).
During work hours I try to limit my phone time by using the “Forest” app to focus.
All my work stuff is in a separate room from everything else so when I am finished for the day I can separate away from it.
I've been working out more, and making a point of trying to read instead of watch TV (gives me something tangible to show progress in) and I started up Duolingo to refresh my college language learning. The sense of accomplishment makes me feel like I'm not wasting days.
The other big thing for me has been limiting my intake of *gestures broadly* because it is giving me major stress dreams. I have a hard screen off time at 10pm and try to avoid checking first thing in the morning which is when I've been able to get to the reading.
I try to stay informed enough, but given that there isn't much of it I can control I'm trying to give myself that little break.
My wife is a resident in pediatrics and we have our 2 year old at home. He's been going crazy (obviously) but I've found it more helpful for my mental health to be with him more and be less tied to my laptop. Work can always wait!
This is real. It's been tough trying to balance work and kids, but when I get interrupted a few times a day for "daddy, I want a hug", things seem alright.
Running in the afternoons. I've always leaned towards strongman but with all the gyms closed and a shoulder injury healing, this has been a nice escape from the home office that lets me still get into the pain cave
I probably need to get into an exercise routine apart from walking the dog. Maybe periodic 10 minute breaks to do some ab exercises, push-ups, or yoga?
After last week, the wife and I decided to make people go back to having an alarm in the morning and get up at a reasonable time, have breakfast and then do school work first thing. My wife is finishing her last semester of community college online so she's trying to do a full course load, which makes this all even more complicated.
I'm just on day 2 (first full day) so we'll see how it goes, but I was successful in showering and getting dressed on the usual schedule, and being in my home office by 9 a.m. I'm not in work clothes but I did put on jeans. Yesterday I went right to sweats when I started WFH in the afternoon and it was weird having to mentally turn off being in work mode. Hopefully being able to change out of jeans tonight will change with that transition.
The biggest issue is going to be how my dog adjusts to a new schedule. He's currently asleep on the futon in my spare room (which is now a home office) but I figure he'll be awake and antsy around lunch time, so I'll take him on a longer one. Then I'm going to have to figure out how to not get annoyed when he starts begging for food around 3, when I don't stop working until 6
I work from the desk in my bedroom but I’ve found that when I take time to go through the morning routine (shower, put on clothes that aren’t pajamas, etc.) I feel a lot better and ready for the day. also taking a real lunch break to just relax (watch tv, read a book) for 30-45 minutes every day is nice. I will caveat all of this by saying I don’t have kids
oh hey it's an adjustment for all of us, I'm curious kids or not. I've definitely made sure to still shower and dress. the hardest part on the desk being right there is to "go home" at the end of the workday
Yeah I feel that. Thankfully I’m usually able to be done with things/answering emails by 5:15 my time. Having roommates who are also done by then and willing to watch a movie or something helps too
Second on those kid yoga videos. It's our afternoon gym class when the weather is rotten. Mine are 5 and 3, so we have to get out of the house or do something like that every day.
Take a walk around the park (about the length of my commute, 10-15min) when I would be driving to work, do the same when I would be driving home. Takes the edge off of the smearing where you accidentally wake up late and start working at 9:30am, or realize at 6:30pm that you should be done and you should start dinner.
Also it forces you to put on pants, if only briefly.
Ahh, this is a great idea. I've already found my morning routine going to shit. I've been starting work later than I was when I had to drive 20 minutes to get there.
I don’t know if it’s possible in your circumstances, but I’ve got an 8 am team meeting everyday that’s actually been really helpful in maintaining my morning routine
From the "I'm trying not to go crazy" front: I said it a few months ago, and I'll say it now: 2020 is the year of doing puzzles. We knocked out a hard 1000-piece puzzle in a couple days this week and it was great to stay off our phones and focus on something else.
From the childcare front (I have two preschoolers, which should be evident if you're a regular reader here): various kid-friendly yoga programs on YouTube have been a morning godsend.
Running every day, because otherwise I don't go outside at all. I (for reasons I can't explain) am super motivated to run anyway, but both a local running store and a "beer runners" group I'm in have suspended all in-person events but are doing things on Strava to make solo running fun. For example, a prize to a random person who runs over a certain bridge this week, or a prize to whoever beats their previous one-mile PR by the most.
I’m a teacher and a football coach with a 2 year old and a wife that’s 40 weeks pregnant. I teach both senior AP and on level economics , and trying to record lessons with a 2 year old running around is impossible. I’ve had to set reminders on my phone to do things I took for granted because I was in such a routine (drink a glass of water, etc). I’m getting into a better routine, dog gets walked at 6 am, lunch, and late evening for some exercise. I also found out how much of a saint my wife is for taking care of my daughter and running her business.
I'm going to try to kill off much of my CLE requirements this week/while work is slow. They're due by the end of June but, well, I'm sitting at home. I am absolutely going to fall asleep listening to one of these too. It's for the better that I have them, because otherwise it would be a whooooooole lotta tv streaming to supplement the cooking i've been doing
Also on childcare: saw something online and immediately adopted it to stave off the constant "I want a snack" demands: letting them choose a selection of snacks at the beginning of the day, putting them in a basket, and letting them choose them at their leisure. When they're gone, they're gone.
/considers this for the dog
//realizes he would eat all the treats at once then go back to begging for more
I mean to a degree this has happened with the kids but at least there's a chance to be like "I told you so"
second and fourth graders here.
Working: having each of them write an essay on why they should get a dog. exchange essays. write feedback. Making my kids and parents prepare a powerpoint presentation on something they didn't know about before and present to each other.
not working: me. I'm not getting nearly enough work done. I should be doing work now but I'm watching both kids do online lessons and intermittently answering questions. It took me like 10 minutes to type this.
this is great advice but I'm also dying at making kids use powerpoint
my kids had a Zoom call with their preschool this morning and it went exactly as well as Zoom calls go for the rest of us
I was working at home 2x/week before the Coronapocalypse, so I had some semblance of an idea of what this would be like, but it always felt...temporary? Ad hoc? I was mainly working at the dining room table, so the monitor and keyboard were always there but could be easily relocated. Now that this is more permanent, I retrofitted some stuff from the utility room into a "desk" in the guest bedroom, bought a giant mousepad (seriously, get a giant mousepad, they're about $13 on amazon), and am now in a room with a door. The main difference is with our daughter, because this gives her some idea that daddy is working and shouldn't be bothered; she knows this is different than before, so she's able to take care of herself a little more easily (my wife is still home, so it's not like Moana is her babysitter).
I normally WFH 2 days a week - my best advice is try some different things and find what works best for you. There's no one-size-fits-all approach, in my mind. For example, I'm not one of those people that gets up and showers and goes about my normal routine before work. I prefer to log on right away work a little and organize my morning. Then when I have a ten minute break, take a shower and stuff. However, I have found that making sure I'm working at some desk-like structure helps a lot; sitting on the couch does not. Take frequent breaks, walk around. Take advantage of not being cooped on in an office or cube. I also liked having something on in the background in the mornings (s/o Lebetard and Stugotz) but not so much now.... And the biggest thing, to me, simply closing my computer when it's normal quitting time.
I hope the one positive people can take from this is how good WFH can be (in smaller doses...!). But also, I think we should all cut ourselves some slack. I've seen so many posts about how to maintain productivity. These are not normal times. We should do our best, but don't beat yourself up if you're not as productive as you want to be. We'll all get through this with some patience, understanding and empathy.
This is great, thank you.
Pomodoro technique (25 minutes focused, 5-10 off) has been really helpful in staying productive. Lot of 10 minute guided mindfulness meditations in my day now.
I've been working from home for years. Have established a good routine with the dog to make sure he gets what he needs, but he's been on a hair-trigger for about a week after soaking up our anxious energy. Been doing several walks a day instead of just kicking him into the back yard. I think it helps us both.
I’m keeping up with my half marathon schedule despite the race being postponed. Running always relaxes me, now more than ever. I’m still walking my dog and playing fetch with her. Also, I’ve been playing the new Animal Crossing (which is very relaxing).
During work hours I try to limit my phone time by using the “Forest” app to focus.
My phone is killing me. Reading way too many articles. Will check this app out. Thanks.
All my work stuff is in a separate room from everything else so when I am finished for the day I can separate away from it.
I've been working out more, and making a point of trying to read instead of watch TV (gives me something tangible to show progress in) and I started up Duolingo to refresh my college language learning. The sense of accomplishment makes me feel like I'm not wasting days.
That's awesome. I've got a stack of books waiting for me, but the last week was tough to focus on them.
The other big thing for me has been limiting my intake of *gestures broadly* because it is giving me major stress dreams. I have a hard screen off time at 10pm and try to avoid checking first thing in the morning which is when I've been able to get to the reading.
I try to stay informed enough, but given that there isn't much of it I can control I'm trying to give myself that little break.
My wife is a resident in pediatrics and we have our 2 year old at home. He's been going crazy (obviously) but I've found it more helpful for my mental health to be with him more and be less tied to my laptop. Work can always wait!
This is real. It's been tough trying to balance work and kids, but when I get interrupted a few times a day for "daddy, I want a hug", things seem alright.
Running in the afternoons. I've always leaned towards strongman but with all the gyms closed and a shoulder injury healing, this has been a nice escape from the home office that lets me still get into the pain cave
I need to get back to running. I had a great gym routine going from January 1st to about March 5th and then it completely fell apart.
I probably need to get into an exercise routine apart from walking the dog. Maybe periodic 10 minute breaks to do some ab exercises, push-ups, or yoga?
I'm sure it's even harder with kids right now but i for sure recommend doing something, anything athletic every day. it at least helps me decompress
After last week, the wife and I decided to make people go back to having an alarm in the morning and get up at a reasonable time, have breakfast and then do school work first thing. My wife is finishing her last semester of community college online so she's trying to do a full course load, which makes this all even more complicated.
I'm just on day 2 (first full day) so we'll see how it goes, but I was successful in showering and getting dressed on the usual schedule, and being in my home office by 9 a.m. I'm not in work clothes but I did put on jeans. Yesterday I went right to sweats when I started WFH in the afternoon and it was weird having to mentally turn off being in work mode. Hopefully being able to change out of jeans tonight will change with that transition.
The biggest issue is going to be how my dog adjusts to a new schedule. He's currently asleep on the futon in my spare room (which is now a home office) but I figure he'll be awake and antsy around lunch time, so I'll take him on a longer one. Then I'm going to have to figure out how to not get annoyed when he starts begging for food around 3, when I don't stop working until 6
I work from the desk in my bedroom but I’ve found that when I take time to go through the morning routine (shower, put on clothes that aren’t pajamas, etc.) I feel a lot better and ready for the day. also taking a real lunch break to just relax (watch tv, read a book) for 30-45 minutes every day is nice. I will caveat all of this by saying I don’t have kids
oh hey it's an adjustment for all of us, I'm curious kids or not. I've definitely made sure to still shower and dress. the hardest part on the desk being right there is to "go home" at the end of the workday
Yeah I feel that. Thankfully I’m usually able to be done with things/answering emails by 5:15 my time. Having roommates who are also done by then and willing to watch a movie or something helps too
Second on those kid yoga videos. It's our afternoon gym class when the weather is rotten. Mine are 5 and 3, so we have to get out of the house or do something like that every day.
It has been absolutely brutal timing for this to start when it's rained like 7 of the last 9 days here
We had an inch of snow on the ground yesterday! Can't do anything with that.
Take a walk around the park (about the length of my commute, 10-15min) when I would be driving to work, do the same when I would be driving home. Takes the edge off of the smearing where you accidentally wake up late and start working at 9:30am, or realize at 6:30pm that you should be done and you should start dinner.
Also it forces you to put on pants, if only briefly.
Ahh, this is a great idea. I've already found my morning routine going to shit. I've been starting work later than I was when I had to drive 20 minutes to get there.
I don’t know if it’s possible in your circumstances, but I’ve got an 8 am team meeting everyday that’s actually been really helpful in maintaining my morning routine
From the "I'm trying not to go crazy" front: I said it a few months ago, and I'll say it now: 2020 is the year of doing puzzles. We knocked out a hard 1000-piece puzzle in a couple days this week and it was great to stay off our phones and focus on something else.
From the childcare front (I have two preschoolers, which should be evident if you're a regular reader here): various kid-friendly yoga programs on YouTube have been a morning godsend.
Running every day, because otherwise I don't go outside at all. I (for reasons I can't explain) am super motivated to run anyway, but both a local running store and a "beer runners" group I'm in have suspended all in-person events but are doing things on Strava to make solo running fun. For example, a prize to a random person who runs over a certain bridge this week, or a prize to whoever beats their previous one-mile PR by the most.
I’m a teacher and a football coach with a 2 year old and a wife that’s 40 weeks pregnant. I teach both senior AP and on level economics , and trying to record lessons with a 2 year old running around is impossible. I’ve had to set reminders on my phone to do things I took for granted because I was in such a routine (drink a glass of water, etc). I’m getting into a better routine, dog gets walked at 6 am, lunch, and late evening for some exercise. I also found out how much of a saint my wife is for taking care of my daughter and running her business.
I'm going to try to kill off much of my CLE requirements this week/while work is slow. They're due by the end of June but, well, I'm sitting at home. I am absolutely going to fall asleep listening to one of these too. It's for the better that I have them, because otherwise it would be a whooooooole lotta tv streaming to supplement the cooking i've been doing