5 things you can do to make working from home fun

Whether you love or hate the idea of working from home, let’s face it: We have to do it and be flexible as the pandemic continues. In Hanoi, Vietnam where most of our team members reside, local authorities still enforce hard lockdown restrictions. While many people enjoy their new life and work-style with just pajamas-and-laptop, others find it hard to stay connected with their coworkers and to be effective at work. To help our teams, we’ve decided to provide them with some tips to make working remotely fun, and we think you’ll find these tips helpful too!

1. Take care of your physical health:

Staying at home and being surrounded by the walls can make your body frustrated. Working from home could easily lead you to forget about your basic needs, too. Our recommendation is simple: let’s take care of yourselves. Setting up a workstation at home, making some movements like a simple 5-minute-workout, or even easier, taking a short nap when exhausted can really help your body escape from the hustle and bustle of working remotely.

It took me a long time to know exactly what to do to take care of my body when working by myself. I now know that my body loves it when I go on a short walk from my apartment to the nearby riverside park. I also do some dance breaks or even throw a few balls against the wall to keep my body active. 

2. Wake up early and do some self-things:

Since people do not need to commute to work anymore, many of them just lay in bed until work kicks in. Hey, let’s not do that. Wake up 30 minutes early and do some nice things for yourself! You can take a quick shower, make yourself a cup of coffee, or like me, feed and play with my cats for half an hour before logging into my company’s portal. These self-things can surely kickstart your morning routine right. You’ll feel motivated and have more energy to look after other things later.

3. Get some sunshine and put plants on your windowsill:

Unlike traditional offices where sunshine is limited, you can open your windows and enjoy daily sunlight. Plants that do not do well with the dim light of an office can thrive on your windowsill when direct sunlight comes in. Greenery and sunshine are proven to help with your efficiency and mental health, so why not?

4. Keep in touch with your coworker and ask them about their daily lives:

Not many people can stay sane while being by themselves 24/7. Asking a coworker about their work and how they’re doing is a nice way to not only stay connected, but also to support others mentally. You’ll never know how much it means to someone just by your uncomplicated “hey, how’s it going?” conversation. I normally text a few coworkers after hours to see if they need anything or simply to chit-chat and complain about my lazy cats. This helps strengthen our relationship and make work more enjoyable since I feel connected with my team.

5. Eat good food and drink healthily:

This is important! Good food and healthy drinks can really set the mood for you. It’s understandable when you’re at home and get too lazy to cook a feast, but sometimes treating yourself right can free you from tiredness and frustration. Whether you’re mad at some bugs that can’t be fixed immediately, or you’re sad that a coworker just leaves without being able to throw them a farewell party, good food can solve it all. Healthy drinks are important, too. Don’t intoxicate yourself with alcohol (while I understand that these drinks can hype you up, don’t!). Try some shakes or warm milk before bedtime. Trust me, it works!

And we’re keeping our fingers crossed to when we’re able to be back at the office again!