Home office: 7 tips for working from home

Working from home definitely has its advantages. When your employers announced that you could work from home for an indefinite period of time, your eyes must have sparkled. Sleep longer, work on the sofa, all day in pajamas … these were also our first thoughts. We didn't expect the back pain and loneliness. For this, we now have the top tips on how you can make working from home as pleasant as possible and quench your wanderlust at the same time. Let's go.

1. Home Office Tip: The Workplace

It's not easy to concentrate at home – you've probably already come to this conclusion. All of a sudden you notice that the windows are not clean, dust could also be wiped again…. But unfortunately you have to put the spring cleaning on the back burner! It is important that you find a workplace where you can concentrate well. Do it like a mouse and look for the quietest corner in the house or apartment. Especially if you live with several family members, it is important that you can just close the door sometimes. Set up a little work oasis there; with a decent chair, desk and a power outlet within cable range. To create the necessary travel feeling at the workplace, you can hang up a collage with the best pictures of your last trips with the coolest vacation partners. If you are stressed, a glance upwards is enough to take you back to that dreamy beach in Puerto Rico, where you enjoyed a cocktail completely relaxed. A few houseplants additionally provide for an even more beautiful room atmosphere. But don't clutter up your desk so you still have room to work.

Expert tip: Clean up your workspace after each successful day in the home office so that you can start anew the next day!

2. Tip: The right start to the day

Tidiness is half the battle – and routine is the other half. Now that we spend the whole day in the house, a big part of our daily routine is gone; no morning ritual, no commute, no coffee with colleagues. You can sleep longer, stay in your pajamas all day and have your breakfast in front of your PC. It's great for the first few days, but after a week you'll look like you could easily be on trash TV. That is why you should keep your morning routine. Get up on time, start with a refreshing shower and treat yourself to a rich and balanced breakfast. Now you have the time to prepare something elaborate for yourself. Prepare a delicious obsalat, like you used to have for breakfast last summer with your Portugal travel partner – it will give you that vacation feeling!

3. Home Office Tip: The perfect outfit

You will surely ask yourself why you should bother at all; after all, no one can see you. But that's not right, because you see yourselves! Up yum, down yum may be comfy and handy for video calls, but a sensible outfit makes you feel more confident. Plus, you'll have more of a rewarding effect when you lounge on the couch in your sweatpants after work. So put on sensible clothes. For video calls, you can also add a little something extra. See if you can still find your collection of carnival costumes and surprise your colleagues. Or mix up a non-alcoholic cocktail for the next meeting, put on your Hawaiian shirt or a summer dress and a pair of sunglasses. This will put your team in a good mood and give you a little vitamin booster for your brain cells.

4. Tip: Fill up on energy

Sitting all day long is anything but healthy. In the office, you'll probably always have a reason to get out of bed. These are the ways to go now. Working standing up is not an option either, or do you have one of those height-adjustable desks at home?? We certainly don't. That's why it's important to use your breaks effectively to do something good for your body. Go for a walk, get some fresh air, and try to soak up some rays of sunshine. To prevent back pain, you can do some stretching exercises in between and get your circulation going at the same time. You will notice that your body will thank you for it. Remember to ventilate regularly and drink enough water, because your head needs oxygen and fluids (coffee doesn't count)!).

5. Home Office Tip: The right mood

Some need it quiet, others can't stand silence. Everybody is different and needs a different working atmosphere. If you concentrate best when you are undisturbed, we advise you to use noise-canceling headphones. This is the ideal way to isolate yourself from the outside world and block out the noisy neighborhood kids from the apartment above you. It's also perfect for meetings, because you can give your team members your undivided attention. However, if you're completely different and prefer to listen to music while you work, take the time to create a home office playlist. You can add your favorite songs that you associate with your favorite travel memories and take yourself back to those incredible places again and again. So good mood at work is pre-programmed. Don't let the hot Latino beats distract you, and after every second song, be tempted to do a spontaneous reggaeton dance routine. It has to wait until the next vacation or until the end of the working day!

6. Tip: The team

You generally spend more time with your colleagues than you do with your own partner or family. Of course you will miss them sooner than you think! The home office eliminates the small conversations during coffee or lunch breaks and you only see each other in video meetings. We also find this boring. But there is a solution: Team calls in which the topic of work is taboo! You can meet twice a week for a virtual coffee, talk about God and the world, introduce your pets (an absolute highlight), and have a good time!) and plan the next team night. If the social distancing lasts even longer, you can hold it virtually. Our CEO Valle, for example, is an excellent cook and now gives us cooking lessons. We all buy the necessary groceries (as far as they are still available in the emptied supermarkets), then after work we make a video conference in which we cook and eat together. Expert tip: Every week you can cook a different dish, from different countries and continents. This way you can go on a little culinary journey. There surely comes up one or the other vacation memory of the street food in Mexico, or the Pad Thai, which you have always celebrated with your Thailand travel partner.

7. Tip: The working time

As already mentioned, you should stick to your routine. Set strict working hours that you really stick to. There's no point in taking a three-hour break in the afternoon, only to sit in front of your laptop until the wee hours of the night. Set realistic goals in the morning, which you would like to have achieved by the end of the day. Reward yourself for every goal you achieve. This can be in the form of sweets, a short walk or a 5 minute coffee break via VideoCall with your colleagues. If you don't manage to do all the tasks, even though you have worked through with concentration, it's not the end of the world. In the office you don't always manage to complete all tasks and still go home at some point. You should also do this in your home office. Enjoy your well-deserved end of work and also your weekend!

Special after-work tip: You like to go out on Friday nights with your colleagues for an after-work beer or to a delicious restaurant? Let this tradition live on and enjoy a cold Corona together, no one else drinks this poor beer anymore.

Your colleagues don't feel like having a virtual after-work beer? Bored! In this blogpost we have 10 ingenious tips on what you can do with your free time at home.