| working from home
So as a ex HR person I totally ‘get’ the benefits of working offsite/virtually/from home and I’ve been a big advocate for it- after all without these options I would not have had a career for last ten years whilst raising my young family. I’ve written before about how having my blog ‘saved’ me when I was a mum to a newborn and honestly without it I think I could have really lost myself. I wanted to highlight a few working off site benefits that employers AND employees can be thankful for (if you work for yourself yay you’re both!)
Benefits of working from home:
providing a safe space for work amid this current COVID-19 crisis I think we all have a responsibility in staying home and keeping ourselves and our families safe, if you can work from home please do so. If you are an employer please make sure this option is encouraged for your staff. Working from home, taking children out of school to protect them and our communities is such a huge step to protect everyone- allow families to self isolate together. This will benefit all family members allowing both parents to continue their work and contribute to shared parental duties.
showing your employees that you care about their safety, well being and their individual circumstances- providing flexibility for your staff show that you actually care for them. Yes it means that working practises are not one size fits all but empowering your people with choice and being able to provide a good sense of work life balance can do wonders for staff engagement = output/results/happiness.
increased productivity- cutting out commute times, empowering yourself or your staff to actively time manage, cutting out distractions can actually make you super efficient and motivated to get shit done (technical HR term)
comradery- zoom team meetings, apps like slack or the good old whattsapp group message allow for co-support, a bit of banter, seeing a different side of your team members. Appreciating your team in their family life, in their own homes can often make us recognise the person and not just the role. It also helps us be mindful of the other circumstances out of work that effect our daily choices.
meaningful break times- the human brain needs regular breaks to revitalise and renew- imagine being able to give your toddler a tight squeeze after a difficult conversation at work or giving your fur baby a pat as a reward for finishing a task. Taking physical breaks can also benefit from an OH&S perspective- hello yoga stretches or HIIT workouts on your lunch break.
thinking creatively and strategically- time away from higher pressure environments may actually encourage you (and your team) to think out of the box, allow light relief and open up different brain pathways or trains of thought. Individual and personality differences mean people respond to information and circumstances differently and allowing flexibility in the way they like to work mean you can support them and thus allow the magic to happen.
having a dynamic workforce- by practising virtual/flexible/home working you can have access to the best person for the role. In 2020 we don’t have to be limited by proximity anymore. It also allows you to be an inclusive employer and one that values diversity in the workforce.
I’d love to hear your thoughts and what you think are the benefits to working off site? Once this is all over I’ll be writing about the benefits of co-working again and hope you will come along work beside me one day at Heart Centred Creative feel free to drop me an email if you’d like to be kept in the loop!