I have worked from home for 27 years..so after being thoroughly entertained by posts of those new to working from home I thought I would give you some tips and giggles.
- The worst thing that can happen during your new office commute is you blow out a slipper in the hallway.
- Loungewear..is the new uniform. Don’t call them jammies.
- PC Gaming Headphones with their own mute function are your best friend!
- Wireless headsets are MUST! especially if you have children. ( the look of shock when your sweet cherubs who are coloring on the wall see you get up from your desk to deal with them is priceless)
- It is way too easy to just stay in your jammies..for days. Get dressed and prepared for home office work like you would for normal work..just skip the dress shoes and stick to slippers.
- Team meetings fails on Zoom are a trending search lately. Don’t be one of those examples. Always mute yourself upon entering ( both from your mic and the button in your conference screen to be safe. )No one wants to hear you arguing with your housemates.
- Video IS optional place a sticky note over your camera, or disable it when entering a conference. If you are using your phone for conferencing disable the camera in the meeting settings. We really do not need to see video of you in the bathroom…please noooo. ( see Zoom meeting fails search)
- Multiple Monitors are a must. If you are using a laptop you can add a monitor to your set up with a HDMI cable on most Macs and PC’s..you know that extra TV sitting around ..it works as a monitor too!
- Screen sharing meetings are pretty common now. For these make sure you are turning off all other applications so you can get the best frame rates on the video screen shares.
- If you are the Presenter in a screen share – move any other applications to the opposite screen you are sharing- no one needs to see that private Skype pop into the screen share.
- Working at home is a complete disruption of your schedule..specifically your eating schedule. Set timers for your breaks and lunch or you will find yourself skipping these and by the time we get back to going in the office you might have snacked yourself into a new
size.
- Get the best comfy chair you can- your body will thank you. When shopping for that new comfy office chair for home look at the ratings for both weight and hours of use. I love the Serta chairs – they are one of the few brands that have chairs designed for big and tall people.
- Know your function keys..why you ask?..in case your new furry supervisor walks on your keyboard and suddenly your screen size has changed or you are typing in a different language. ( most common F11 pops you in full screen view and the toolbar disappears)
- Hydration is your friend, but it isn’t friendly with laptops and keyboards. Those travel cups are now your desktop coffee cup and all around drink cup. Think sippy cups for adults. I admit I or my furry supervisor cat- Shadow has helped to kill off several expensive mechanical keyboards and two laptops over the years.
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