Are you one of those workers who found themselves at home because of the global isolation period? I am sure you are. That is a challenge for everyone. But let us discuss how to stay productive during these days.

The main problem today is that almost all people got stuck home unexpectedly. In many cases, it was not their choice and not everyone was ready for that. Some people have experience with remote work. They are ok. But there are people who have never done that. Of course, it is stressful for them. Besides, the whole workflow turned out to be slower as not everyone could be easily reached out. Some important tasks have to be postponed. This is happening worldwide…

Tips for Employees

Yes, you may be unhappy because of a situation like that. But all you can do now is to adjust to what is happening. And here what you can do:

• Follow your schedule. If you are at home, your life may become real chaos. Not to get into frustration, you are to have a timetable, a plan, or a schedule. Wake up at the same time, prepare yourself for work and start doing what you usually do at the beginning of the day at the office: check your emails, plan for the day, do the most challenging tasks. That really helps you stay effective though it requires some effort.
• Eliminate distractions. That is not an easy task either. At home when the members of your family are there as well it is challenging to concentrate. They do not always realize that if you are at home you need to fulfill your work duties. It is better to discuss your working schedule with your family. There should be hours when you can work quietly. At the same time, it is better to discuss the questions of childcare and petcare =)
• Decent workplace. If you work remotely, it does not mean that it is a good idea to do it in the kitchen, from your bed or places like that. Provide a table for yourself where you can work.
• Check your technical abilities. You need to be sure if everything works: your software, apps, programs, the internet. That is vital for your work. If you cannot perform some functions, you need to solve this problem. Either to skip them (if it is possible) or to delegate them for the period of isolation. As for some jobs, like technical writers, for example, it is quite easy to find a great solution for remote work. ClickHelp may save your workflow during the isolation period. If you use it, you are able to perform all of your functions without difficulties. Even teamwork is possible as this platform was created to meet all the needs of technical writers. There are a lot of solutions for other jobs. You need just to analyze what the market may offer you.

Tips for Employers

I am sure you are not happy about this situation either. But it does not mean that remote work is a dead end. Here is what you can do to organize the work of your remote employees:

• Regular calls. You can arrange regular individual calls to make sure everything is ok, to figure out what problems your employees have, and to give them the feeling that still the workflow is under control. It is better to agree upon the time of calls not to do it unexpectedly. The same is for larger company meetings. Video conferencing may help you with that. Remote work does not mean that you have to omit them. They contribute to the productivity of the workflow. Besides, they reduce the feeling of isolation which is a problem among remote workers.
• SaaS. Software as a service. It is a cloud-based software for making the everyday workflow smoother and easier. The main advantage of SaaS is the ability to work remotely from any place and device. What you need is the Internet connection and access to your portal (like a documentation portal in ClickHelp). All your data and operations are in the cloud. You give access to all members of your team and then you just check their activities during the day. Nothing is lost. In this situation, companies that started to use SaaS long ago have a great advantage today.
• Define all types of connections. First of all, you should specify when the members of your team are more accessible: in the morning or in the afternoon. Then you should specify what types of connections you are going to use. Only emails are not enough. There should be an opportunity to talk face to face, so to say. Besides, decide which types of connections should be used for everyday communications and which ones for emergencies. That will help your team understand the importance of the message.
• Rearrange duties. Most probably you will have to rearrange duties. You will have to postpone something that has no great value. And you will have to check if all of your workers are able to do their everyday tasks. If some of them are not, you will have to delegate them to someone else.
• Keep positive. That is the best way to encourage the employees and to reduce frustration among them. Everything goes as it should be. You are able to handle all that.

Here are my tips for remote work. I hope they will help you overcome this tough period. One thing I am absolutely sure: the majority of companies will get a better attitude to remote work.

Have a nice day!

Bradley Nice, Content Manager at ClickHelp.com — best online documentation tool for SaaS vendors