WFH? WTF?

Need to work from home while COVID-19 wreaks havoc with work (and life?) as we know it?

Wondering WTF to do?

AKIN member, copywriter and content editor, Sian Lewis has worked from home for two decades. She has a few words of (ahem) wisdom for those new to WFH…

If you have recently joined the WFH army… Welcome! These are strange and troubling times, so nesting chez vous could be a welcome respite from relentless news cycles and a topsy turvy world seemingly devoid of loo roll and powdered milk.

For those readers hoping for a helpful list of ways to mirror your office routine in the comfort of your own home, you might want to stop reading now.

I have stumbled across several blog posts in recent days about the importance of setting the same alarm, dressing for work, keeping to your usual schedule and other such guff.

What IS the point of having a solid front door between you and the rest of the world if you can’t embrace such WFH joys as midday pyjamafication?

Routine, schmoutine!

This is a time to find a new way of working – and you may discover it frees your creative juices.

Co-workers can be so judgemental when it comes to office snacks. When I worked in women's glossy magazines, my love of carbs was often a source of comment. But, with no one to see, you can get really creative with store-cupboard snack combos.

The classic peanut butter and jam mix is for WFH amateurs. Remember that jar of booze-soaked fruit Great Aunt Whatsername gave you for Christmas (how many years ago now…)? Add crackers and cheese, and you have a feast, my friends. One of my closest friends swears by carrot sticks in salad dressing. Out of dips for your crisps? Have you tried ketchup? Trust me, it works!

And, the best bit about WFH snacking? No one can smell your mackerel breath on Zoom.

The internet might be vital for your work, but it is not your friend when WFH. Safe from the eyes of a passing boss as you scroll, there’s little to stop you falling into an internet rabbit warren.

One click leads to another…

And, before you know it, you have wasted hours online with nothing to show for your time.

Aimless internet surfing is a perk of the salaried. If someone paid me to be at my desk from 9-5, I would no doubt treat myself to regular ‘internet breaks’.

When you work from home, even if someone is paying you to do so, you don’t have to be at your desk unless there is work to do. I repeat - you do not need to sit there until a clock says it's okay to leave.

Unless there is a task to complete, you can stop staring at your screen and… stroll around your garden, phone a friend, put a stew in the slow cooker, unload the dishwasher, paint the hallway…

Whatever you choose to do, do something you could not enjoy if you were still commuting to a specific desk for a working day of a specified length.

And while you do it, with work percolating gently at the back of your brain, you might find the magic happens. Ideas have a habit of appearing the moment you stop searching for them.

When WFH, where should you work if you aren’t lucky enough to have a home office? The H in WFH is the key letter here. Home. A place of comfort, and hopefully creative freedom.

Not to be confused with WFS. The S in WFS stands for sofa. A place of comfort where proximity to a giant screen, and a remote control whispering tempting sweet nothings to you, is likely to scupper all successful workflow.

Although I have found loungewear in all its iterations to be a firm wardrobe friend during my years of WFH, sitting at a table is vital. It's great to be relaxed; the sofa is a step too far.

Find a space for your working day, even if it’s the corner of the kitchen table. Make it your own. And, if it’s in a room in which you would otherwise relax, make everything work-related disappear every evening.

Otherwise working from home days can seem to have blurred beginnings and to be without end.

How do you define a successful working day? For AKIN's creative minds, it could be anything from a new ad strapline to a sketched textile design, a video that tells a client story in just 60 seconds or a logo that sells without words.

If you are working from home, success is the result you want and need at the end of the day. It has nothing to do with the image you project. If no one is going to see (for which read, judge) you, then dress for comfort – and success will follow.

One tip, learnt the hard way…

If you conduct a client meeting via video link, make sure you have everything to hand to avoid standing up to reveal your less than professional waist-down garb.

And ladies, always (always!) put on a bra under your ‘loungewear’ (for which read PJs T-shirt) when you sit down at a screen to slurp the last of your cereal while checking emails. Clients have a habit of Skyping unannounced if they see you online.

Apologies for leaving you with that parting image…

Enjoy WFH.

And, please share your crazy snack combos with us J