Remote Possibility: 4 Tips For Preparing To WFH Forever

In a recent study, only 12% of employees say they want to work at home five days a week.

Millions across the country who kept their jobs or were not frontline essential workers at high risk during COVID-19 have been working remotely since March. The transition to WFH for many has hit rough spots complicated with childcare and homeschooling and cramped spaces not set up for a 9 to 5 workday.

But it always felt as if it was temporary. That may not be the case.

“The transition to #WFH for many has hit rough spots complicated with childcare and homeschooling and cramped spaces. But it always felt as if it was temporary. That may not be the case. #RemoteWork”

While many offices are safely reopening in the coming weeks and months, with many workers and leaders facing fear and loathing about going back to the office, what if you face the forever fact of never returning to a workplace outside your home?  

Read more in Take The Lead on WFH

The Boston Globe reports, “Major companies are keeping workers home through the summer, if not the end of the year, in large part to protect them from the virus and curb its spread. A widely available vaccine isn’t expected until 2021, at the earliest. What happens once that glorious day finally arrives? Many workers, it turns out, still won’t leave the house.”

USA Today reports, “About half of U.S. employees worked from home during the COVID-19 shutdowns, according to the Brookings Institution. And many companies – including Facebook, Google, Twitter and Morgan Stanley – plan to continue allowing at least some staffers to telework at least some of the time even after a vaccine is available and the health crisis is over.”

According to USA Today, “About 4 million office jobs were shed in the first and second quarters, according to Oxford Economics and CoStar. Some firms have permanently shut down. And few businesses are signing new leases amid record job losses, the aftermath of the deepest-ever recession, and a pandemic that could still pose hazards for office workers.”

Yes, even going back to an office space requires an adjustment. Stylist reports, “Adapting to any kind of change is difficult. But when you add to that the fact that many people are still anxious about catching coronavirus and transmitting it to others, it’s hardly surprising that so many of us are dreading our return to the office.”

Read more in Take The Lead on remote work possibilities

It will not be easy going back to work, even if you do get to stay out of the kitchen. CBS News reports, “Half of American professionals are reluctant to go back to the office, citing health concerns, even as state and local governments begin to lift lockdown orders, giving more workers the green light to return to their workplaces, according to a new survey from Korn Ferry, a consulting firm.”

Read more in Take The Lead on the post-COVID workplace

That leaves the other half of American professionals reluctant to keep staying and working from home. The idea of forever zooming with colleagues instead of in-person meetings, and never having a work trip to a sunny location with great restaurants on expense account may be difficult to fathom. Even knowing you are not going to run into friends for a quick lunch near your office may seem hard to take. '

Here are some adjustments you can make if you are one of the millions who are settling in for the long haul from home.

“50% of American professionals are reluctant to keep #WFH. @Takeleadwomen has ideas for some adjustments you can make if you are one of the millions who are settling in for the long haul from home.

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Being Zoomed out is real. “Our brains can only do so many things consciously at once, because we have limited working memory. In contrast, we can process much more information unconsciously, as we do with body language. Meeting online increases our cognitive load, because several of its features take up a lot of conscious capacity,” write Libby Sander and Oliver Bauman in TED Ideas.

They write, “Our feelings and attitudes are largely conveyed by nonverbal signals such as facial expressions, the tone and pitch of the voice, gestures, posture and the distance between the communicators. In a face-to-face meeting, we process these cues largely automatically and we can still listen to the speaker at the same time. But on a video chat, we need to work harder to process nonverbal cues. Paying more attention to these consumes a lot of energy.” So give yourself a break if you need a rest after a four-hour zoom conference.

“Being #ZoomedOut is real. So give yourself a break if you need a rest after a four-hour zoom conference. #WFH #Covid19”

Set expectations with your boss. Many of us working from home find that we are working more—not less—because subtracting commute time, lunch hours and casual breaks while adding more demands, increased workloads and responsibilities means more hours of work per week. For the same or reduced pay.

“Set expectations with your boss. Many of us working from home find that we are working more—not less. #WFH #Worklifebalance”

CNBC reports, “Another point to bring up with your boss is whether any processes need to be reworked so you can do them across a team that's a blend of both remote and in-office workers. Your manager will have a better idea of how your contribution will fit into the dynamic based on what your colleagues are planning to do. If you plan to work primarily from home, Steele Flippin recommends you set expectations around when your boss might want you on location for certain events, such as client meetings, for team brainstorms or periodically when you're handling sensitive documents that must remain onsite.”

Try to stay connected with your coworkers. Slightly more than 10 percent of workers want to stay working remotely every day. Connecting with colleagues is critical for well-being, company morale, a sense of cohesion to mission, even for collaborative possibilities. Never mind the occasional impromptu happy hour or lunch across the street from the office.

“Try to #stayconnected with your coworkers. Connecting with colleagues is critical for well-being, company morale, a sense of cohesion to mission. #Organization #Community”

“Corporate culture can be hard to keep alive the longer that the workforce remains physically estranged from one another. It becomes particularly challenging as new hires come on board ― people who have never met their colleagues face-to-face,” according to the Boston Globe.

“The longer you stay away, the harder it is to hold your organization together, and not only hold it together, but grow it,” Doug Gensler, co-managing director of the Boston office at Gensler, the global architectural firm that bears his family’s name, tells the Globe. “The firm surveyed 2,300 workers across the country in the spring, and found 44 percent want to be back in the office five days a week, while another 26 percent prefer one or two days at home; only 12 percent said they were fine working from home all five days.”

Read more in Take The Lead on networking, mentoring and coaching

Network remotely. This is the perfect time to get industry and professional virtual networking jumpstarted. You will not have the benefit of in-person meetings, conferences, luncheons or gatherings. But you can connect intentionally.

Gloria Feldt, co-founder and president of Take The Lead writes, “There’s an often-overlooked nexus between sisterhood, individual courage, and the courage and power of women and like-minded men working together to achieve gender parity goals. Sister Courage. Brother Partners, too, but let’s focus on how women can work together, first.” Feldt adds, “Don’t isolate yourself or think that you have to do it all yourself. Reach out to ask for help when you need it, and offer help when you see someone else needs it.”

“#Network remotely. @GloriaFeldt, co-founder and president of @Takeleadwomen, writes, “Don’t isolate yourself or think that you have to do it all yourself...Women who #support other #women are more successful all around.” ”

She adds, “As recent research has confirmed, there is power in the pack. Women who support other women are more successful all around. We all need our girl gang, coven, network, sisters. Remain open to the benefits of working together with others who share your values and intentions, even if not all your methods or opinions. Think expansively about the power of the infinite pie.”

Jennefer Witter, CEO and founder of The Boreland Group, in a recent Riveter webinar on virtual networking advises, “Virtual networking is a a tool to protect your professional life, a way to advance your career goals and build your personal brand.”

“@JenneferTBG, CEO and founder of #TheBorelandGroup, advises, “#Virtualnetworking is a a tool to protect your professional life, a way to advance your #careergoals and build your personal brand.””

To use social media as the platform for your virtual networking, she advises, “Set your objectives, determine the time you can spend and stick to it. Be consistent. When you’re virtual, you are not face to face, so you are going to have to work harder to capture that person’s attention.”

Your work life may never return to pre-2020 days, but if you must WFH indefinitely, you can adapt, adjust and even excel.

“Your #worklife may never return to pre-2020 days, but if you must #WFH indefinitely, you can adapt, adjust and even excel. ”