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Working From Home – The New Normal

The team at The Red Tree are now just over one week into the new normal of having to work from home as we continue to assist our clients on an array of strategic projects. Over 70% of our clients are international so we are used to conducting meetings via video conference and are adept at delivering project documents over file sharing apps. We are used to working flexibly so having to work from home isn’t quite the shock to the system that it may be for others who are normally office-based Monday-Friday.

Simon Murray, Brand Manager at The Red Tree shares some tips on how to keep good working habits while maintaining a healthy work-life balance:

  • 1. Build a routine – wake up at the same time that you would do on a “normal” working day and keep to your regular bedtime. Stick to a set start work time, work from a designated work station, schedule break

  • 2. Make the most of the extra time you have, for example you will gain extra time by not commuting to and from the office. Avoid the temptation to stay in bed longer by sticking to tip 1 and instead use the extra time productively. This could be as simple as enjoying a leisurely breakfast in the morning, taking an at home exercise class, catching up on all the latest industry news or learning a new skill.

  • 3. Plan your day for success by setting realistic work goals to achieve each day and allocate set time that it will take to complete each of them.

  • 4. Eat well – it is very easy to be tempted by the biscuits, crisps and chocolates in the cupboard that you are normally far away from in the office, so don’t let that become an unhealthy new habit! Stick to three meals a day – a good breakfast, a light lunch and then a healthy dinner and you will feel energised and fresh throughout the day.

  • 5. Exercise – set aside a time for a walk outside whilst being mindful of following social distancing guidelines. The fresh air will do you good and keeps your body ticking over.

6. Stay in touch with colleagues – schedule regular calls in place of regular team meetings. We will all miss the buzz of day to day chit chat so make sure to spend time chatting with colleagues about non-work topics (and non-coronavirus topics) when you have your regular “meeting” calls. We are all going to be watching a lot of Netflix for the foreseeable future, so we could all do with boxset recommendations!

7. Formally end the working day – it sounds a bit crazy, but I read this tip elsewhere and it really helped me to separate work from home last week. At the end of my working day, I packed up my briefcase and walked out of my front door. I took a moment to focus and then walked back in to my home and said hello to my wife as if I had been at the office all day. Although I had been working from home all day, I was now in the mindset of being home at home for the night.

We are all going to face our own challenges adjusting to working from home, so I really hope that these ideas, which have been helpful for me so far, are helpful for you. I would love to hear any other tips that you are practising so please feel free to be in touch via email or LinkedIn.

The Red Tree is the UK’s leading international beauty brand consultancy and a powerhouse of ideas, insight and inspiration. For an informal discussion on how we might help you, please contact us.

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