As a online psychologists me and my colleagues can work from home as well as the office, because everything takes place online. Working online means that you are increasingly behind the computer and that certain physical actions disappear. You no longer have to pick up your client from the waiting room and you don’t have to walk to the kitchen to offer your client something to drink.
Due to the corona guidelines, we now have to do everything online and this creates a new rhythm. You may notice that working 100% online can feel intense and tiring. What can we do to get started with fresh energy? Some tips to help you:
- A rule that also applies to normal work. Start the day with a to-do list. What do you want to get done today?
- Determine your working hours: you may enjoy working from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm. Or you can save a few hours for the evening. It is up to you! Don’t forget to integrate enough breaks into your schedule.
- Try to find out what kind of working environment suits you: do you prefer to be in the same place continuously? Or do you like to regularly change your workplace? What works for one may not work for another; find out what works best for you!
- Working online can also mean being more easily distracted. Before you know it, you are switching from a colleagues document to the email of a client. Work in blocks and focus on one task at a time. Are you working on a document? Close as many windows as possible, especially if they are not related to your task. Suddenly an important task comes to mind? Write it down and pick it up after you have completed your current task.
- Do not use online meetings only for work-related chats. Talk to your colleagues as if you were all at the coffee machine. An online meeting does not always have to be about work.
- Working online is intense and requires the necessary relaxation: regularly take short breaks and make sure you work smarter (not harder). An American study showed that on average the working day we actually work effectively for 2 hour and 48 minutes.
- Get out of the house for fresh air. Finding it hard to concentrate? Walk around and maybe you have fresh energy to pick it up again after!
- Reward yourself when your working day is over. Have you been able to do everything? Or maybe not everything you hoped for? It doesn’t matter, reward yourself anyway! Consider, for example, making a nice meal or watching a movie. Do not be strict with yourself and just relax!
- Stay active through simple exercises: view our NiceDay “home-office workout” below:
