What is the Covid-19 home office challenge? Now it’s been more than a year since the coronavirus first crossed our path. We are certainly more than sick and tired of all the restrictions, lockdowns, opening, and closures of almost everything that’s possible. 

If there’s one thing we’ve learned for sure so far, it’s that home is the most secure place on Earth, and as long as we don’t have to go outside, we’re perfectly safe.

However, we as human beings we’re in deep need of social contact. But when circumstances force us to be adjustable and turn our home into a working place, then it’s different. In fact, it appears making your home your castle is not as easy as it may seem. However, either way, there are some pretty good steps to follow, that make the space around us successful and professional, even if it is a home-office-based one.

First things first – the most important thing we should do, while working from home, protects our health. That means we have to protect our eyes, back and neck, because we certainly don’t want them to cause us any additional trouble.

Setting certain boundaries to your home office.

That sometimes turns into a serious obstacle, because not everyone has enough space at home.

In pandemic times doors are needed for a reason, and escaping distractions really means choosing a separate room to call it an office, even if it was used for a different purpose through the weekend. If not that, you can at least choose a separate corner of the room, equipped with everything that’s absolutely necessary to keep things going, as they were in the real office. That’s when a functional desk is essential and cupboards are of tremendous help to hide things, that you don’t need all the time and will limit your movements and distract you.

In order to do that, you have to think of simple ways of setting up your furniture right. This basically means your screen must be at such a distance that’s comfortable for your eyes and prevent you from any eye strain.  Your office chair must be really an office suitable one since you will be using it for 8 hours a day. 

Blurry vision, headache, and dry eyes can and should be avoided by adding extra moisture to the room, by a humidifier, or at least by making regular breaks to open a window in your home office. Support the need for fresh air in your room. Good ventilation is supposed to be one of the COVID-19 preventing measures. 

Covid-19 home office challenge

• There’s a 20-20-20 rule in ophthalmology you might stick to. For instance, looking 20 feet away every 20 minutes for 20 seconds. Artificial tears are also an option to keep your eyes good moistened and provide any unnecessary discomfort.  

• Color psychologists say yellow and orange are actually great colors for the office, while yellow is supposed to be stimulating to think outside the box and come up with new ideas, and orange seems to promote creativity. However, try not to get surrounded by any harsh, heavy, or dark color schemes, and avoid any distracting patterns.

• Computer glasses are here to help too. Plus there are a few freeware programs that automatically calculate recommended colors on your display. This is based on your location and the daylight that comes to you, creating illumination that supports a space’s identity.  

• Research from Germany’s Fraunhofer Institute for Industrial Engineering shows that in companies with a high standard of interior design, productivity can increase by up to 36 percent. So, why not apply that general rule successfully to your new, productive and here-to-stay, home office?
• Although setting physical boundaries is a priority, setting mind boundaries is also vital. Your body just needs to know it’s a working situation, not a relaxing one.

While everyone has their own unique household dynamic, it might be difficult to set up a work atmosphere

Truth is that you need to make a similar work environment, as it is in your office, and stick to your daily routine. The only thing that’s not going to be the same, is having lunch with your colleagues. 

However, as long as you have good wi-fi, virtual meetings are a good possibility. It can minimize the difference between the home office and a real one. Also communicate with people, share experience, and troubleshoot during the working process. 

• Scheduling breaks can be a useful trick, too. There are several platforms to arrange your working calendar as balanced and busy as you need it to be. It’s all about setting the right tone that triggers your brain from getting ready to steady-go daily buttons.

• Beyond everything, setting up with an action plan is really a must-do thing. Golden rules of goal setting are not any new, as it’s based on goal-setting theory founded by Locke & Latham, 1984. Nowadays it’s implemented and adjusted in various conceptions and is a powerful source of achieving better results and gaining self-motivation. 

What app can we use?

The most common one is – S.M.A.R.T. uses the mnemonic acronym, giving criteria to guide in the setting of objectives. According to it, a goal must be specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-based. And as we’re eager to get the home-office job well done, we should keep these little things in mind.

So you see, bringing a home office to success, through a pandemic breakdown is not as hard, as it seems. You can make it happen just by following simple rules.

You know how when life gives you lemons, you should make lemonade. Now when life gives you the possibility of working from home, do it in a favorite place. After all, it’s your home we’re talking about and you can adjust it on your demand just fine.