Ways to Stay Connected in Your Industry When Working From Home

With the Covid-19 pandemic in full force since December 2019, loneliness and isolation have roots in the workforce, and working from home is the new norm. New challenges creep in with this kind of situation, and keeping up-to-date with coworkers and clients may become a nightmare overnight. The only thing that can save the problem is developing some good habits that will benefit you, your team, and clients at large. 

Although you might have come across these tips, peering into them objectively and tailoring them to your needs will increase the success rate. Take a look at the tricks and tips below to enjoy working from home and strengthen work relationships. 

Maximize get-to-know-you events for the new hires

Even with the pandemic in place, new hires are inevitable as the business continues. Some people leave their current jobs for others. As you take in new hires, you need to organize more of these get-to-know-you events.

Although remote meetings will not help you know these new fellows 100%, they help, to at least by 60%, says customersknow.com. The more you have these informal events, the more the team members get acquainted with and work collaboratively.

Re-imagine commute time

Now that you don’t have to commute to work daily, you might be tempted to lax a bit, even jumping from bed to work in your pajamas! Well, you certainly don’t want to do this. Why not try re-imagining your commute time? You could use the early mornings and lunch breaks to organize virtual coffees, live chat, video conference, or call someone. 

To make it more productive, make it formal by planning what comes next in your calendar. Suppose you keep this routine and rotate your team rationally. In that case, you will strengthen work relationships even though you are just working from home. 

Try the visual collaboration software

Humanity is diverse, and this is what makes life beautiful. Such diversity is also seen in the way people process information. While some people are auditory, others are readers/writers. Still, others are kinesthetic processors. This diversity presents its unique challenges if the only way of sharing information at work is calls and video conferences during this pandemic period. 

And that’s where the visual collaboration software comes in. For instance, MURAL recreates the typical whiteboard office experience and enhances visual collaboration. This is not only fun but takes care of the diversity in the employees.

Do group video chat even as you work silently

Working spaces are famous for the very reason of fighting isolation. Working at home can be isolating, and each day may not be a great day. The option of doing group video chat has helped many, though it has not always worked for everyone. All you need to do is to log into a video conference and keep silent. 

Although you will be working without talking to someone, hearing other people work is motivating and productive. What’s more, this setting allows you to ask questions when they arise instead of hesitating about calls. In addition, new ideas spontaneously emerge in this setting. 

Normalize home office life

While some people are pros at video conferences and may always work well with them, some are always behind and find the home office life a challenge. Part of what brings challenges is the anxiety of a kid being around doing schoolwork or your pet just coming and hopping right before the camera in no time. 

You can make your team comfortable by having your kid or bringing your cat alone during the video sessions. This makes them understand that home office life can be normalized and does not take anything from someone. What’s more, doing so deepens appreciation and connections between you and your team.

Share an apocalypse meal

Even as you work from home, sharing meals is still possible. In fact, Taco Tuesday does not have to go away for good, and you can continually re-imagine it. An easy way of doing this is by sharing an apocalypse-friendly menu with your team. There are multiple options to try, including pastry staples or instant ramen. You can do this in shifts where different people prepare recipes and share in other weeks. Then, once the recipe circulates, you can “sit down,” prepare the meal “together,” and enjoy it for an Apocalypse meal.

Set up check-in times and listen attentively

Life has its challenges, which have only worsened with the pandemic in place. Life is just challenging for children, spouses, finances, health, and anything you can imagine. And we really need someone to listen. That’s why knowing that someone cares and truly listens when they ask, “how are you doing” is pretty refreshing. 

Therefore, set up check-in times at least once every month, call a coworker, and listen as he explains himself. This deepens work relationships which the pandemic should not jeopardize.

Spice up video backgrounds

Now that you are using video conference tools more than ever, you have the opportunity to live up to people by choosing a beautiful breathtaking background for your video. In addition, you can organize contests where people select the best experiences. The other option is the “guess the location” game, where people choose pictures from vacation albums.

Working from home can be tedious and isolating, although it has become the new norm. Still, you can enjoy it and not do it just because you have. This article has shared some tips and tricks about how you can stay connected in your industry as you work remotely. 

There is a handful, including promoting with a friend, spicing video backgrounds and using visual collaboration software and doing a group video chat even as you work silently.

Rose Rosie is a writer for the personal finance website, Joy Wallet, which provides readers with useful information, resources, and tools to help maximize their financial fitness.